England

First stop. Bags packed and gas securely turned off, we are off on our adventure. But how can we not have one last meal at home for the road??

One of the key British institutions, the pub is a social hub for communities throughout the country.

The pub has been part of the British culture since 43AD (which is over 17 centuries before tea and coffee), and of course, like many other things, the history of the pub starts with The Romans. The British ales became the local delicacy and even the Romans, Angles, Saxons, Jutes and Vikings loved it.

Around the time for Henry VII is when alehouses, taverns, and inns became public houses we know and love today. At that point, the ratio of pub to people in England was 1:200 (not bad, huh?), today it’s about 1:1000.

Not only do we have to thank Henry VII’s reign for the number of pubs, but the Sunday roast, a quintessential English dish, is believed to have begun back then too. Every Sunday, after church, his royal guards would enjoy a ritual of freshly roasted beef, giving rise to term “Beefeaters”.

The George

Surprisingly, the roast is not easy to find in this part of central London. The George was one of the only pubs we found in this area that serves a traditional Sunday roast.

The George is a beautiful pub, like a maze where each room unveils a new part of its history. The roots of the pub can be traced back to at least 1543, and was rebuilt in 1676 after the Great Fire of London. The George was frequented by Shakespeare and even mentioned in Charles Dickens’ Little Dorrit and Our Mutual Friend.

The George is a perfect destination for anyone looking to soak up some English history. Hidden in a courtyard just outside of Borough market, the George portrays a wonderful sense of old fashioned English pub charm. It’s grand exterior contains an even more impressive interior, with maze of corridors and rooms of different designs scattered throughout the surprisingly large building.

The menu had a large selection of traditional English pub food, with plenty of options for the veggie and the vegan alike. Unfortunately, while they had all the categories of drinks (beer, cider, wine etc), the selection for each was limited compared to some other London pubs.

The cost of the food is average for London prices, but we got a good sized meal, filled with all the trimmings you'd expect for a Sunday roast, including tender beed and crispy potatoes. It is a hard task to mass cook roasts in a manner that pleases everyone, and whilst this won't beat a home cooked version, it was a yummy day out.

The personable and helpful service added to make the experience all the more the enjoyable.

Finally, we were so lucky to have some wonderful people join us on our first trip. While the Northern company disagreed with the addition of cauliflower cheese into the veg plate, the North/South divide didn’t stop this delightful experience.

Time to catch a boat across the channel to continue our adventure. Onwards and eastwards to France!

Recommendations

While we are only able to go to one place per country, we want to share with you some other awesome places we found/got recommended if you want to try it out and let us know

• The Founder's Arms, SE1 9JH - A pub that does Sunday roasts, located on the Southbank
• Seven stars, WC2A 2JB - The oldest pub in London
• The Falcon, SW11 1RU - Specialises in pies; another traditional English dish
• Trafalgar Tavern, SE10 9NW - Naval themed Victorian riverside pub