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Food & cultureBy Clever Tourists · Published
England has the most developed supermarket culture on this list. Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda and Morrisons are the big four, Aldi and Lidl undercut them, and Waitrose and M&S Food sit at the top. The useful distinction for a visitor is between the shelves that are genuinely good — cheese, tea, bakery, ready meals — and the ones that are purely nostalgic.
Cheddar is the test case. Supermarket own-brand mature cheddar is fine; a named farmhouse cheddar is a different product entirely, crumbly and sharp. Buy the latter.
Tea is the national drink and supermarket own-brand is weaker than the named blends. Yorkshire Tea and PG Tips are the standard, and loose leaf is better than bags.
Clotted cream is the thick cultured cream for scones, sold in tubs in the chilled aisle, and it is not substitutable with whipped cream.
Bread and the in-store bakery are better than the packaged loaves, and the bakery counter is where the good stuff is.
The meal deal is a sandwich, a snack and a drink for a fixed price, offered by Tesco, Sainsbury's, Boots and others. It is not gourmet and it is excellent value for a train journey.
The range qualifies differently — premium sandwiches usually sit outside the deal — so check the label before assuming.
This is the single most useful thing to know about eating cheaply on the move in England.
Marmite is the yeast extract spread, and like Vegemite the correct amount is very thin on buttered toast.
Black pudding is a blood sausage, sliced and fried, and it is a breakfast item rather than a novelty.
Pork pie is eaten cold, and Scotch egg is a hard-boiled egg wrapped in sausage meat and breaded.
HP Sauce and Branston pickle are the two condiments that appear on every pub table, and both are worth a bottle.
Sunday trading is restricted: large stores can open for only six hours, and small shops are unrestricted. Do not plan a big shop for Sunday evening.
Carrier bags are charged — typically 10p or more — and the charge applies to reusable bags too in most chains.
Christmas brings mince pies, Christmas pudding and a shelf of party food that starts in autumn.
Asparagus in late spring and strawberries in early summer are the two seasons worth timing; both are noticeably better in their window.
A sandwich or salad, a snack and a drink for a fixed price, offered by Tesco, Sainsbury's and Boots. It is the cheapest way to eat on a train journey.
Good tea, HP Sauce, Branston pickle and named farmhouse cheddar. Clotted cream and pork pies do not travel.
Large stores can open for only six hours on Sundays. Small convenience shops have no such restriction.
Roughly late April to June. English strawberries peak in early summer.
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