Elevenses

Elevenses (pronunciation: /ᵻˈlɛvənzᵻz/) is a short break taken at around 11 A.M. to consume a drink and/or snack of some sort. The name and details vary between countries.

Regional variations

United Kingdom

Elevenses typically consists of tea or coffee, often with a biscuit or cake.

The Netherlands

In West Friesland country people had a similar meal called "konkelstik" (served at "konkeltoid", the proper time for "konkelen", a verb denoting "making a visit").

United States

During the first decades of the 19th century, elevenses consisted of drinking whiskey.

Spanish-speaking countries

In many Spanish-speaking cultures, elevenses is observed under the name la once (the eleven in Spanish). However, in some places the time at which it occurs has changed from 11am: in Colombia las onces can be taken at any time of day, and in Chile it has shifted to the afternoon, akin to British "tea time".

Basque Country

Called amaiketako (at eleven in Euskera), it’s also a snack, or pintxo (the Basque version of the Spanish tapa), to be taken at around 11 A.M.

In literature

For elevenses, Winnie-the-Pooh preferred honey on bread with condensed milk. Paddington Bear often took elevenses at the antique shop on Portobello Road run by his friend Mr Gruber, for which Paddington would buy buns and Mr Gruber would make cocoa.

In the Middle-earth stories by J. R. R. Tolkien (The Lord of the Rings), it is a meal eaten by Hobbits between second breakfast and luncheon.

Other uses

Elevenses is the name of a brand of clothing sold by Anthropologie.

See also

• British cuisine
• Break (work)
• Brunch
• Second breakfast
• Tea time
• Fika (coffee break)

External links

• The dictionary definition of elevensies at Wiktionary