Nando's is in Canada too. None where Alanna is from though. They aren't that big here, I think. I've maybe seen ads but I've never actually seen one of their restaurants here in Canada.
From Australia, as a Brit, the place doesn't seem the same as it was 20 years ago, when I left. And I DO want to return. But it seems very expensive, work conditions are generally poor, healthcare is worse (Australian healthcare is a cross between UK and US. So many people have private health, and many GPs charge, but everyone gets those costs subsidised by government. Usually about 60%, but once you spent over a limit in a year it jumps to about 85%, but the quality is very high and often when you need it). Maybe someone who has returned after 10+ years away, can tell me what is it like now? Also I work in state government. I'm right in the middle of the pay scale, and get AU$100,000 a year. Which currently exchanges to £56k. Pay in the UK seems awful in comparison.
Can we have a change of background scenery please. I love the brick wall and plant but it would be even better to look at something new, maybe a window or a different wall?
When you visit Stonehenge, go to Salisbury, admire the cathedral and find 'The Haunch of Venison' pub in the centre of town; there you can enjoy a cider and don't forget to ask to see 'the hand in the wall'. I love all of your RUclipss that I've watched. Please keep on keepin' on.
If you feel bad about being mean about Jamie Oliver, just remember he called his son Buddy Bear, and his daughter Daisy Boo. In his defence, I had his ham and free range egg sandwich pack from a petrol station, it came with a drink and Veg samosa. All delicious - perhaps one for a taste test video?
@@AdventuresAndNaps dont forget Jamie oliver never went near the sandwich, they're all made in generic factories along with all the other supermarket sandwiches
Are modern air con units noisy? In Florida we could choose between not sleeping because of the heat, or because of the rattling roar of the air con. I might consider buying one if they are quieter now.
Yorkshireman with 100% Scottish parentage here. And I totally agree with the hot weather thing also. The thing is, it's usually easy enough to keep warm enough if the temperature drops a bit. But much harder to get cool if it heats up like the odd red hot July we have here in the UK.
I live on the south coast. My Victorian house stays really cool inside during the summer. I think it's something to do with the bricks. They are unlike modern bricks and just seem not to absorb the heat.
Alana, I love baked beans! They go with a jacket potato, fish and chips, chicken and chips (at kfc they put bbq sauce in them), a full english, but definitely not with meat and gravy. In fact, as a kid I'd love to eat cod in butter sauce with mashed potato and baked beans. They just go so great with white meat and potato. I also like to have baked beans with white rice or Mexican rice. A cheap faux way to pretend you're eating mexican food. :p They also go with eggs, bacon, sausages etc. But if you think they're too boring, you can always jazz them up with chili powder, black pepper, brown sauce, bbq sauce, or even go crazy with indian spices. ;)
I have a solar generator and panels so not having air con would be silly as it’s free to use, even if it’s only for a few days a year. I pull it out and set it up if it gets above 26c and in the afternoons as my lounge is south facing so it gets hot fast even on the milder days. Free air con via solar is a blessing.
On the "overcooked veg" thing... yes and no! It's certainly true that historically we would overcook our vegetables but over the years we've (mostly) realised the error of our ways. No longer mush but tasty, firm carrots, cauliflower, green beans etc.. There's a common joke that we "put the sprouts on" sometime in October in preparation for Christmas dinner!
Oh, if only this was so. Not round these parts, I'm afraid. My wife and I don't overcook veg, but have LOTS of friends who do - in some cases to the point where (say) a piece of cauliflower looks perfect but disintegrates at the first touch of the fork. Also, almost every budge to mid range restaurant (carveries, hotels and so on) overcooks. I should mention we aren't fans of near raw veg or anything - just the sort of firmness you mention.
I despise carveries because it reminds me of school, waiting in a queue surrounded by annoying people with your tray waiting to get served. I want to sit and drink a beer, chatting with friends until my food comes to me.
I don’t think British people can stand too much heat anyway. A friend sold his house and the family migrated to Australia. He said the heat was unbearable it was 80 degrees everyday. He said he couldn’t get used it and guess what he came back after 4 years.
For me the most overrated thing about UK is soccer. I find it a very boring sport but so many British males of all ages just assume everyone is interested in it.
One of the most overrated things in Britain is American fast food. Not because American fast food is bad but because our version of it is bad. In Brighton, a Wendy's just opened. I'm pretty sure the menu is smaller than in the US, but the most ridiculous thing is our response to it. People literally queued round the block to get a Baconator just because they've seen it on Instagram and whatnot. Same thing happened when Five Guys opened. We have SO MANY burger places already - some of the US ones like McDonalds and Burger King, some British chains and loads of local joints too - but people always seem to absolutely lose their shit when one of the big American chains opens up here. 6 weeks later the place is usually half dead inside, just awash with untidied food waste and day drunks.
Hi Alanna, Congratulations on getting an A/C unit. I hope it makes your summers much more comfortable. I agree with you that Carveries are not very good. In 2019, I went to a Chicago concert at Ravinia, which is an outdoor concert venue in Highland Park Illinois, and they had an all you can eat carvery station, and the chicken and beef were both so overcooked and dried out that it reminded me of the dinner scene in National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation when Clark goes to carve the turkey and it was totally ruined. Anyways, I hope you have a great day.
Hi Mark I'm glad you didn' make a typo. I would have felt badly for you. Perhaps it was me just reading too fast. anyway c u next tuesday was the first thing that sprang to mind. All the best rab. ;)
Have you tried a carvery without the meat? I tried it once in a pub and it was really cheap. I think that the only protein was in the stuffing. You could go back as often as you liked.
Can you get ice tea there? I'm from Florida in Southern U.S. and icedtea is part of the southern thing. Come visit. I'd love to show you and your partner around. I live in St. Petersburg, and it's a beautiful place.
I've had some excellent carvery meals, and some excellent Sunday roasts, but you're absolutely right that the quality can be very variable and you have to stick with the ones you can trust. As a rule, and this covers MacDonalds, Wetherspoons and Nandos, the bigger the chain the poorer the quality of the product and the less interest the staff have in the customer.
Spot on about London. I worked in and around that city for a couple of decades and the only way to survive commuting is to use a form of self-hypnosis to switch off. It also stopped 'happening' as it was called in the 60s, the result being that social spots would close at 11:30pm leaving peop[e wandering around the streets looking for a place that was still open. I'm now happy living back in Oxford and you couldn't pay me enough to visit the old place.
