A new nationwide study exploring Briton's eating habits has, once and for all, settled the age-old argument about what our evening meal should be called.

According to the majority of British adults (54 percent), the last meal of the day should be called 'dinner'.

In fact, only four in ten Britons still refer to it as "tea", while just one in twenty (5 percent) call it 'supper'.

The survey also shines a light on the assumptions we make about people based on what they call their evening meal. Over a quarter of Britons claim that if you call it 'supper', you must be posh, and the same number believe that if you call it 'tea', you're definitely Northern.

It's no surprise then that the study, commissioned by Travelodge which operates 200 restaurants in UK hotels, found that 43 percent of us attribute differences in what to call your evening meal to where you live geographically.

The survey found 'tea' is unsurprisingly more prevalent in the North of the country (53 percent of Northerners call it tea), while 'dinner' is more likely to be used in the South (66 percent refer to it as dinner).

The data also revealed that what you call your evening meal can lead to problems, as many as 41 percent of Britons have got themselves into a socially awkward situation when it comes to what to call the third meal of the day.

A paranoid 16 percent worry that others look down on them for saying 'tea', while 12 percent have asked a new partner to refer to their evening meal in a different way, to fit in with their family.

An argumentative one in ten Britons has even fallen out with a colleague or friend about the correct term to use.

The survey also reveals that one in five (20 percent) Britons think the term 'tea' refers to a cup of tea and a biscuit, while 10 percent assuming 'tea' would be a light meal between the hours of 4pm and 6pm.

Meanwhile, 15 percent would expect an afternoon tea with cakes and sandwiches if invited for 'tea'.

The study found it is not just our main meals that are causing problems - respondents were also divided over the correct term for the sweet course.

Four in 10 Britons (40 percent) refer to it as 'pudding', 12 percent say 'afters', and 39 percent stick to dessert.

Shakila Ahmed, Travelodge Spokeswoman said: "We have over 200 restaurants in our hotels across the UK and our Bar Café team members regularly debate whether the evening meal should be called dinner or tea. Therefore we thought it would be interesting to put this age old argument to bed by asking the nation. Interestingly our research findings show opinion is clearly divided across the country. However dinner is growing in popularity."

The term 'dinner' derives from the Latin word 'disjejunare' meaning to break one's fast, whereas supper comes from the French word 'souper', meaning evening meal.

The study also explored where we eat our evening meal and found that the most common place is plonked on the sofa with a tray (39 percent), but that 28 percent of families gather around a traditional dining-room table.

A swanky one in five (20 percent) choose to eat at their kitchen island, but one in 10 Britons slope off to their bedroom to enjoy dinner on their own.

More than one in twenty (6 percent) are still slogging away in the office come dinner time, so eat their tea at their desk.

The average UK family eats at around 7pm, with 25 percent claiming it is old fashioned and uncool to eat before 5pm.

In fact, over a quarter (27 percent) of respondents said they didn't like the trend for feeding children separately to the adults, believing the whole family should eat together every evening.

43 percent of the adults surveyed said the evening meal was the only chance they got to catch-up with their partner and children.

When it comes to what we discuss over the dining table, work, what to watch on telly and the children's homework are the top topics of conversation.

The study also uncovered the most popular dinners for modern Britons, with spaghetti bolognaise, sausage and mash and pizza topping the list.

WHAT THE UK CALL THEIR EVENING MEAL…

  • Birmingham - dinner (49%)
  • Brighton - dinner (82%)
  • Bristol - tea (52%)
  • Cambridge - dinner (64%)
  • Cardiff - tea (47%)
  • Edinburgh - dinner (74%)
  • Glasgow - dinner (74%)
  • Leeds - tea (61%)
  • Leicester - tea (71%)
  • Liverpool - tea (58%)
  • London - dinner (80%)
  • Manchester - tea (67%)
  • Newcastle - tea (66%)
  • Nottingham - tea (51%
  • Oxford - dinner (70%)

THE 'NATIONAL DINNER MENU' AS REVEALED BY THE RESEARCH...

  • Monday: spaghetti bolognaise - (27%)
  • Tuesday: pizza - (18%)
  • Wednesday - lasagne (18%)
  • Thursday - cottage pie (17%)
  • Friday - fish and chips (23%)
  • Saturday - takeaway (20%)
  • Sunday - roast dinner (49%)

About Travelodge

Founded in 1985, Travelodge is Britain's very first budget hotel chain and today is one of the largest budget hotel chains in the UK, with a portfolio of over 600 hotels and over 47,000 bedrooms across the UK, Ireland and Spain.

In Spain, Travelodge has an established profitable presence and as of April 2024, its portfolio doubled to 12 hotels, having recently acquired a further six properties. Travelodge has ambitious growth plans within this market and has identified the top 20 key locations where it would like to open additional hotels in Spain.

Welcoming over 22 million guests annually across the UK, Ireland and Spain, the majority of Travelodge hotels are located in major cities, towns and holiday hotspots as well as by airports and key business hubs. With 90% of its hotels rated 4* or above on TripAdvisor, Travelodge is proud to offer guests across its diverse customer base a good value experience – whether they are travelling for business or leisure. In 2023, approximately 50% of rooms were sold for less than £60.

Whether out celebrating a birthday, going to a concert or sporting event, visiting friends and family, taking a business trip, working away from home, or taking a short break, we help people to go and do their thing by Being the Brilliant Base.

Travelodge continues to invest in its ongoing hotel refit programme which is expected to see 50% of the Travelodge room estate upgraded to its new design by the end of 2024. The brand is also continually evolving its quality offering to deliver a better experience for its diverse mix of business and leisure guests such as its new look Bar Cafe design, 85 Bar Café, which has been rolled out to selected UK hotels as part of the refit programme.

Travelodge is focussing on its environmental and social impact, with sustainability integral to its business strategy. It's Better Future sustainability plan aims to build a more sustainable future for its customers, colleagues and the planet, and it is underpinned by three core pillars: Inclusive – ensuring we are accessible, inclusive and well-priced to our customers and colleagues; Caring – creating a caring and healthy environment for our colleagues and customers and ensuring their wellbeing; and Conscious – Travelodge is conscious of its impact on the planet, taking into account the waste it produces, the energy and other resources it consumes and the carbon emissions it generates.

For further information visit travelodge.co.uk or the Travelodge Hotels Limited LinkedIn page.