Corkey Trivia: Taverns, Saloons & a Free Lunch
The earliest Pubs in Europe were called taverns, from the Roman word taberna, or wine shop. In those days, the taverns functioned as inns which provided food, lodging and wine, and probably local ale, for weary travelers. Literacy was not widespread in the ancient world, so it was not uncommon for taverns to have grapevines hanging outside its door to advertise their trade.
After the Romans left northern Europe, customer service really went down hill and taverns disappeared during the dark ages.
In the middle ages, as the commercial environment improved in Britain, its population became more urban and centered in towns and cities. This shift in population allowed the professional classes such as lawyers, bankers, writers, and civil servants to prosper. Taverns started to spring up in the towns. They sold only wine. You might liken them to modern day wine bars. Taverns were where the professional classes ate, drank and relaxed. Taverns offered comfort and superior food.
The British brought their taverns with them to the new world. In our American outpost of civilization, taverns once again served as inns, just like in Roman times. In addition to being places to find food and lodging, they also served as a meeting place, post office, and entertainment center. Taverns were a central element to life in an American town.
As Americans became more prosperous, higher class, more elegant drinking establishments started using the name “saloon” which was adapted from the French “salon” meaning “room”. Passenger ships and river steamboats also had “saloons”, but these doubled as dining rooms and passenger lounges as well as barrooms. On land, you could find ice cream saloons and hairdressing saloons in the same way that you might find a “salon” today.
Saloons in the East were different from saloons in the West. Out West, the lines between saloons, gambling houses, dance halls and brothels were blurred or non-existent. In the East, saloons were convivial meeting places with back rooms customers could utilize. Men often gathered in saloons conversing about the topics of the day, labor unions, and politics. To stave off the temperance movement’s accusations that saloon customers did nothing but drink, saloons began offering free lunches subsidized by beer and liquor companies in order to increase sales. For 5 cents you could get a beer and lunch. (Up to about 30 years ago, you could still get a free lunch in a few old style bars in the East.) Sadly, Prohibition in 1920 brought an end to saloons.
Prohibition was finally repealed in 1933; however, the term saloon had by then fallen into disrepute. Today, we have: the café, the bar and grill, the lounge, the nightclub, and, fittingly, the tavern, underlining the point that if you wait long enough, everything comes back into fashion. Cheers!
Tags: corkey trivia, saloons, taberna, taverns, wine shop