I can't remember the last cup or mug of tea.... its gotta be over 30 years ago. Im a coffee drinker and communication is not possible in the morning until my 3rd or 4th mug of verbal oil has lubricated my brain and it has convinced the grey matter that communication might now be possible....
Ant 'n' Dec owe their fame to a children's TV series called Byker Grove. As a spin-off, they had a short-lived pop act under their character's names (PJ and Duncan), then moved over to ITV as the channel's favourite hosts for prime time TV. They've been named most popular presenters at the National Television Awards for 20 years running (largely due to their "Saturday Night Takeaway" series, but possibly also for their presenting of the UK version of IAC:GMOOH!). More recently, Philip Schofield and Holly Willoughby have also become ITV favourites, popping up everywhere. Even worse, Philip also does adverts for a car buying company, and they sponsor some of his shows - so you get Philip presenting, Philip doing the sponsored by break bumpers, and quite often Philip in an ad during each break...
Yup - right there with you about Ant and/or Dec. I've no idea which is which. Or even if they're capable of being split into two. or if they're some weird kind of symbiotic thing.
@@ougadougou9 Well I don't really mind what sort of test it is. I live in SA and there is only one brand of beans you buy... Koo. But since I am moving to the UK in 18 months I would like to know what is the best baked bean to buy.
I lived up in Hatfield for 3 years. (Doncaster one. Eddie-u-know Milliband was our local M.P. at the time.) Near there was a nice country gastro pub called 'The Green Tree,' where they did carveries on weekdays for £3.99. One serving of meat/s per ticket. BUT.. unlimited refills of veg. I commented to the then wife that the local eldies on a tight budget could probably have got away with eating half a weeks food a couple of times a week at the carvery. And saved themselves money on feeding themselves.
3:48 tfw you've always cut the scone in half, put an equal amount of jam on one side and cream on the other side, then push them together. Do I win the debate?
Hi Alanna, so pleased you've got ait-con now. You mentioned new ones were very expensive - I wondered if they are much cheaper in Canada? Also, when you fire it up, I'm keen to hear how expensive you find it to run. Keep cool & keep us posted.
Window ACs are much cheaper (and more effective) than free standing ones. But you need traditional sash windows in order to put them in and, in my experience, a lot of newer windows in the UK are not the ones you push up and down. Whereas in the US, homes usually have that style of window. So it’s pretty cheap to buy and install window AC units in North America.
Carverys can on occasion be really like a home Sunday roast, but many have over cooked (dryed out) meat(s) and hard roasties and al-dente (undercooked) veg.
Idea of a carvery - yum, yum! Toby Carvery - yuk yuk! Early Ed Sheeran - top notch, everything after - snooze-fest. I just love a Greggs sausage roll! Or maybe I just like any sausage roll. Another hard hitting, thought-provoking video! 😀
Love this video Alanna great fun lots of information in this I am an Englishman that hates baked beans on toast 😂 I am a pg tip man not keen on Yorkshire tea and I am also a southerner living in the East Midlands great video great job 👍👍
jam spreads, cream drops. so a layer of jam goes down first then a dollop of cream. one would look common as muck, spreading cream and then dolloping jam on top.
I really don't get this Wetherspoons sticky carpet thing. I live in a city with 4 Wetherspoons pubs, and although I usually use the city centre one, I have been to the others more than once. In addition we have been to Wetherspoons pubs in nearby towns and even one 60 miles away. I have never experienced a sticky carpet. I agree about the toilets though. However my city centre pub was refurbished about 3 years ago, and the toilets are now conveniently placed on each of the 2 levels. Maybe Tim Martin has taken note of that complaint at last.
Trouble is, finding a decent pub carvery is tough. The big firms have bought out many smaller establishments. And you often cannot tell until its too late. I search high and low for decent pub grub. Don't mind paying a premium
I think u/Harry-Otter wasn't talking about restaurant roast dinners, but the roast dinners people have in their home's. I'e, they prefer pre-made over made from scratch.
Well done Alanna, you successfully navigated the bear & elephant traps! I do agree with you about carveries. Lots of overcooked veg & a few sliced of over-dry meat isn't my idea of a good meal out. Roast dinners similarly. You have to go to a local independent eatery (we have a superb one in my home town- let's hear it for the Dales Cottage Café in Skipton!). Sunday lunch there is great. As always Alanna, have a great weekend. All the best.
Went to Nando's when there were only a few branches and it was really good. It seems that these chains start off with high standards and then let them side as they expand
I'm sure you've all heard this before, but:- Q. What's the difference between a Scone and a Scon? A. Before you eat it, it's a Scone, and after you've eaten it, it's scon. 😁 Sorry, this joke is easier to tell than to write.
Yorkshire Tea was only "invented" as a marketing exercise 45 years ago. So while it's certainly /possible/ your mother brought you up on it, it's not something that's been a favourite for generations. Having said that, I like it a lot.
Yorkshire tea is not from Yorkshire. Tea is usually from India. Yorkshire doesn't grow tea. Like you say, Yorkshire tea is just a marketing ploy to bamboozle thick Yorkshire inbreds.
It's funny how my parents are avid tea drinkers (they tend to drink Yorkshire Tea and PG Tips) and they were super against coffee and usually people will drink the same as their parents, but I absolutely hate tea and I'm much more of a coffee drinker. So much so that I unintentionally managed to influence multiple family members to drink coffee, INCLUDING my parents haha I did a bit of an uno reverse card on them lol Now my parents will go on a coffee date with each other at least once a week to have a latte and a sandwich or soup which I think is really adorable I think tea is overrated and I do get tired of hearing about it, especially as the majority of people I know don't even like tea (or rather, they don't like British tea - usually they'd prefer boba or something)
I just thought of another UK only issue. Cream and the fact that most cream containers do not come with a lid! So, if you open the fridge and it falls out you have a nightmare. Milk has lids so why not cream? I have asked a few times but never got an answer. 😁
@@zapkvr strange how you can buy a 1 pint of milk and it has a lid but the same volume of cream it does not. Also, going to the shops every day to get cream is not really ideal and not very good for the environment. I get the larger ones and decant them into a bottle that goes into the fridge. Why they don’t do a 1 pint bottle like they do milk is beyond me. It is unique to the UK and in Canada you get cream containers with lids so it is quite odd to us.
