Category Archives: Culture

Britain’s Desi Pubs

Last month I participated in an online webinar on “Public House: The Culture and Society of the London Pub“. It was organized and hosted by the The Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain, an organization which brings together academics, architects, heritage experts, and others with an interest in the history of the built environment. The presentation on London pubs was made by Dr David Knight of the Royal College of Art in London. During his presentation, Dr Knight identified over a dozen different types of London pub. Some types, such as Coaching Inns, no longer exist, while others such as the Community Pub are alive and well. Of the different types of pub that Dr Knight mentioned during his presentation, one in particular peaked my curiosity – Desi Pubs. When I first saw the term I thought that perhaps “Desi” was short for “Destination” and that a Desi Pub was a type of pub that was a destination for visitors to a city – for example, The Temple Bar in Dublin, Ireland. As it turns out, I was wrong in my assumption. A Desi Pub is, in fact, a colloquial term for a pub which is owned or managed by a landlord of Indian origin. In a Desi Pub, along with traditional English Ale, you can enjoy a lunch comprising traditional Indian cuisine. This got me curious, so I thought I’d do some research into the origins and current status of Britain’s Desi pubs.

Desi Pubs have their origins in the 1960s, and were primarily a response to racism experienced by British Asians. Desi Pubs provided a “safe space” where British Asians could enjoy a couple of pints of beer, and some traditional (primarily Punjabi) cuisine, without fear of harassment. This harassment was experienced first hand by the American civil rights activist, Malcom X, who visited the Blue Gate pub in Smeth

The term “Desi” means “local“, “home”, or “from the country” and is geographically linked to the south Asian countries of India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. There are over 4.3 million individuals of Asian ancestry living in the UK. This constitutes 7% of the U.K. population, making them the second largest ethnic/racial group after Whites. Most of Britain’s Asian residents have their family roots in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. British residents of Indian, Pakistani, and Bangladeshi origin constitute 2.3%, 1.9%, and 0.7% of Britain’s population respectively. India’s Punjab region, Pakistan’s Mirpur District, and Bangladesh’s Sylhet region, in particular, were the main sources of Asian migrants to Britain in the post-1947 period. Britain, of course, developed strong ties with the Indian sub-continent as a result of both trading and its colonial exploits. Post World War II labor shortages in the United Kingdom provided an opportunity for Indians, Pakistanis, and Bangladeshis who sought a better life outside of their country of birth.

As a student at the University of Glasgow, Scotland between 1981 and 1985, I was well aware of the presence of the city’s Pakistani and Indian populations. Indian restaurants were (and still are) numerous and hugely popular and were often my restaurant of choice before heading our for an evening of drinking beer with friends. Newsagents and convenience stores, many owned by Pakistanis, were equally ubiquitous. Every Wednesday, I’d pop into the same one and purchase a copy of The Celtic View, the weekly newspaper of the soccer team I supported. It was only after doing this for a couple of months that I discovered that the owner of the store, Hassan, supported Celtic’s arch enemies, Rangers. After that discovery there was a lot of friendly banter back and forth between myself and Hassan every time I frequented his store. But I digress.

Curry is an enormously popular dish in the United Kingdom, so much so that so that it has been dubbed the “UK’s adopted national dish”. In 2001, the then British Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, referred to Chicken Tikka Massala (chunks of chicken in a spiced curry sauce) as “a true British national dish“. There are an estimated 12,000 curry restaurants (often referred to as curry houses) in the United Kingdom, employing somewhere in the region of 100,000 people. Such is the importance of curry to British culture that in 2015, the British Parliament established a British Curry Catering Industry All-Party Parliamentary Group, whose purpose is to “provide a forum for parliamentarians to consider and discuss the role and contribution of the British curry catering industry”.

While many curry houses are branded as “Indian” restaurants, most are in fact owned by immigrants and/or their descendants from Bangladesh. Indeed, between 80% and 90% of British curry-house owners can trace their roots back to the Bangladeshi city of Sylhet. The Red Lion is one example of a Desi Pub. Located in Birmingham, England it has been in the hands of the Purewal family since 1997. The Red Lion website emphasize the quality of their food, noting that “the standard of food matches that of high end Indian restaurants”. The Red Lion also boasts that “our chefs are well experienced, coming from some of the top restaurants in India”.

