Tavern
Typically, a tavern offered various roast meats, as well as simple foods like bread, cheese, herring, and bacon.
Their stated purpose, however, was to serve wine (not beer or cider, which had other outlets) and they were so disreputable that women of any standing avoided them.
Situated at the heart of the country town or village, the tavern was one of the traditional centers of social and political life before 1789, a meeting place for both the local population and travelers passing through and a refuge for rogues and scoundrels.
Émile Zola's novel L'Assommoir ('The Tavern', 1877) depicted the social conditions typical of alcoholism in Paris among the working classes.
The characters Gervaise Macquart and her husband Coupeau exemplified with great realism the physical and moral degradation of alcoholics.
Originally, taverns served as rest stops about every fifteen miles and their main focus was to provide shelter to anyone who was traveling.
An economic feature of this town of blacksmiths was the Verlag, or outwork production system, with its complex network of credit relationships.
The tavern played a crucial role in cultural and business life and was also the place where work and leisure were fused.
[clarification needed] Heavy drinking facilitated the creation of community relationships in which artisans and workers sought security.
Buying drinks rather than saving money was a rational strategy when, before adjustment to a cash economy, it was essential to raise one's esteem with fellow craftsmen to whom one could turn for favors in preference to the Verlag capitalist.
Their history begins in Classical times, with the earliest evidence of a taverna discovered at the Ancient Agora of Athens;[6] the style remains the same to this day.
Orektika (appetizers) include small dishes of Greek sauces, alifes, usually eaten on bites of bread.
Tavernes offer different kinds of wines and retsina in barrels or in bottles, ouzo or tsipouro, with beer and refreshments being a recent addition.
In Byzantine times, tavernes were the place for a social gathering, to enjoy a meal, live music and friendly talk with a drink accompanied by small variety dishes (mezes).
"Hospoda" is nowadays a very widespread but only colloquial word, while "hostinec" or "pohostinství" were often official names of such establishment in the 20th century, now a bit obsolete.