I like Wetherspoons because the destitute and disfigured clientelle creates the illusion that you're in an actual medieval tavern. And you simply cannot argue with £1.60 for a pint of bitter.
I think when it comes to the well known outlets such as greggs, costa coffee,cafe nero,nando,s, toby carvery,etc etc you can expect a similar experience its like its done to a price..but find yourself a cafe or pub thats not a chain and you will fare better.i had an amazing roast dinner which surpassed toby in quantity and taste and it was a small cafe in a uk park and half the price of the big chains.infact it beat anything which my own city could serve up !
I agreed with just about everything you said, except for the Carvery. I have a Toby's Carvery near to me and the food has always been great as it is a free pub. The choice of meats and the taste is excellent with all you can eat veg that still has a crunch to them if you see A Carvery full of old people, leave because the veg will be overcooked and tasteless as they cater for the old who ofter can't chew and have no tastebuds left.
How dare you stereotype us oldies? I just turned 81 and I do have taste buds left. When I cook a meat and veg meal, I always strive to get my vegetables to that point where they have lost their rawness but still have a crunch to them, because they taste so much better to me. Not being a brilliant cook, I sometimes fail, and feel so disappointed. Maybe that's because I was brought up by a mother who was a brilliant cook, and a father who grew all his own vegetables.
@@derekcolman Hi Deric,I am sure that it would be a privledge to sit at your table and share a meal with you rather than listen to the comment/opinion of the above ignorant youth. Also at 81 years of age and still managing to look after yourself daily is admirable (please do not think that I am patronising you Sir) I've come accross people half your age who couldn't make a marmalade sandwitch if it wasn't for their mum telling them how to! More power to you. All the best to you and yours. Rab
What about having scones plain like I do? Also Nandos is South African and the quality depends on which Nandos you go to because there are different grades of chicken. If you go to one that has the better quality chicken then it can be very nice. It also can depend on what you choose from the menu. The majority of people drink tea incorrectly. Do not put milk or sugar in it.
Huh? I've been to loads of Wetherspoons and the toilet is always either somewhere on the same floor, or downstairs... Food can be a bit hit or miss, agreed.
In my spoons the toilet is up 2 flights of stairs! Spoons don't have any choice about the quality of their food. An employee explained to me that it is all ordered centrally and bussed out to the various pubs. First steak I ever had there was restaurant quality, but that was the only one. I also regret that the smell of food is ever-present at our local, regardless of the time of day - complete lack of scavenging system. On the up side, the staff have been fab at every spoons I've ever been in.
Beans and sausages on toast with white pepper.....but twice heated beans and sausage, boil then cool then heat again..........and on special occasions a fried egg, large can need 3 toast and eat the spillage first
Waiting another 90 minutes for a local carvery’s leftovers via a ‘too good to go’ app. Dirt cheap. Haven’t had beans on toast for a while, will rectify that for tomorrow’s breakfast, with HP sauce.
Beans on toast is one of the childhood comfort foods I have occasionally. As Alanna said not the best, but good on a cold, wet winter day. I've never understood the jam or cream first debate when it comes to scones, in my opinion they taste as good either way round (jam/cream cream/jam).
I don't understand why all roast dinners come with Yorkshire puddings, there was a time when it was only served with a beef dinner, not talking about toad in the hole.
Beans on Toast PLUS, Heinz bean (has to be Heinz) 4mm think slice of Double Gloucester cheese cut in to 4mm square, add cheese to beans with a little black pepper cook until cheese melts, serve on hot toast and enjoy with a cup of English Breakfast Tea. I have been eating this as a snack/meal for over 50 years. Now a little challenge, There is a concert at The Troxy Theatre London on the 14th June at 7pm, have someone buy you a ticket so you do not know what the event is until you arrive as I would love to hear your reaction to the concert. If you do manage to get there and you see an old man in a suit with a walking stick that has a horses head handle that will be me. Listen to youtube "The Ballard of the Wogglers Moulie" by Kenneth Williams and "The Ballard of Freda and Barry" by Victoria Wood. Reaction to both please.
Good taste in TV..!! :) I remember watching the Iraq wars; and watching the reactions in the early episodes of Have I Got News For You. But Ant and Dec have presented lots of shows since the nineties, and now they own the production company that produces lots of the mainstream flagship shows on British Television. For example, I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here is one of theirs. I think they might have created I'm a Celebrity; but I'm not sure. It's mainstream stuff but always a pleasant, high quality distraction. lol And they're not fat egos, who insist on being the stars. For Britain's got talent, they are the back stage sidekicks; offering encouragement, reports and reaction. *So not high brow; but they play a well deserved healthy role in British TV*
great video, I'm desperate to know where you're sourcing your cut-priced home fittings from. Also want to point out that Nando's is basically the only place in the UK with free refills on fountain drinks, which shocked me as another ex-pat - so maybe one point in their column? But agree that the food is medium-rubbish
I always put grated cheese on top of my beans on toast. It tastes really nice especially as it starts melting! Absolute comfort food! As far as scones, I put cream first and them strawberry jam on top...yum!
The reason I like Nando's over McDonalds is that the food in Nando's is made of actual food. Very much agree with Jamie Oliver and Ant&Dec (they became famous for Byker Grove and the song 'Let's Get Ready To Rumble')
Very happy for you. Buying an AC unit will really make the few nights where it is horribly hot soooo much better. Once you have experienced it you will say to yourself why the heck did we not buy one of theses years ago! Hopefully, it comes with a window kit as your windows are absolutely perfect for using a portable AC Unit. Beans on toast and a nice cupa is just so British and very much a comfort food. Can’t say I do it anymore but as a kid, even in Canada, I had beens on toast.
Well, if you want good tea at a reasonable price, nothing (imo) is better then Co-op Indian Prince (of those available in tea bags). Mind you, to get it, you have to be within striking distance of a Co--op that sells it (not all do). My most over-rated thing is the South, too, even though I was born in Middlesex and brought up in Surrey. At the age of 19, when I was at university in Oxford, my parents moved to Yorkshire (the Huddersfield area), so, at the start of one term I left home from Surrey to go back to Oxford, and when I went home again, I went to Huddersfield, which was a much better place in all respects. The second most over-rated thing is Lancashire, Lancastrians, and everything from Lancashire.