Part of the Red Lion’s menu

While the clientele of Britain’s original Desi Pubs were primarily from Britain’s Asian community, today they function as integrated, multi-ethnic, spaces. One observer notes that Desi Pubs are “a celebration of multiculturalism . . . offering Indian food to white and brown customers alike”, while another suggests that they are an “East meets West story, where the classic English pub with its ale, darts and dominoes meets Punjabi food and Bhangra”. According to Bera Mahli, who runs the Red Cow and Grill in Smethwick (just outside Birmingham) with his brother Gamy, “the curries served up in old boozers are now bringing people together in a positive way – rather than be used as a negative marker to highlight racial differences.”

Some Desi Pubs have become what are termed Third Places (community gathering places).  The aforementioned Bera Mahli observes that, “the pub is more a community centre than anything else – for everyone.  One of the big changes is seeing Asian families in the pubs. Back when I was younger,  pubs in the Indian community were just for men only. These days as they are no longer places just to drink,  we have Asian girls, aunties and grandmas”. The aforementioned Red Lion pub in Birmingham promotes itself as “an easy going and family friendly pub

For several decades, the United Kingdom has seen a decrease in the number of pubs, as closures have outnumbered openings. A 2014 report showed that the United Kingdom had lost around 21,000 pubs since 1980, with most closures having occurred since 2006. Reasons for this decline include the smoking ban, increased taxation on alcohol, and a reduction in alcohol consumption. Many of Britain’s Desi Pubs are former pubs that had closed and have, in fact, been resurrected by their Asian owners. In addition to saving some old British pubs, the owners of the Desi Pubs may become one of the last bastions of authentic Indian cuisine. The authenticity of the great British curry is under attack.

Traveling During Ramadan

Recently, I visited Goa in India. It takes a while to reach Goa. To get there, I flew from Detroit to Dallas to Doha (in Qatar), to Goa. I was traveling with a colleague who lives just outside of Dallas, so I broke up the outward journey by overnighting with him and his family in the Dallas area. It is a long way from Dallas to Goa – fourteen-plus hours to Doha, and another three-plus hours from there to Goa. Add to that a four hour layover in Doha, and it is quite a journey. I did manage to sleep for six or seven hours on the Dallas to Doha leg, so that made the flight considerably more pleasant. When flying, I tend not to drink alcohol. If I do, it might be a glass of wine with dinner. Flying dehydrates, and so water is usually my liquid of choice.

Anyway, after boarding my flight to Goa, I decided that I would indeed like a beer.  As with my flight from Dallas to Doha, I was flying with Qatar Airways. They are the national airline of Qatar.  I had noticed, on the flight flight from Dallas to Doha, that the beer choice was limited to Heineken. It was the same on the flight to Goa. When the cabin attendant (that is what they are called on Qatar Airways) came around and asked me what I would like to drink, I told her, a Heineken. As she reached beneath her cart to get the beer, she turned to me and asked if I minded if she poured it into a glass and not give me the can. As one who prefers their beer decanted anyway, I said that would be fine. “It’s Ramadan” she explained “and we cannot have labeled alcohol containers on display”. She proceeded to pour my beer, carefully out of sight of anyone, and handed me two small glasses of Heineken. Whether this was airline policy, was unique to that particular flight, or reflected the cultural sensitivities of this particular cabin attendant, I am not sure. I did notice on my return flight from Doha to Dallas that bottles of wine and cans of Heineken were on full public display.

My “two” glasses of Heineken on my flight between Doha and Goa

After the cabin attendant moved onto the next row of passengers, I looked around the aircraft, but did not see anyone else drinking beer. I must admit I started to feel a bit self conscious . Was I the only one on the entire aircraft drinking a beer? As I reflected on my layover in Doha, it struck me that I had not seen anything that resembled a bar. The duty free shop had been replete with candy, perfume, and cigarettes – but there was not a drop of alcohol in sight. A little research later revealed that there are a couple of restaurants in the airport, where a glass of wine or beer can be enjoyed with a meal. While it is a Muslim country, Qatar does allow the sale and consumption of alcohol. However, access is limited. It is available in four and five star western hotels. Alcohol is also  available to expatriates through a permit system. Permits are administered by the Qatar Distribution Company, and individuals wishing to obtain one must apply. Once in possession of a permit, there are two outlets in the entire country, from which alcohol can be purchased. The amount of alcohol that an individual can purchase each month is dependent upon their salary. The rules regarding consumption of alcohol in Qatar are quite strict. For example, it is forbidden to drink alcohol in a public place, or to give alcohol to Muslims. Muslims caught drinking alcohol may be subject to corporal punishment.

