whatever happened to the ploughman's lunch?

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We didn't often eat out as children but did have the occasional pub lunch. My parents would ALWAYS order a ploughman's lunch - bread, cheese, cured meats, pickle, sometimes a pork pie, salad. It was seen (in the 70s and 80s) as a culinary delight.

They appear to have disappeared - are all the ploughmen now eating Vietnamese pho or Japanese bento boxes instead?

Ohhhhh, I’m home alone dh working away, so once the bedtime battle is over I’m having a ploughman’s for my tea.
Just looked in fridge and have pickles, ham and cheese. Will have to make do with crackers instead of crusty bread. I’m so delighted with myself.

I've had another "raid the fridge for whatever" ploughman's today. Threw some salami on there along with the ham and cheese with some still warm crusty rolls I baked today. The kids LOVED it. I wish I liked chutneys, coleslaws and branston pickle type stuff but I don't so even if I did find a place selling them I would have to pass. Shame.

I am close to doing an Amazon Now shop for ploughman's stuff (weather to horrible for a walk to the shops).

I eat this every day for my work lunch... it's the best. 😊

Thoughts on a piece of quiche with a ploughman's (asking for a friend)?

I love a ploughman’s :) it was my absolute favourite treat lunch/dinner as a child. My mum always said I was strange Cos I would have a ploughman’s over a traditional children’s meal any day.

Quite a few pubs round here do them (West Yorkshire) I’m now veggie but most places will replace the pork pie/sausage roll/carved gammon with extra cheese and a little extra bread.

Now I really want a ploughman’s...

We have a thing like that for tea sometimes on Sunday. With several types of cheese and pickles, beetroot, grapes and crusty bread. Yummy.

@MaidenMotherCrone that lunch in your pic looks delicious!! 😋

Lastone i saw on a menu was in Oxford 1997

for those looking to buy a black forest gateau, Asda and Tesco both sell it

The worse Ploughman’s lunch I ever had came with a WHOLE apple, wet lettuce, stale bread, sad cheese and a bit of pickle! It was almost as though they added the WHOLE apple as an afterthought to bulk up the fact there was really fuck all on the plate!

Is it any good though, @sleepismysuperpower1? Patisserie Valerie did a Black Forest gateaux/cake slice before they went pop. It looked the part but tasted synthetic and disappointing

Best I could do with the ingredients available where I live. Had forgotten how filling it is, think it's the first meal I've made that OH couldn't finish because he was too full!

Come down to Cornwall, every pub had usually 3 different ones to choose from. Cheese, meat or fish.

@RightestPersonOnMN it's not as good as it was years ago but I have bought both of them several times and enjoyed them

What a grotesque combination of foods

You could google it and search for ploughman’s and order what you need. 😄 Cheaper than a pub. They still do them around here but not as much as in the 70 and 80s 💙👍

Notsoposh, we are not your people! 😆

Seriously though, bread, pickles, cheese and/or meat is not exactly outlandish. It’s a very common combination across the whole of Europe (for good reason, IMHO)

What a grotesque combination of foods

In what way? It's basically a deconstructed ham & cheese salad sandwich.

We’re in Kent and lots of pubs do them round here - maybe because of the farming heritage?

One of my mum’s favourite ploughman’s-related stories (which gets trotted out whenever we go anywhere with a ploughman’s on the menu) is when she ordered one and it came with a seeded burger bap instead of a nice white bloomer.

She’s never quite got over it

BakeHouse Chelmsford do a lovely ploughmans if you’re anywhere near Essex.

There's a pub in bowness in Windermere called the Albert that used to do the most AMAZING ploughmans. They called it the smorgasbord and it was the bomb. Just checked the menu and it no longer exists :(

Ooh I LOVE a ploughmans and we often have our own version for lunch on a Saturday, I do a big platter that we nibble from over the course of a couple of hours
Crusty bread
Pickle(s) / chutney(s)
Beetroot
Coleslaw
Pickled onion
Extra mature cheddar
Stilton
Ham
Pork pie
Scotch egg
And very definitely quiche!

No salad in this house though 😂

Oh and pickled hot chilli peppers!

That's it I'm definitely having one Saturday night. Thinking:
Creamy Lancashire cheese
Mature cheddar
Crusty seeded roll and butter
Half apple
Handful of mixed leaves
Branston
Pickled onions

What am I missing?? (Veggie and hate blue cheese)