I quite like Slug & Lettuce myself, I eat there fairly often if I'm meeting up with a friend or family member for lunch. Though I've only ever been to the one that's in my own city so maybe I just have a particularly good local one? :)
Let me be clear. I lived in Southern Africa and love Nandos. If you have a problem with their taste then it speaks more about the food you grew up eating or that you aren't very adventurous.
Great video you always bring a wonderful smile.. Aircon wow Energy costs in the UK have just gon up around 50 percent and are set to rise again...... Wheathspoons is ok. Eaten there a few times. Toby carvery is ok. Nandos in general chicken is dry and it's not cheap. I'd rather have a Macdonald's
Alanna you must visit a Weatherspoons when they have a Cider festival, you will love it 😈! As regards Tea, if you’ve only tried T bags that’s not giving you the real taste, besides that a lot of them use bleached paper and contain micro plastics in the adhesive that they glue them together with 🤢, we use leaf tea and brew it properly (1 tsp/person + 1 for the pot in a pre warmed pot stand for 3-4 mins and add the tea to the milk), try it and find out!
@@elizabethw.454 we have a couple, Twinings Breakfast tea, Twinings Assam, Yorkshire, Twinings Earl grey, sometimes Tesco or Sainsbury’s or M&S Gold label. We tend to choose from those depending on who’s are on offer 😂
I like beans on toast with an EGG on top (cooked of course). Real cheap carveries you do question what the meat is. And it is CREAM first, so Devon. Ant and Dec were seen in a TV show called Grange Hill, were terrible in that so they put them on other shows to destroy them. You don't need air conditioning, that's why we have pubs. Greggs and restaurant in the same breath?? Wet-her-spoon toilets are normally upstairs, but check the carpets out. All are different. Don't go North, got to the Midlands. Stratford upon Avon you would like, and Warwick.
Never eaten at Nando’s. This was never a thing when I was younger, it didn’t come to the UK until the 90s and didn’t take off until the 2000s, so it is not really a tradition, at least not a long one. I have eaten peri peri in Portugal which is where it came from. I think Nando’s is a South African interpretation.
I don't get the jam and cream thing. Cream is soft, you can't spread anything on it because it's so soft. How on earth can you spread jam on cream? That makes no sense. Jam first then the soft whipped cream on top.
I see that we share similar taste on TV. I watch very little (been weeks since I last watched TV) but will watch WILTY and HIGNFY (QI's not too bad either). Good video and I agreed with most of them!
Im a Brit, I resisted Nandos for ages because it just seemed like another chain restaurant. And when I finally did go yes- its just another chain restaurant. And you have to go up and get your own food like a canteen. I like spicy chicken and rice and stuff but i'm not going to rush back- I'll leave it to the teenagers. Carveries are just crap roast dinners. But that said they are usually pretty cheap and if you find a decent one its not a bad option.
OMG. I agree with the thumbnail. Nando's sucks ! I remember living in London, trying to organise a diner party for my birthday and one of the girl said " let's go to Nando's " to which I disagreed and she went " YOU DON'T LIKE NANDO'S, WHATS WRONG WITH YOU ? " I replied, " I'm not gonna spend money on a dry piece of Chicken I could get from Tesco ! " Hahaha.
In defence of Britain; Nando's isn't British. It's a South African chain.
of portuguese food...
But part of UK culture landscape.
Nando's is in Canada too. None where Alanna is from though. They aren't that big here, I think. I've maybe seen ads but I've never actually seen one of their restaurants here in Canada.
@@virtualsnake1994 ...sort of...it doesn't really look like what Portuguese people would eat though.
To a Portugese dish/ recipe. All the best David to you and yours' Rab
Cuteness overload on today's post.
A good carvery is awesome ! Perfect Sunday outing.
From Australia, as a Brit, the place doesn't seem the same as it was 20 years ago, when I left. And I DO want to return. But it seems very expensive, work conditions are generally poor, healthcare is worse (Australian healthcare is a cross between UK and US. So many people have private health, and many GPs charge, but everyone gets those costs subsidised by government. Usually about 60%, but once you spent over a limit in a year it jumps to about 85%, but the quality is very high and often when you need it).
Maybe someone who has returned after 10+ years away, can tell me what is it like now? Also I work in state government. I'm right in the middle of the pay scale, and get AU$100,000 a year. Which currently exchanges to £56k. Pay in the UK seems awful in comparison.
Yea for AC. Report from Canada: I had to turn my AC on yesterday (Saskatchewan at +27C). Happy Spring!
Can we have a change of background scenery please. I love the brick wall and plant but it would be even better to look at something new, maybe a window or a different wall?
For most overstated tourist attraction, how about Stonehenge? £22 to get in, expensive gift shop and you can walk round it in a minute.
When you visit Stonehenge, go to Salisbury, admire the cathedral and find 'The Haunch of Venison' pub in the centre of town; there you can enjoy a cider and don't forget to ask to see 'the hand in the wall'. I love all of your RUclipss that I've watched. Please keep on keepin' on.
If you feel bad about being mean about Jamie Oliver, just remember he called his son Buddy Bear, and his daughter Daisy Boo.
In his defence, I had his ham and free range egg sandwich pack from a petrol station, it came with a drink and Veg samosa. All delicious - perhaps one for a taste test video?
I detest that man, Cockny lowlife, Had to smile to my self when his restraunts failed.🤣😊
Fair point, I'll keep an eye out for them next time!
@@AdventuresAndNaps dont forget Jamie oliver never went near the sandwich, they're all made in generic factories along with all the other supermarket sandwiches
His restaurants were rubbish, pretentious. The food was average at best.
@@gdfggggg Names of the ones you visited please and if you are a chef or food critic Who do you work for. Otherwise this is just trolling.
That was really funny! Hope you’re having a nice break, you deserve it!
Thanks! 😃
Another excellent posting, you are brilliant and your wit is outstanding on all your subjects :-)
Thank you kindly!
Are modern air con units noisy? In Florida we could choose between not sleeping because of the heat, or because of the rattling roar of the air con. I might consider buying one if they are quieter now.
