Tea "on the High"

Yesterday, our friend Dave Greenhalgh, dropped in for tea. Dave is a professor at Eastern University in St. David's, PA and had been in England this week visiting some cousins. They were kind enough to bring him into Oxford for a quick visit. We met at The Mitre, a restaurant "on the High" (which is the way locals refer to High Street) for what is called "cream tea".

Teatime

Here's a little lesson on tea terminology. Cream tea is a snack usually served in the late afternoon --about 4:00pm-- and usually consists of tea served in individual teapots, and scones with jam and clotted cream. (This is where the cream comes in.) The best clotted cream comes from Devonshire. High Tea is served later in the day, about 6:00pm, and is considered more of a meal, with sandwiches and fruit served in addition to pastries. The High come from the fact you eat it at a main dinner table, rather than at a small tea table. We understand that High Tea in recent years has been reserved for special, more formal occasions in British life. However, it is very common to meet friends for cream tea in the afternoon at a restaurant or tea shop.

Back to Dave. It was fun to hear about his week up in England's Lake Country and particularly about his opportunity to attend the British Open at Southport one day. As Dave reminded us, the tourneyment is referred to here as "The Open", as if there is no other.... We enjoyed getting to know his cousin and her husband as well.
--Deb