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 #2 (permalink) Wed Jul 18, 2007 23:06 pm Is 'self-catering' used in American English? |
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I am not familiar with the term.
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| #3 (permalink) Thu Jul 19, 2007 12:21 pm Is 'self-catering' used in American English? |
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| awake2reality wrote: |
| My dictionaries say that 'self-catering' as in 'self-catering apartments/accommodation' is a UK term but do not give an American equivalent. Is there one? |
There is no American term, because in North America the default assumption is that no meals are included with accommodation. If meals are provided with a room, American brochures specifically mention it. If no meals are provided, American brochures say nothing, because people usually assume that food is not provided with a hotel room. So, in a sense, the American equivalent of "self-catering" is silence. You might put in parentheses somewhere "(Meals not included.)", if you really want to be clear, but not even mentioning meals is enough.
Also, there seems to be a difference in the way the British and the Americans use the term "catering". In the US, "catering" means to provide food professionally for a special event. Weddings are catered. Lectures on the rubber chicken circuit are catered. Catering does not include meals that one provides to oneself in one's own home or at a hotel. Therefore, to American ears, the term "self-catering" can sound comical, as if someone put on a funny uniform, stood behind a buffet table, and politely offered food to himself. |
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Jamie (K)
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| #4 (permalink) Thu Jul 19, 2007 12:38 pm Is 'self-catering' used in American English? |
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Hi,
Catering is also used in the same way in the UK and the peope who provide this service are called caterers. I don't think 'self catering' would ever be offered in a hotel. It is more often used for houses/flats that people rent for their holiday and are in the UK mostly found in seaside resorts or in the countryside. Surely the same must exist in the USA?
Alan
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| #5 (permalink) Thu Jul 19, 2007 12:39 pm Is 'self-catering' used in American English? |
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Hi,
Many UK universities offer places in 'fully catered' and 'self-catered' halls of residence.
All the best
EU |
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Englishuser
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| #6 (permalink) Thu Jul 19, 2007 13:07 pm Is 'self-catering' used in American English? |
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| Alan wrote: |
| Catering is also used in the same way in the UK and the peope who provide this service are called caterers. |
Yes. It's the same here.
| Alan wrote: |
| I don't think 'self catering' would ever be offered in a hotel. It is more often used for houses/flats that people rent for their holiday and are in the UK mostly found in seaside resorts or in the countryside. Surely the same must exist in the USA? |
In the US, hotel visitors are generally on their own as to deciding where and what to eat. Some hotels offer a "continental breakfast" buffet, but most of them do not, so breakfast and other meals are not included in the price of the room. You can eat in the hotel restaurant (if the hotel has a restaurant), you can go to another restaurant, or you can bring food to the room and eat it. But face it: If you're at a Sheraton in downtown Toronto, with 50 million amazing restaurants within walking distance, are you really going to eat at the hotel?
Vacation cottages usually have a small kitchen for people to fix their own meals in, but because "meals not included" is the default assumption, you won't see any announcement advertising "self-catered" cottages or rooms, because people just automatically know that the guest is on his own for meals. |
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Jamie (K)
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| #7 (permalink) Thu Jul 19, 2007 13:10 pm Is 'self-catering' used in American English? |
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| Alan wrote: |
| I don't think 'self catering' would ever be offered in a hotel. It is more often used for houses/flats that people rent for their holiday and are in the UK mostly found in seaside resorts or in the countryside. Surely the same must exist in the USA? |
Of course such rentals exist, but they are simply advertised as having a kitchen or a fully equipped kitchen, for example.
I agree with Jamie that 'self-catering' would sound pretty comical in the US.
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Yankee
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| #8 (permalink) Thu Jul 19, 2007 13:13 pm Is 'self-catering' used in American English? |
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Hi,
What would Americans think about this:
| Quote: |
| Many UK universities offer places in 'fully catered' and 'self-catered' halls of residence. |
All the best
EU |
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Englishuser
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| #9 (permalink) Thu Jul 19, 2007 13:17 pm Is 'self-catering' used in American English? |
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| Englishuser wrote: |
What would Americans think about this:
| Quote: |
| Many UK universities offer places in 'fully catered' and 'self-catered' halls of residence. |
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We wouldn't understand it.
American universities offer dormitories with and without food service. |
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Jamie (K)
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| #10 (permalink) Thu Jul 19, 2007 13:27 pm Is 'self-catering' used in American English? |
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| Thanks very much everyone especially Jamie (K). The answers exceeded my expectations. |
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Awake2reality
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| #11 (permalink) Thu Jul 19, 2007 13:41 pm Is 'self-catering' used in American English? |
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Hi EU,
Your
| Quote: |
| Many UK universities offer places in 'fully catered' and 'self-catered' halls of residence. |
sounds a bit weird to me,too.
Alan
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| #12 (permalink) Thu Jul 19, 2007 13:42 pm Is 'self-catering' used in American English? |
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Come to think about it, does 'self service' cause the same merriment?
Alan
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| #13 (permalink) Thu Jul 19, 2007 13:42 pm Is 'self-catering' used in American English? |
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Hi Alan,
Do you mean that the terms 'fully catered' and 'self-catered' sound weird?
All the best
EU |
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Englishuser
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| #14 (permalink) Thu Jul 19, 2007 13:47 pm Is 'self-catering' used in American English? |
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| Alan wrote: |
| Come to think about it, does 'self service' cause the same merriment? |
No, that expression doesn't sound funny to me. However, it would appear to include not just meals, but the absence laundry and maid service, which is the norm here anyway. |
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Jamie (K)
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| #15 (permalink) Thu Jul 19, 2007 14:09 pm Is 'self-catering' used in American English? |
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Hi Alan
Are you saying that there are "self-service" apartments/flats in the UK?
..............
Hi Jamie
Have you ever actually seen the term 'self-service' used in this context in the US?
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