Air con in UK is Lager or cider, and if it gets too hot and sticky just beat somebody up.
Yorkshireman with 100% Scottish parentage here. And I totally agree with the hot weather thing also. The thing is, it's usually easy enough to keep warm enough if the temperature drops a bit. But much harder to get cool if it heats up like the odd red hot July we have here in the UK.
Totally agree!
I live on the south coast. My Victorian house stays really cool inside during the summer. I think it's something to do with the bricks. They are unlike modern bricks and just seem not to absorb the heat.
Alana, I love baked beans! They go with a jacket potato, fish and chips, chicken and chips (at kfc they put bbq sauce in them), a full english, but definitely not with meat and gravy. In fact, as a kid I'd love to eat cod in butter sauce with mashed potato and baked beans. They just go so great with white meat and potato. I also like to have baked beans with white rice or Mexican rice. A cheap faux way to pretend you're eating mexican food. :p They also go with eggs, bacon, sausages etc.
But if you think they're too boring, you can always jazz them up with chili powder, black pepper, brown sauce, bbq sauce, or even go crazy with indian spices. ;)
I have a solar generator and panels so not having air con would be silly as it’s free to use, even if it’s only for a few days a year. I pull it out and set it up if it gets above 26c and in the afternoons as my lounge is south facing so it gets hot fast even on the milder days.
Free air con via solar is a blessing.
On the "overcooked veg" thing... yes and no! It's certainly true that historically we would overcook our vegetables but over the years we've (mostly) realised the error of our ways. No longer mush but tasty, firm carrots, cauliflower, green beans etc.. There's a common joke that we "put the sprouts on" sometime in October in preparation for Christmas dinner!
Oh, if only this was so. Not round these parts, I'm afraid. My wife and I don't overcook veg, but have LOTS of friends who do - in some cases to the point where (say) a piece of cauliflower looks perfect but disintegrates at the first touch of the fork. Also, almost every budge to mid range restaurant (carveries, hotels and so on) overcooks. I should mention we aren't fans of near raw veg or anything - just the sort of firmness you mention.
Yes I'll be there shortly , just having i quick tea after taking Lenny for a walk .
I despise carveries because it reminds me of school, waiting in a queue surrounded by annoying people with your tray waiting to get served. I want to sit and drink a beer, chatting with friends until my food comes to me.
The meats are good, but all the vegetables are tired and overcooked from being kept hot.
I don’t think British people can stand too much heat anyway. A friend sold his house and the family migrated to Australia. He said the heat was unbearable it was 80 degrees everyday. He said he couldn’t get used it and guess what he came back after 4 years.
For me the most overrated thing about UK is soccer. I find it a very boring sport but so many British males of all ages just assume everyone is interested in it.
Good point!!
Love of football is not a British thing, it's global. All sports are overrated to watch in my opinion.
One of the most overrated things in Britain is American fast food.
Not because American fast food is bad but because our version of it is bad.
In Brighton, a Wendy's just opened. I'm pretty sure the menu is smaller than in the US, but the most ridiculous thing is our response to it. People literally queued round the block to get a Baconator just because they've seen it on Instagram and whatnot. Same thing happened when Five Guys opened. We have SO MANY burger places already - some of the US ones like McDonalds and Burger King, some British chains and loads of local joints too - but people always seem to absolutely lose their shit when one of the big American chains opens up here.
6 weeks later the place is usually half dead inside, just awash with untidied food waste and day drunks.
I always stick a fried egg on top of beans on toast. So quick and easy and can replace a meal.
Good idea
Nice one Alanna. Very much agree about cheap carverys, especially the ones where they cut your allotted three slices of meat soooo thin.
Yes! Thank you!
Hi Alanna,
Congratulations on getting an A/C unit. I hope it makes your summers much more comfortable.
I agree with you that Carveries are not very good. In 2019, I went to a Chicago concert at Ravinia, which is an outdoor concert venue in Highland Park Illinois, and they had an all you can eat carvery station, and the chicken and beef were both so overcooked and dried out that it reminded me of the dinner scene in National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation when Clark goes to carve the turkey and it was totally ruined. Anyways, I hope you have a great day.
Hi Mark I'm glad you didn' make a typo. I would have felt badly for you. Perhaps it was me just reading too fast. anyway c u next tuesday was the first thing that sprang to mind. All the best rab. ;)
Love this video You have absolutely nailed it all!! :-)
Have you tried a carvery without the meat? I tried it once in a pub and it was really cheap. I think that the only protein was in the stuffing. You could go back as often as you liked.
Can you get ice tea there? I'm from Florida in Southern U.S. and icedtea is part of the southern thing. Come visit. I'd love to show you and your partner around. I live in St. Petersburg, and it's a beautiful place.
People from the USA and Canada "Hike"
Brits walk, ramble, yomp, fell walk, .etc. depending....
Your bravery to tackle thorny debates seems to know no bounds in recent weeks. I like it.
I've had some excellent carvery meals, and some excellent Sunday roasts, but you're absolutely right that the quality can be very variable and you have to stick with the ones you can trust. As a rule, and this covers MacDonalds, Wetherspoons and Nandos, the bigger the chain the poorer the quality of the product and the less interest the staff have in the customer.
Spot on about London. I worked in and around that city for a couple of decades and the only way to survive commuting is to use a form of self-hypnosis to switch off. It also stopped 'happening' as it was called in the 60s, the result being that social spots would close at 11:30pm leaving peop[e wandering around the streets looking for a place that was still open. I'm now happy living back in Oxford and you couldn't pay me enough to visit the old place.
Loved this and loved your recent tea video too 👍😉👌
Nothing wrong with nostalgic comfort food - Beans on Toast. ❤️
Especially with a fried egg & grated cheese on top
Snob
I can't remember the last cup or mug of tea.... its gotta be over 30 years ago. Im a coffee drinker and communication is not possible in the morning until my 3rd or 4th mug of verbal oil has lubricated my brain and it has convinced the grey matter that communication might now be possible....
Ant 'n' Dec owe their fame to a children's TV series called Byker Grove. As a spin-off, they had a short-lived pop act under their character's names (PJ and Duncan), then moved over to ITV as the channel's favourite hosts for prime time TV. They've been named most popular presenters at the National Television Awards for 20 years running (largely due to their "Saturday Night Takeaway" series, but possibly also for their presenting of the UK version of IAC:GMOOH!).
