But the British working population did not have afternoon tea. They had a meal at about midday, and a meal after work, between five and seven o'clock This meal was called tear, or just tea some families in Scotland and the north of England still have high tea' and some restaurants in these areas offer it too. High tea is a big meal with a main dish meat or fish followed by bread and butter and cakes. You drink lots of cups of tea with high tea. Today most people have a meal between 12 and 2 p.m. In the past, this meal was called'dinner' in working families. But now most people call it lunch'. 'Dinner' has become a bigger meal in the evenings.