Toad in the Hole!

Hello All,

This blog post is just a quick note on food and drink in the U.K. I am trying to vary the content and method of delivery of my blog so that nobody gets bored. Prepare to be educated (in list format).

-Fish and Chips:
Before I came to the U.K. I was informed that fish and chips would be more heavily-battered than in the U.S. This, I found to be true. I also found that a dash of vinegar makes such a dish completely scrumptious.
Eric's Rating: 7/10

-Bangers and Mash:
"Bangers" are what we Brits call little sausages. They are quite satisfying when served with a steaming heap of mashed taters, swimming in gravy, and accompanied by some sort of cabbage side. Or peas. We eat peas with everything. This dish may vary slightly in its composition and presentation depending on where you go, but it's usually a safe bet (if you like sausage, that is).
Eric's Rating: 6/10 (on account of cabbage)

- Toad in the Hole:
This culinary masterpiece is the pinnacle of British soul-food, which, as you may notice, includes anything involving bread, gravy, potatoes, and/or sausage. Basically, the toad in the hole is a sausage sandwich (two sausage links and two slices of cheese in between two slices of bread) baked in a sort of puff pastry and poured over with gravy. I call this heaven on earth. When cooked properly, it simply melts in your mouth. It is salty, savoury, and altogether heart-warming. I have no idea why it was given such wretched name.
Eric's Rating: 9.5/10

-The Cornish Pasty (Pronounced "Past-ee," not "Pay-stee")
Consider, if you will, a chicken pot pie. Now take that chicken pot pie and scrape out the insides and fill it with whatever delightful combination of meat, veggies, cheese, and/or gravy that you wish (some may simply choose to leave the chicken pot pie alone...which is completely fine). Now, take that pie crust and fold it up into something that resembles a cross between a taco and an apple turnover, and you have a Cornish Pasty. Invented so that Cornish miners would be able to pack a nutritious (and dee-lishious) lunch in their coat pockets, the pasty serves as one of Britain's most wonderful grab-and-go foods. As Bath is strewn with pasty shops, I am a lucky man, indeed. My favourite flavour thus far is Chicken and Leek.
Eric's Rating: 8/10

Onto the beer...(Nattie Light is outlawed in Britain)

-Kronenbourg
A light-colored beer, I found it tame. It goes very well with food and can be found at most pubs in town. It's not the cheapest thing around, but you can do a lot worse.
Eric's Rating: 6.5/10

-Fosters with Lime
You've all heard of Fosters (Australian for Beeah), but I'm willing to bet that you may not have had Fosters with lime. It's probably better that way. I tried a sip and found that it was more like soda than beer after the syrup (maybe it's palatable with a real lime?). Avoid this little creation like the plague.
Eric's Rating: 2/10

-John Smith's Smooth
A very dark beer, and as smooth as its name implies. This is the local alternative to Guinness. It comes with a very generous head out of the tap and has a strong caramel after-taste. Sitting down for a friendly chat at your favourite pub, you can't really do much better than John Smith's.
Eric's Rating: 9/10

Also, fun pub anecdote:

The men in Bath are apparently a little bit...friendlier...than American blokes. They are more touchy-feely with other men (even if they're reported to be straight) and they can be rather forward. However, what most surprised me was when I looked over at the chap next to me (who was hitting on one of the girls in my programme) and noticed that he was sporting "man glitter." You heard me. Man. Glitter. His face was positively radiant, and he seemed to be under the impression that he was quite sexy. I'm thinking about picking some man glitter up for myself, so if anybody wants me to ship some to the states, just let me know.

Stay tuned for details on my first trip to Oxford!

-Eric "Blinded by the Man-Glitter" Kozlik