More recently, Philip Schofield and Holly Willoughby have also become ITV favourites, popping up everywhere. Even worse, Philip also does adverts for a car buying company, and they sponsor some of his shows - so you get Philip presenting, Philip doing the sponsored by break bumpers, and quite often Philip in an ad during each break...
Yup - right there with you about Ant and/or Dec. I've no idea which is which. Or even if they're capable of being split into two. or if they're some weird kind of symbiotic thing.
You need to do a video rating the different brands of beans! We need to know which beans are the best.
A blind taste test?
@@ougadougou9 Well I don't really mind what sort of test it is. I live in SA and there is only one brand of beans you buy... Koo.
But since I am moving to the UK in 18 months I would like to know what is the best baked bean to buy.
😂 Beans! I'm on it!
Any other result than Heinz as number one and its rigged, a fix!
@@andrewdavidson665 Since Heinz is American I'm sure (well I hope) there is a superior British brand.
I lived up in Hatfield for 3 years. (Doncaster one. Eddie-u-know Milliband was our local M.P. at the time.) Near there was a nice country gastro pub called 'The Green Tree,' where they did carveries on weekdays for £3.99. One serving of meat/s per ticket. BUT.. unlimited refills of veg. I commented to the then wife that the local eldies on a tight budget could probably have got away with eating half a weeks food a couple of times a week at the carvery. And saved themselves money on feeding themselves.
3:48 tfw you've always cut the scone in half, put an equal amount of jam on one side and cream on the other side, then push them together.
Do I win the debate?
Hi Alanna, so pleased you've got ait-con now. You mentioned new ones were very expensive - I wondered if they are much cheaper in Canada? Also, when you fire it up, I'm keen to hear how expensive you find it to run. Keep cool & keep us posted.
Window ACs are much cheaper (and more effective) than free standing ones. But you need traditional sash windows in order to put them in and, in my experience, a lot of newer windows in the UK are not the ones you push up and down. Whereas in the US, homes usually have that style of window. So it’s pretty cheap to buy and install window AC units in North America.
Carverys can on occasion be really like a home Sunday roast, but many have over cooked (dryed out) meat(s) and hard roasties and al-dente (undercooked) veg.
Idea of a carvery - yum, yum! Toby Carvery - yuk yuk! Early Ed Sheeran - top notch, everything after - snooze-fest. I just love a Greggs sausage roll! Or maybe I just like any sausage roll. Another hard hitting, thought-provoking video! 😀
Love this video Alanna great fun lots of information in this I am an Englishman that hates baked beans on toast 😂 I am a pg tip man not keen on Yorkshire tea and I am also a southerner living in the East Midlands great video great job 👍👍
jam spreads, cream drops. so a layer of jam goes down first then a dollop of cream. one would look common as muck, spreading cream and then dolloping jam on top.
You should try Tromso in the middle of summer when you get 24hrs of sunshine
i also like lots of cream, my thinking very thin jam layer, pile up cream til is starts sliding off about an inch and a half of cream later
I really don't get this Wetherspoons sticky carpet thing. I live in a city with 4 Wetherspoons pubs, and although I usually use the city centre one, I have been to the others more than once. In addition we have been to Wetherspoons pubs in nearby towns and even one 60 miles away. I have never experienced a sticky carpet. I agree about the toilets though. However my city centre pub was refurbished about 3 years ago, and the toilets are now conveniently placed on each of the 2 levels. Maybe Tim Martin has taken note of that complaint at last.
Trouble is, finding a decent pub carvery is tough. The big firms have bought out many smaller establishments. And you often cannot tell until its too late. I search high and low for decent pub grub. Don't mind paying a premium
Now this looks interesting - great topic to talk about. Well done.
Nandos is from South Africa, NOT UK
In Canada we used to have Mother Tuckers. It was a good Carvery
Try Weatherspoons in Whistable. It’s unique. Worth a visit if only once.
Yet another great experience keep up the good work beautiful ❤️❤️
I think u/Harry-Otter wasn't talking about restaurant roast dinners, but the roast dinners people have in their home's. I'e, they prefer pre-made over made from scratch.
Well done Alanna, you successfully navigated the bear & elephant traps!
I do agree with you about carveries. Lots of overcooked veg & a few sliced of over-dry meat isn't my idea of a good meal out.
Roast dinners similarly. You have to go to a local independent eatery (we have a superb one in my home town- let's hear it for the Dales Cottage Café in Skipton!). Sunday lunch there is great.
As always Alanna, have a great weekend. All the best.
Thank you so much!
It's scone like gone not scone like cone.
As to whether cream or jam is first, I couldn't care less. It tastes the same either way.
Went to Nando's when there were only a few branches and it was really good. It seems that these chains start off with high standards and then let them side as they expand
It’s really sad, but the last time I had a meal out before lockdown was Nando’s, and it was the first (and only) time I’ve ever eaten there.
I'm sure you've all heard this before, but:-
Q. What's the difference between a Scone and a Scon?
A. Before you eat it, it's a Scone, and after you've eaten it, it's scon. 😁
Sorry, this joke is easier to tell than to write.
Yorkshire Tea was only "invented" as a marketing exercise 45 years ago. So while it's certainly /possible/ your mother brought you up on it, it's not something that's been a favourite for generations. Having said that, I like it a lot.
Yorkshire tea is not from Yorkshire. Tea is usually from India. Yorkshire doesn't grow tea. Like you say, Yorkshire tea is just a marketing ploy to bamboozle thick Yorkshire inbreds.
It's funny how my parents are avid tea drinkers (they tend to drink Yorkshire Tea and PG Tips) and they were super against coffee and usually people will drink the same as their parents, but I absolutely hate tea and I'm much more of a coffee drinker. So much so that I unintentionally managed to influence multiple family members to drink coffee, INCLUDING my parents haha I did a bit of an uno reverse card on them lol
Now my parents will go on a coffee date with each other at least once a week to have a latte and a sandwich or soup which I think is really adorable
I think tea is overrated and I do get tired of hearing about it, especially as the majority of people I know don't even like tea (or rather, they don't like British tea - usually they'd prefer boba or something)
I just thought of another UK only issue. Cream and the fact that most cream containers do not come with a lid! So, if you open the fridge and it falls out you have a nightmare. Milk has lids so why not cream? I have asked a few times but never got an answer. 😁
Oh my god you're so right!! Why not have a lid??
