In many English homes people eat four meals a day: breakfast, lunch, tea and dinner.

People have breakfast at any time from seven to nine in the morning. They eat porridge, eggs or bread. English people drink tea or coffee at breakfast. Lunch comes at one o’clock. Afternoon tea is from four to five in the afternoon and dinner is about half past seven. First they have soup, and then they have meat or fish with vegetables. After that they eat some other things, like bananas, apples or oranges.

But not all English people eat like that. Some of them have their dinner in the middle of the day. Their meals are breakfast, dinner, tea and supper and all these meals are very necessary.

Different countries have different ideas about manners. In Britain, “table manners” are important. How do you show good table manners in Britain? Here are some hints.

Noises at the table

It is never a good idea to make a noise or a burp at the table. British people think this is very rude. If people burp, they always say, “Excuse me.”

When to eat with your fingers

British people don’t use their fingers to eat most things. There are some foods that it’s OK to eat with your fingers. These include sandwiches, pizza, hamburgers and fruit.

Your mouth

It’s not polite to talk with food in your mouth or eat with your mouth open.

How much to eat

It’s good manners to eat all the food on your plate. This shows you like the food. It’s always polite to say the food is nice, even when it’s horrible!