Dessert

Spotted dick with custard

Traditional desserts are generally served hot and highly calorific. A number are variations on suet pudding, and "pudding" is an alternative name for the dessert course in England. They have a nostalgic appeal for many Britons, hence their designation as "school" or "nursery" puddings, but currently most Britons eat lighter desserts on a daily basis, reserving traditional "pudding" for special occasions.

Suet puddings include Jam Roly-Poly, and spotted dick. Summer pudding and bread and butter pudding are based on bread. Sponge cake is the basis of sticky toffee pudding and treacle sponge pudding. Crumbles such as rhubarb crumble have a crunchy topping over stewed fruit. Other hot desserts include apple pie, treacle tart, Gypsy tart, Eton mess and trifle are served are cold desserts. An accompaniment, custard, sometimes known as crème anglaise ("English sauce") is a substitute to "eggs and milk" made from cornflour and vanilla. These dishes are simple and traditional. There is also a dried fruit based Christmas pudding, and the almond flavoured Bakewell tart originating from the town of Bakewell., Banoffee pie now known internationally was invented by a Sussex restauranteur in the 1970s. Crystallised Ginger or a Peppermint Sweet might be offered after a heavy meal to aid digestion.

Savoury course

Another English culinary tradition, rarely observed today, is the consumption of a savoury course toward the conclusion of a meal. This now though may be eaten as a snack or a light lunch or supper. Some meals today end with a sweet dessert, although cheese and biscuits may be consumed as an alternative or as an addition. In Yorkshire, fruit cake is often served with Wensleydale cheese. Coffee can sometimes be a culminatory drink.

British tea culture

Black tea with milk

Catherine of Braganza, wife of Charles II, took the tea habit to Great Britain around 1660, subsequently to the introduction of coffee. Initially, its expense restricted it to wealthy consumers, but the price gradually dropped, until the 19th century, when tea became as widely consumed as it is today.

In Britain, tea is usually black tea served with milk (never cream; the cream of a "cream tea" is clotted cream served on top of scones then normally strawberry jam on top, a tradition originating from Devon and Cornwall). Strong tea served with lots of milk and often two teaspoons of sugar, usually in a mug, is commonly referred to as builder's tea. Much of the time in the United Kingdom, tea drinking is not the delicate, refined cultural expression that the rest of the world imagines—a cup (or commonly a mug) of tea is something drunk often, with some people drinking six or more cups of tea a day. Employers generally allow breaks for tea and sometimes biscuits to be served. A mug of tea is the standard accompaniment to a meal in an inexpensive unlicensed eatery, such as a café or "caff". Earl Grey tea is a distinctive variation flavoured with Bergamot. In recent years, herbal teas and speciality teas have also become popular.

Coffee

Hogarth depicts Tom King's Coffee House (later Moll King's Coffee House) in his painting Four Times of the Day. Introduced in the 17th century, coffee quickly became highly popular by the 18th century. The coffee houses of London were important literary, commercial and political meeting-places, and in some cases paved the way for the great financial institutions of 19th Century London. Coffee is now perhaps a little less popular than in continental Europe, but is still drunk by many in both its instant and percolated forms, often with milk (but rarely with cream). Italian coffee preparations such as espresso and cappuccino and modern American variants such as the frappuccino are increasingly popular, but generally purchased in restaurants or from specialist coffee shops rather than made in the home. White sugar is often added to individual cups of tea, or brown sugar to coffee, but never to the pot.