Other Islamic countries also have highly restrictive laws when it comes to the consumption of alcohol. These include Afghanistan, Libya, Iran, and Saudi Arabia. Also, although not a predominantly Muslim country, alcohol is also prohibited in some states in India (fortunately, not in Goa). Of course, the United States had its own doomed experiment with Prohibition between 1920 and 1933. While I fully respect the sovereign right of each country to prohibit the production, sale, and consumption of alcohol as it sees fit, I have to admit that it would be difficult for me to live in a country where having a beer was either impossible or highly restricted. I simply enjoy beer, and the culture surrounding it, too much.

 

 

 

Craft Beer And Millennial Values

It has been pretty well established that it is the Millenial cohort who are driving consumer demand for craft beer. According to Michael Dimock of the Pew Research Center, Millennials are those individuals born 1981 and 1996; making them between the ages of twenty-two and thirty-seven. We know quite a lot about Millennials. Thanks to market research firms,  public opinion researchers, and fact tanks such as Nielsen, Gallup, and the Pew Research Center, we have a lot of data and information about Millennials as citizens, voters, and consumers. Research on Millennials often compares them to preceding generations – Generation X (born 1965-80), Baby Boomers (1946-64), and the Silent Generation (1928-1945). And what we have learnt is that each generation has unique values and perspectives.

Different generations defined. Source: Dimock 2018

One study that I read recently, was published by The Boston Consulting Group (BCG). It was titled, How Millennials Are Changing the Face of Marketing Forever. The study report included a number of interesting graphics, including the one below (Exhibit 1). The graphic shows the relative importance that Millennials and non-Millennials attach to a number of different factors. These include patriotism, professional success, spirituality, and working out.

Source: Barton et al. 2014.

As I perused the findings of BCG’s research, I tried to identify connections between craft beer and Millennial values. Here is what I think I identified.

Status

BCG identify status as a value that is important to Millennials. A number of scholars have suggested that craft beer is a high status product. These include my good friend Tom Bell and his colleague James Baginski who, in a 2011 paper published in the Southeastern Geographer, refer to craft beer as a “high order prestige good”. Similarly, in a book chapter published in the same year, Victor and Carol Tremblay talk about the  “prestige factor” of drinking craft beer. In a 2012 paper published in British Food Journal, Douglas Murray and Martin A. O’Neill, published in the British Food Journal, suggest that the craft beer drinker is “sophisticated” and “discerning”. The same observations have been made with regard to real ale drinkers in England, where Karl Spracklen, Jon Laurencic and Alex Kenyon, in a 2013 paper in Tourist Studies, note that drinking “real ale is seen as a marker of good taste and distinction”.

Millennials enjoying a beer at Basecamp Brewing Company in Portland, OR

Luxury

According to BCG, luxury is another characteristic valued by Millennials. Craft beer, I would argue, is a luxury product. More specifically, it is an affordable luxury. To the French-American author, Mireille Giuliano, luxury means ”premium quality and that doesn’t always equate to known brands or mascs marketing”. Speaking specifically about the Millenial cohort, Max Montgomery defines affordable luxury as “achieving quality, tailored to our taste, at a price we can afford.” Craft beer, it would seem, qualifies as an affordable luxury. Compared to mass produced beer,  craft beer is relatively expensive. Of course, the price you pay for beer depends upon where you live. In 2017, the cost of a case of Bud Light or Miller Lite varied from $14.62 in Michigan to $21.98 in Pennsylvania.  In comparison, the average cost of a case of craft beer, nationwide, in 2017 was $32 – that’s $1.33 a bottle – definitely what I’d call an affordable luxury.

Craft beer is an affordable luxury (Backcountry Brewing, Squamish, BC, Canada)

Excitement/Adventure/Travel/Fun

MiIlennials like excitement, adventure, travel, and fun. All four can be experienced in the consumption of craft beer.  In 2013, A. J. Carpenter and his fellow students completed a term paper for their Marketing 6069 class (Buyer/Consumer Behavior) at University of Colorado, Denver. In it, they identified four types of craft beer drinker – novice, loyalist, enthusiast, and explorer. According to Carpenter et al’s study, Most craft beer drinkers are either enthusiasts or explorers. While there are some key differences between enthusiasts and explorers, one trait they have in common is their desire to try lots of different craft beers and to visit lots of different craft breweries. In other words, drinking craft beer is an exciting adventure; an adventure that takes the craft beer from tap room to tap room to taste the beer at its point of production. This idea that craft beer drinkers are excitement seeking adventurers is supported by the growing popularity of craft beer tourism. Annually, more than ten million Americans go on a brewery tour. Ale trails are increasingly common and help beer tourists strategically navigate a city or region’s craft breweries. The term ‘beercation’ has entered the lexicon of the craft beer drinker. Craft beer festivals (literally dozens of them occur every year across the United States) attract the craft beer aficionado and allows her to sample a wide variety of beers within the time frame of an afternoon, evening, or weekend. At the same time, the highly popular app Untappd enables the craft beer drinker to log the beers he consumes, while enjoying the fun of earning badges along the way.

