Before any Americans or Brits see this, please don’t shoot the messenger 
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‘‘Italians themselves clearly agree that their food is superior. Nine in ten Italians (92%) include their own food in their top three rankings, with almost exactly the same number (90%) giving it the number one spot.’’
I took a quick trip to Italy last week and for once I wasn’t looking for Thai or Chnese or Indian.
Depends what you mean by “British cuisine” - the variety and quality of food in the UK now is wonderful.
Are we talking restaurant food? Or what one can buy in the shops?
I couldn’t believe how superb the choice was in M&S. I ate in The Ivy in Chichester and had a stunning battered fish and chips, mushy peas, and chips. Another evening I went into Wagamama and ate beautifully cooked fusion food. And these are restaurants that are “nothing special” these days in the UK. The food in a “nothing special” restaurant in our part of rural France is pretty dire.
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Food in the UK is very cosmopolitan now, as indeed it is in the US and in fact most western countries. I’d say it’s hard to categorise a country’s food because everyone makes food from everywhere. France’s national dish appears to be pizza, just as the British national dish is chicken tikka.
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British cuisine is offal.
Joking aside, I don’t there’s enough British dishes to even classify it as a cuisine in it’s own right.
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Steak and kidney pud, steak and cow heel, liver and onions, and tripe are pretty offalous and there’s plenty of other regional dishes using more expensive cuts. Actually largely from what I read, (not having been there for six years) modern British chef’s resto food can be pretty good, but never cheap. Fergus Henderson’s much copied nose to tail cuisine is a good example of how things changed quite some time ago
One of the many differences between UK and French local restos is that the latter provide a fantastic value, three or four course, traditional lunchtime carte de jour for workers and there isn’t really a UK equivalent. These aren’t necessarily my dejeuner of choice apart from being too much at the wrong time of day, but I wouldn’t knock it. And occasionally it has been truly memorable.
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This is interesting, because some of the best food I’ve had has been in France (but not at a resto) and some of the worst too (cheap resto). We’ve learned that if you want to enjoy dinner in France, economy is not an option. I agree about menu/plat du jour options at lunchtime sometimes but we’ve found it a lottery around Autun and Saone et Loire more generally.
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When I used the word ‘memorable’ I had this particular in place in mind . Chez Marinette is a venerable local institution that’s hosted the Parisian avant garde and been described in several memoirs of the Lot Valley. We had many memorable meals there over the years, incredible deep flavours and a wonderful generosity - vraie cuisine de la grand-mère. Once on a cold and misty day, we were the only diners, so we ate a six course dejeuner in the house next to the fireplace where an elderly iron with a frayed flex balanced on the 1950’s mantlepiece and we were served straight from the domestic kitchen - but the chicken was the best I’ve ever eaten. Another time in summer, a celebratory lunch with friends, trestle tables in the barn surrounded by hay bales and hens being chased by cats, like something out of a feelgood movie.
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SuePJ
quote’ - ‘….the variety and quality of food in the UK now is wonderful.’ … - totally agree, and there’s some excellent pub lunch places as well. On top of that, there are some good local restos which now ‘Deliver to Your Door’ !!
And don’t forget Waitrose - fabulous selection of fresh food, cooking stuff - and the most amazing spices from around the world - shelves and shelves of just spices !!!
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Don’t really wish to knock UK supermarkets like Booth’s and Waitrose, but one of the differences for us since living in France is that most of the food we buy is produced locally and easily bought on markets direct from the farms and local producteurs.
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Of course and very commendable, but, at least in our part of Lot et Garonne, unbelievably unimaginative - duck, duck and duck. Mache, mache and mache. Courgettes, courgettes and courgettes. Kiwi fruit, kiwi fruit and kiwi fruit. Tomatoes, tomatoes and tomatoes. Strawberries, strawberries and strawberries, the last two grown these days almost entirely in polytunnels to lengthen the season, but not improve the taste.
Of course, there are some amazing restaurants that are second to none. We are very fortunate in having one 15 minutes drive away from us and we love eating there, but that is for two, maybe three times a year and no way is that typical French cuisine.
We don’t have tomatoes at this time of year, and the only tomatoes we’ll be eating until June will be ones from Morocco that I roast, or tinned ones from Italy.
But I don’t understand why your local veg is so limited at this time of year 'cos you’re on a similar latitude to us, just nearer the coast. We’ve duck too, but OTOH we do also get excellent beef, veal and porc.
My wife doesn’t like French restaurants over UK restaurants because the former rarely caters for vegetarians in any half decent way. I have come to hate the inevitable thick cut chips that seem to be the standard side served in British restaurants. Also. why does everything seem to have to be presented as a burger between two squishy buns, applicable to France and the UK alike? There was a time when I would have given France the edge over the UK, now they’re about equal overall, it seems like mediocrity is the order of the day, just as long as the tables get filled at lunch and evening settings. Don’t get me started on Irish cuisine, which is like stepping back in time to the 60s, with notably rare exceptions (e.g. Galway city). Probably the biggest difference between the UK and France is the variety of food cultures one can find even in the smaller towns in the UK, whereas the same can rarely be said of France - French cuisine, North African cuisine if you’re lucky, and pizzerias are the order of the day.
I’ve come to take what I like from each country and not worry too much any more!
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Same here, actually worse than dire. It looks like the relatives have found a half decent one about 45 mins away so looking forward to summer.
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One of the advantages that the UK has over France (and other European countries) is the food available in pubs, many are now respected for their cuisine rather than the variety of beer they serve and offerings usually include vegetarian and vegan options which are often lacking in French restaurants.
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We’re really fortunate to have a very good restaurant a few steps away. The main menu can be a little dull but he uses his “menu efficace” to test out new dishes, which keeps it interesting and cost effective
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Intermarché is particularly good at this and you’ll see a bunch of signs on various shelves showcasing very local products.
HAHAHAHA English beer 
of course the food is more of a draw
In my village we have a 1 star restaurant, its no-star but v good less expensive bistro subsidiary, another v good local-style restaurant, a fairly trad brasserie and a lovely wine bar. All good esp as we are a commune of fewer than 1000 inhabitants.
Many more excellent restaurants within a fairly small radius. Obv also dull ones, greasy spoons and the usual bad sushi, pizza and kebab joints too
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Despite not being English, English beer is one thing I miss about the UK.
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My OH agrees with you. He thinks some French beers are too fizzy and prefers ales. There are a few decent French ones but luckily I learned here of the Trading Post and can get English beers from them. 