There used to be lids on pots of cream... then someone decided to ban things like plastic straws and the like.
Youre supposed to decant it when you get home. Stop buying so much. Use it within a day. Right then
@@zapkvr strange how you can buy a 1 pint of milk and it has a lid but the same volume of cream it does not. Also, going to the shops every day to get cream is not really ideal and not very good for the environment. I get the larger ones and decant them into a bottle that goes into the fridge. Why they don’t do a 1 pint bottle like they do milk is beyond me. It is unique to the UK and in Canada you get cream containers with lids so it is quite odd to us.
Roast dinners are definitely best reserved for home.
I've had Yorkshire puddings in pubs n restaurants that could be weaponised.
I like Wetherspoons because the destitute and disfigured clientelle creates the illusion that you're in an actual medieval tavern. And you simply cannot argue with £1.60 for a pint of bitter.
This is an amazing observation, thank you.
It's funny but you're not wrong 😂
I think when it comes to the well known outlets such as greggs, costa coffee,cafe nero,nando,s, toby carvery,etc etc you can expect a similar experience its like its done to a price..but find yourself a cafe or pub thats not a chain and you will fare better.i had an amazing roast dinner which surpassed toby in quantity and taste and it was a small cafe in a uk park and half the price of the big chains.infact it beat anything which my own city could serve up !
I agreed with just about everything you said, except for the Carvery. I have a Toby's Carvery near to me and the food has always been great as it is a free pub. The choice of meats and the taste is excellent with all you can eat veg that still has a crunch to them if you see A Carvery full of old people, leave because the veg will be overcooked and tasteless as they cater for the old who ofter can't chew and have no tastebuds left.
The one in St Annes threw me out when I had food stuck in my throat. I was distressed & in pain & ended up in A&E.
How dare you stereotype us oldies? I just turned 81 and I do have taste buds left. When I cook a meat and veg meal, I always strive to get my vegetables to that point where they have lost their rawness but still have a crunch to them, because they taste so much better to me. Not being a brilliant cook, I sometimes fail, and feel so disappointed. Maybe that's because I was brought up by a mother who was a brilliant cook, and a father who grew all his own vegetables.
My Nan used to make a curry, it would burn like fire. She’d eat it like it was fridge chilled yoghurt. No tastebuds see.
Bullshit sonny boy get of your rocking horse. I've been a chef for over 50 years cooking for all walks of life and ages. Trite comment at best.
@@derekcolman Hi Deric,I am sure that it would be a privledge to sit at your table and share a meal with you rather than listen to the comment/opinion of the above ignorant youth. Also at 81 years of age and still managing to look after yourself daily is admirable (please do not think that I am patronising you Sir) I've come accross people half your age who couldn't make a marmalade sandwitch if it wasn't for their mum telling them how to!
More power to you. All the best to you and yours. Rab
What about having scones plain like I do? Also Nandos is South African and the quality depends on which Nandos you go to because there are different grades of chicken. If you go to one that has the better quality chicken then it can be very nice. It also can depend on what you choose from the menu. The majority of people drink tea incorrectly. Do not put milk or sugar in it.
2:53, English accent popping out for a second👍👍😁😁
Huh? I've been to loads of Wetherspoons and the toilet is always either somewhere on the same floor, or downstairs... Food can be a bit hit or miss, agreed.
In my spoons the toilet is up 2 flights of stairs! Spoons don't have any choice about the quality of their food. An employee explained to me that it is all ordered centrally and bussed out to the various pubs. First steak I ever had there was restaurant quality, but that was the only one. I also regret that the smell of food is ever-present at our local, regardless of the time of day - complete lack of scavenging system. On the up side, the staff have been fab at every spoons I've ever been in.
Beans and sausages on toast with white pepper.....but twice heated beans and sausage, boil then cool then heat again..........and on special occasions a fried egg, large can need 3 toast and eat the spillage first
Waiting another 90 minutes for a local carvery’s leftovers via a ‘too good to go’ app. Dirt cheap.
Haven’t had beans on toast for a while, will rectify that for tomorrow’s breakfast, with HP sauce.
Do not drink ''Yorkshire Sleepy Time'' Tea....I don't know who told you about that but I would buy some Pepper Sprey.
Beans on toast is one of the childhood comfort foods I have occasionally. As Alanna said not the best, but good on a cold, wet winter day. I've never understood the jam or cream first debate when it comes to scones, in my opinion they taste as good either way round (jam/cream cream/jam).
Baked beans would be one of my desert island foods - along with cheese. 😋
I don't understand why all roast dinners come with Yorkshire puddings, there was a time when it was only served with a beef dinner, not talking about toad in the hole.
Beans on Toast PLUS, Heinz bean (has to be Heinz) 4mm think slice of Double Gloucester cheese cut in to 4mm square, add cheese to beans with a little black pepper cook until cheese melts, serve on hot toast and enjoy with a cup of English Breakfast Tea. I have been eating this as a snack/meal for over 50 years. Now a little challenge, There is a concert at The Troxy Theatre London on the 14th June at 7pm, have someone buy you a ticket so you do not know what the event is until you arrive as I would love to hear your reaction to the concert. If you do manage to get there and you see an old man in a suit with a walking stick that has a horses head handle that will be me. Listen to youtube "The Ballard of the Wogglers Moulie" by Kenneth Williams and "The Ballard of Freda and Barry" by Victoria Wood. Reaction to both please.
Good taste in TV..!! :)
I remember watching the Iraq wars; and watching the reactions in the early episodes of Have I Got News For You.
But Ant and Dec have presented lots of shows since the nineties, and now they own the production company that produces lots of the mainstream flagship shows on British Television.
For example, I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here is one of theirs. I think they might have created I'm a Celebrity; but I'm not sure.
It's mainstream stuff but always a pleasant, high quality distraction. lol
And they're not fat egos, who insist on being the stars.
For Britain's got talent, they are the back stage sidekicks; offering encouragement, reports and reaction.
