Greasy spoon
Greasy spoon is a colloquial term for the archetypal British cafe (pronounced "caff"). The name is used to imply a less-than-rigorous approach to hygiene and dishwashing. The term appears to date from 1925.The typical greasy spoon serves mainly fried food; for example, various combinations of fried eggs, chips, bacon, black pudding, sausage and mushrooms. These are often accompanied by baked beans and tomato. Other typical menu items include bacon sandwiches (on sliced white bread), and toast. Despite the origin of the word 'cafe', the main drink consumed is tea. Often the only coffee available will be instant. They do not sell alcoholic drinks.
The stereotype is of poor quality, greasy food - largely meatless sausages, salty, tasteless bacon and weak, tepid, milky tea (or, in transport cafes, tea thick enough to float a lorry wheelnut, served just below the melting point of the mug). Further stereotyping would suggest that the customary reading material of the clientele is tabloid newspapers, most commonly The Sun or, in the case of roadside greasy spoons, the further downmarket Star or Sport. In practice, cafes vary widely.
Greasy spoons are (in televisual and movie culture) invariably the rendezvous of choice of villains on the brink of pulling a major multi-million pound heist and frequent locations for situation comedy.
They are also favoured locations for British television reporters when statistics for heart disease occasioned by high cholesterol levels are released.
The demand for this cuisine has resulted in the establishment of greasy spoons all over the world and particularly in coastal resorts located within an hour's coach ride from charter airlines' destinations. At such locations, FEB's (Full English Breakfasts) may be consumed on an all-day basis (to accommodate late rising clients) and are often accompanied by day-old copies of The Sun.
The traditional greasy spoon has been in decline for many years as a direct consequence of the ubiquitous franchising of the extensively marketed restaurant chains. However they remain numerous in certain parts of London and many seaside towns.
A relatively recent trend is the growth in popularity of more upmarket cafés on a different model, influenced by the traditional French café, the Seattle espresso boom and the British tea shop. These places serve real coffee (including such variants as espresso and cappucino), a variety of teas (including herbal tea) and different food, such as more elaborate sandwiches and home-made cakes. These establishments are usually referred to as 'cafés', pronounced as two syllables in an approximation of the French manner, to distinguish them from the more traditional 'caff'.
The term was used by the rock band Status Quo as part of the title of their third album, "Ma Kelly's Greasy Spoon", which featured (on the original album cover) a particularly telling photograph of a worker in just such an establishment.
Hawkwind named their album "Hall of the Mountain Grill" after their favourite greasy spoon, the Mountain Grill in Portobello Road in London.
Greasy spoons are also frequently musically depicted, as explicitly by, for example, the singer-songwriter Harry Chapin in the song "The Old Greasy Spoon" or implicitly by the Spin Doctors in the song "Hungry Hamed's".
For a taste of the archetypal greasy spoon, see the opening scene of Bruce Robinson's 1986 film "Withnail and I".Greasy spoons in music and other media