Millennial beer tourists at Heist Brewery in Charlotte, NC

Charity

Brew Good Do Good is the motto of Black Cloister Brewing Company in Toledo, OH

With one of two exceptions, craft breweries are owned by people living in the community in which they are located. As a result, craft brewery owners tend to very committed to the well-being of their communities. To this end, they tend to be very supportive of local charities. The media is replete with specific examples of  craft breweries giving to and/or supporting good causes. Brian Yaeger refers to craft brewers as “liquid philanthropists”.  And craft breweries tend to be more generous in their charitable giving than the macro-Brewers. In 2014, craft breweries gave $3.25 for every barrel of beer brewed. In contrast, AB InBev, through its charitable organization, gave only $0.35 per barrel. As the motto of one of my local craft breweries in Toledo, OH (Black Cloister Brewing Company) proudly states – “Brew Good, Do Good”.

Change and Optimism

Change and optimism are Millennial values. Both are abundant in the craft brewing movement. Craft breweries are agents and representatives of change. From a handful of craft breweries in the mid-1980s, the number of craft breweries in the United States now exceeds six thousand. Craft breweries account for 12.7% of the American beer market by volume and 23.3% by dollar sales. These numbers represent change; dramatic change. But the change is not just found in the numbers. The change can be experienced with our eyes, our ears, our noses, and our taste buds. I experience  it ever time I walk into the taproom of a craft brewery and see it filled with young people; men and women, enjoying a beer that has been carefully and lovingly crafted by the brewmaster. I hear it every time I listen to two or more people discussing the finer points of an IPA or debating which craft brewery is producing the most innovative brews. I smell and taste it when I lift that an IPA to my lips and I smell and then taste the aroma and bitterness of the hops. More than anything, I would submit that craft beer’s success happened because its early pioneers had optimism – an optimism that hinged on the belief that there were enough Americans out there who wanted better beer. It is an optimism that resurfaces every time a new craft brewery opens it doors.

Enjoying the taste of optimism at Mad Anthony Brewing Company in Fort Wayne, IN

There are a couple of values that appear in the upper left hand (non-Millennial) quadrant of Exhibit 1 that surprised me. Surprised me in the sense that I would have perhaps expect them to be values that resonated with a Millennials. Two in particular are authenticity and craftsmanship. Authenticity is a particularly slippery concept. And I really don’t want to get into any of the authenticity debates here. Suffice to say, that at the 2017 Craft Brewers Conference, Brewers Association Bob Pease identified the four pillars of the craft brewing  movement – independence, spirit, community-mindedness, and yes, you’ve guessed it, authenticity.  As for craftsmanship, one might have also expected that to be more important to Millennials, than indicated by the BCG study.

Further Reading:

Barton, Christine, Lara Koslow, and Christine Beauchamp. 2014. How Millennials are changing the face of marketing forever. Boston: The Boston Consulting Group.

Dimock, Michael. 2018. Defining generations: Where Millennials end and post-Millennials begin. Pew Research Center FactTank, March 1.

Craft Breweries As Third Places

The Great Good Place by Ray Oldenburg

In 1989, Ray Oldenburg, an American urban sociologist, published a book titled The Great Good Place. The subtitle of the book was informative and really conveyed the essence of Oldenburg’s ideas. The subtitle was Cafes, Coffee Shops, Bookstores, Bars, Hair Salons, and Other Hangouts at the Heart of a Community. In this book, and in his subsequent work, Oldenburg writes about the importance of what he calls “third places” in American culture. According to Oldenburg, Americans occupy three distinct Continue reading Craft Breweries As Third Places

Portland: City of Beer and Roses

I visited Portland, Oregon earlier this month. I was there attending yet another academic conference – this time the 62nd North American Meetings of the Regional Science Association International. And yes, I talked about beer at the conference – about the large regional craft Continue reading Portland: City of Beer and Roses