*So not high brow; but they play a well deserved healthy role in British TV*
great video, I'm desperate to know where you're sourcing your cut-priced home fittings from. Also want to point out that Nando's is basically the only place in the UK with free refills on fountain drinks, which shocked me as another ex-pat - so maybe one point in their column? But agree that the food is medium-rubbish
I always put grated cheese on top of my beans on toast. It tastes really nice especially as it starts melting! Absolute comfort food!
As far as scones, I put cream first and them strawberry jam on top...yum!
Have you tried adding grated cheese as it cooks?
The reason I like Nando's over McDonalds is that the food in Nando's is made of actual food.
Very much agree with Jamie Oliver and Ant&Dec (they became famous for Byker Grove and the song 'Let's Get Ready To Rumble')
My trouble with Nandos is that just about everything seems to taste of paprika.
@@ftumschk i mean Nando's whole thing is Peri Peri so it makes sense, you can get different levels of it if you dont enjoy it too much though
Very happy for you. Buying an AC unit will really make the few nights where it is horribly hot soooo much better. Once you have experienced it you will say to yourself why the heck did we not buy one of theses years ago! Hopefully, it comes with a window kit as your windows are absolutely perfect for using a portable AC Unit. Beans on toast and a nice cupa is just so British and very much a comfort food. Can’t say I do it anymore but as a kid, even in Canada, I had beens on toast.
You can have Air-Con in the UK but it just does not come as standard, you need to get it/or pay for it to be installed your self.
Well, if you want good tea at a reasonable price, nothing (imo) is better then Co-op Indian Prince (of those available in tea bags). Mind you, to get it, you have to be within striking distance of a Co--op that sells it (not all do). My most over-rated thing is the South, too, even though I was born in Middlesex and brought up in Surrey. At the age of 19, when I was at university in Oxford, my parents moved to Yorkshire (the Huddersfield area), so, at the start of one term I left home from Surrey to go back to Oxford, and when I went home again, I went to Huddersfield, which was a much better place in all respects. The second most over-rated thing is Lancashire, Lancastrians, and everything from Lancashire.
Happy Friday Alanna ! Loved this, it made me chuckle and I wouldn't turn my nose up at a Wetherspoons either 😂
Thank you!!
Off to the Wetherspoons tonight: whoop whoop
I quite like Slug & Lettuce myself, I eat there fairly often if I'm meeting up with a friend or family member for lunch. Though I've only ever been to the one that's in my own city so maybe I just have a particularly good local one? :)
Fair point! Thanks for watching!
Let me be clear. I lived in Southern Africa and love Nandos. If you have a problem with their taste then it speaks more about the food you grew up eating or that you aren't very adventurous.
I adore Nando’s it’s amazing
Yes, I usually have my AC unit on for a few days a year, it's worth it. I add cheese to my beans on toast, I assume you would do to?
Great video you always bring a wonderful smile.. Aircon wow Energy costs in the UK have just gon up around 50 percent and are set to rise again...... Wheathspoons is ok. Eaten there a few times. Toby carvery is ok. Nandos in general chicken is dry and it's not cheap. I'd rather have a Macdonald's
Alanna you must visit a Weatherspoons when they have a Cider festival, you will love it 😈! As regards Tea, if you’ve only tried T bags that’s not giving you the real taste, besides that a lot of them use bleached paper and contain micro plastics in the adhesive that they glue them together with 🤢, we use leaf tea and brew it properly (1 tsp/person + 1 for the pot in a pre warmed pot stand for 3-4 mins and add the tea to the milk), try it and find out!
Which brand tea leaves?
@@elizabethw.454 we have a couple, Twinings Breakfast tea, Twinings Assam, Yorkshire, Twinings Earl grey, sometimes Tesco or Sainsbury’s or M&S Gold label. We tend to choose from those depending on who’s are on offer 😂
@@DarrellW_UK lovely thank you!!
Try lightly spreading on Salad Cream…Delicious 😊
I like beans on toast with an EGG on top (cooked of course). Real cheap carveries you do question what the meat is. And it is CREAM first, so Devon. Ant and Dec were seen in a TV show called Grange Hill, were terrible in that so they put them on other shows to destroy them. You don't need air conditioning, that's why we have pubs. Greggs and restaurant in the same breath?? Wet-her-spoon toilets are normally upstairs, but check the carpets out. All are different. Don't go North, got to the Midlands. Stratford upon Avon you would like, and Warwick.
Never eaten at Nando’s. This was never a thing when I was younger, it didn’t come to the UK until the 90s and didn’t take off until the 2000s, so it is not really a tradition, at least not a long one. I have eaten peri peri in Portugal which is where it came from. I think Nando’s is a South African interpretation.
Posh nonce
Watching this now and laughing at your prediction of “two hot days in the year”. But good for you for buying the AC when you could!
I don't get the jam and cream thing. Cream is soft, you can't spread anything on it because it's so soft. How on earth can you spread jam on cream? That makes no sense. Jam first then the soft whipped cream on top.
7:24 Maybe a standing, oscillating fan would help?
I see that we share similar taste on TV. I watch very little (been weeks since I last watched TV) but will watch WILTY and HIGNFY (QI's not too bad either). Good video and I agreed with most of them!
Im a Brit, I resisted Nandos for ages because it just seemed like another chain restaurant. And when I finally did go yes- its just another chain restaurant. And you have to go up and get your own food like a canteen. I like spicy chicken and rice and stuff but i'm not going to rush back- I'll leave it to the teenagers.
Carveries are just crap roast dinners. But that said they are usually pretty cheap and if you find a decent one its not a bad option.
When it comes to scones, I'll do half and half cream/jam on one and jam/cream on the other. Because some men just want to watch the world burn.
Alana I have never been to Nandos in Australia. And I won't be. I love beans on toast. With an egg. Yummers
I like the sauces. But they have become so expensive and tiny compared to what they were when they first came out.
OMG. I agree with the thumbnail. Nando's sucks ! I remember living in London, trying to organise a diner party for my birthday and one of the girl said " let's go to Nando's " to which I disagreed and she went " YOU DON'T LIKE NANDO'S, WHATS WRONG WITH YOU ? " I replied, " I'm not gonna spend money on a dry piece of Chicken I could get from Tesco ! " Hahaha.
I love your response to your pal-nothing worse than dried chicken - Unless you are eating that in bad company. All the best. Rab
@@raibeart1955 hahaha thanks :)