Editing Pub (section)

=={{Anchor|Pub grub}}Food== <!-- Courtesy note per [[WP:RSECT]]: [[Pub food]], [[Pub lunch]] and Pub grub]] link here (perhaps others) -->
{{further|Australian cuisine|English cuisine}}
[[File:Pub grub.jpg|thumb|right|Pub grub – a [[pie]], along with a pint of beer]]

Some pubs have a long tradition of serving food, dating back to their historic usage as inns and hotels where travellers would stay.

Many pubs were drinking establishments, and little emphasis was placed on the serving of food, other than sandwiches and "[[snack food|bar snacks]]", such as [[pork scratchings]], [[pickled egg]]s, salted [[crisps]] and peanuts. These all helped to increase beer sales.<ref name="rememberwhen.gazettelive.co.uk">{{cite web |url=http://rememberwhen.gazettelive.co.uk/2009/08/pub-grub.html |title=Nostalgia: Latest Nostalgia pieces from Gazette Live |publisher=Rememberwhen.gazettelive.co.uk |access-date=9 March 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140328223728/http://rememberwhen.gazettelive.co.uk/2009/08/pub-grub.html |archive-date=28 March 2014}}</ref> In [[South East England]] (especially London) it was common until recent times for vendors of [[cockle (bivalve)|cockles]], [[whelk]]s, [[mussel]]s, and other [[shellfish]] to sell them during the evening and at closing time. Many mobile shellfish stalls would set up near pubs, a practice that continues in [[London's East End]]. Otherwise, pickled cockles and mussels may be offered by the pub in jars or packets.

Starting in the 1950s, some British pubs would offer "a pie and a pint", with hot individual steak and ale pies made easily on the premises by the proprietor's wife during the lunchtime opening hours.<ref name="rememberwhen.gazettelive.co.uk"/> The [[ploughman's lunch]] became popular in the late 1960s,<ref name="rememberwhen.gazettelive.co.uk"/> as did the convenient "chicken in a basket", a portion of roast chicken with chips, served on a napkin in a wicker basket.<ref name="rememberwhen.gazettelive.co.uk"/>

Family chain pubs that serve food in the evening gained popularity in the 1970s, and included [[Berni Inn]] and [[Beefeater (restaurant)|Beefeater]].<ref name="rememberwhen.gazettelive.co.uk"/>

Quality dropped but variety increased with the introduction of [[microwave oven]]s and [[frozen food]]. "Pub grub" expanded to include British food items such as [[Meat pie|steak and ale pie]], [[shepherd's pie]], [[fish and chips]], [[bangers and mash]], [[Sunday roast]], [[ploughman's lunch]], [[chicken tikka masala]], and [[Pasty|pasties]]. In addition, dishes such as [[Hamburger|burgers]], [[Buffalo wing|chicken wings]], [[lasagne]] and [[chilli con carne]] are often served.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://www.brooklynpaper.com/stories/28/18/28_18spikehill2.html | title = Better Pub Grub | work = The Brooklyn Paper | first = Tina | last = Barry | date = 29 April 2005 | access-date = 22 July 2013 | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130512202047/http://www.brooklynpaper.com/stories/28/18/28_18spikehill2.html | archive-date = 12 May 2013}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news | url = https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/pub-grub-gets-out-of-pickle-548350 | title = Pub grub gets out of pickle | date = 27 June 2005 | access-date = 22 July 2013 | work = The Mirror | url-status = live | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140525195553/http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/pub-grub-gets-out-of-pickle-548350 | archive-date = 25 May 2014}}</ref> Some pubs offer elaborate hot and cold snacks free to customers at Sunday lunchtimes, to prevent them getting hungry and leaving for their lunch at home.

Since the 1990s, food has become a more important part of a pub's trade, and today most pubs serve lunches and dinners at the table in addition to (or instead of) snacks consumed at the bar. They may have a separate dining room. Some pubs serve meals to a higher standard, to match good restaurant standards; these are sometimes termed gastropubs.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Merriam-Webster |date=2025-03-01 |title=Definition of GASTROPUB |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gastropub |access-date=2025-03-09 |website=Merriam-Webster |language=en}}</ref>