A Takeaway Memory Test

[steepholm]

I've been trying to remember (without looking it up) at what point in my lifetime certain kinds of takeaway restaurant became commonplace in the UK. By "commonplace" I don't mean "available somewhere in the country" but "available in a typical mid-sized city" - say, a Derby, a Southampton or a Swansea.

This is my impression (but remember I lived my first 18 years in a small market town, so my knowledge is limited):

Common from before I was born: Fish and Chip shops, Chinese takeaways

1960s on: Indian takeaways and other curry houses

Around 1975-80: American-style hamburger and pizza places (Wimpys had been around longer than that, but seems a bit different in my mind, and not that commonly encountered)

1980s: Kebab houses

1990s on - everything else.

Is that reasonable? Have I left anything out, or got anything badly wrong? Remember, I'm not talking about London or the other really big cities - and of course cities with large immigrant populations from a particular country would probably have that country's food ready in takeaway form earlier.

Also, when did people start saying "to go" instead of "to take away" in this country? My impression is that this Americanism started in coffee shops like Starbucks and spread from there, which would put it the early years of this century. Do you agree?

And, on a different topic, have you noticed that "tsunami" has now almost entirely replaced "tidal wave" in common usage? It was not always so! On the other hand, I sense that "rickshaw" is being edged out by "tuk tuk", so the tide of Japanese-origin words is not entirely unchecked.

Comments

[thistleingrey]

"To go" versus "to take away": that matches my much scantier evidence, yes. My relevant visits were in 1997, 2001, 2005--2001 was for a whole month, thanks to a research grant and sleeping with a loaned Toshiba laptop in a crowded hostel. In 2001, I had to say "for takeaway" or get the stinkeye between St Pancras and Bloomsbury. In 2005, sometimes the person ringing me up gave me a second look and asked whether I wanted my meal to go. (They couldn't always get it from my accent--I blend, partly consciously and partly not.)

Between 2001 and 2005, speaking of takeaway, there was a steep increase in the number of Pret a Manger shops in London in kind of a triangle made by Euston Sq, Covent Garden, and Oxford Circus. I was still able to eat sandwiches at the time, and it was markedly easier to feed myself in 2005 than 2001 without sitting down at a pub or for a full restaurant-style evening meal.

(I went outside London for all three trips, but London has my clearest memories of planning meals.)

[steepholm]

I'm a big fan of Pret - and indeed of the founders' more recent chain, Itsu.