Martin

The British Pub ﻿In what way is the pub a part of the British culture?

A pub, short for public house but also known as a “local”, is a meeting place in towns and cities. There is no big difference between a pub and a bar. A pub is known for a place where you can enjoy a drink with friends, but more recent pubs have more than that. Most pubs offer food. Some pubs also offers rooms for sleep, but these places are often called Inn, or more recently hotel. (1)

The pub is an important part of the British culture. Everywhere in Britain, no matter how small the town is, you will find a pub. Some say that if you have been to Britain, but have not entered a pub, you haven’t really been to Britain. In fact, there are about 57,000 of them, so it’s hard to miss. (2)

The pubs today face a lot of problems as they are attacked on two fronts. One of them is the younger customers, who think that the pubs are un-cool and un-fashioned. Wine bars and coffee bars are taking over the younger people. The other main problem was the smoking ban, which came in 2007. One of the solutions to this problem was to bring more food on the menu to keep the customers, but many pubs feared that they would have to close when the smoke ban came. Every year about 1000 pubs are closing down for good. (2)

Read more about the British pubs:
 * Learn more about the history of the pubs!
 * Where can I find a nice pub?
 * What kind of food can I get?
 * What kind of drinks can I get?

1: @http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house 2: Targets, H. Aschehoug & Co., 2009, Hellevi Haugen, page 132.