public restaurant

English translation: "public" sounds a bit unnecessary for me!

19:04 Oct 24, 2013
English language (monolingual) [PRO]
Cooking / Culinary
English term or phrase: public restaurant
Does the term "public restaurant" mean anything to native English speakers? If so, what does it mean? Thank you.
Luiza Modesto
Brazil
Local time: 05:45
Selected answer:"public" sounds a bit unnecessary for me!
Explanation:
Quite simply, a restaurant open to the public! I've never used it myself, and I'd only expect to read it when the writer wants to refer to the fact that people outside a particular group would be there, i.e. the opposite of a works canteen.

Or it could be referring to this place in New York City...

http://public-nyc.com/
Selected response from:

Ben_ (X)
United Kingdom
Local time: 08:45
Grading comment
Thank you all very much for the feedback. :)
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



SUMMARY OF ALL EXPLANATIONS PROVIDED
4 +4"public" sounds a bit unnecessary for me!
Ben_ (X)
4 +1a restaurant open to everyone
Piyush Ojha
3 +2[educational situation]
Tony M
4a pub
Charlesp


  

Answers


42 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +4
"public" sounds a bit unnecessary for me!


Explanation:
Quite simply, a restaurant open to the public! I've never used it myself, and I'd only expect to read it when the writer wants to refer to the fact that people outside a particular group would be there, i.e. the opposite of a works canteen.

Or it could be referring to this place in New York City...

http://public-nyc.com/

Ben_ (X)
United Kingdom
Local time: 08:45
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 4
Grading comment
Thank you all very much for the feedback. :)

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Christine Andersen
11 mins

agree  Tony M: (Don't see how it is possible for DM to 'disagree' — there is nothing about your answer that can be categorically, objectively be said to be 'wrong'!)
13 mins

agree  Veronika McLaren: reminiscent of the "pub" - "public house" or drinking place as the focal point of a community...
1 hr

agree  Jack Doughty: Or to these places http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Restaurant
1 hr

agree  Cilian O'Tuama
1 day 3 hrs

disagree  David Moore (X): Sorry to have to disagree, Ben, but there are probably thousands of "staff restaurants" in the UK; I've used a number of them - they are NOT all "canteens".
2 days 13 hrs
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47 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +1
a restaurant open to everyone


Explanation:
It is not a term you would hear often but I expect it means a restaurant that is open to everyone. One might use it to distinguish from a 'closed' or 'private' restaurant, such as one run by a large organization which is open only to employees and their guests.

Piyush Ojha
United Kingdom
Local time: 08:45
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish, Native in HindiHindi

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Parvathi Pappu: agree
6 hrs
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55 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +2
[educational situation]


Explanation:
The only time I have ever encountered this particular term was when I worked in a Higher Education establishment in the UK that included a large Hotel & Catering department.

There, we had a 'Public Restaurant' which was open to the general public, for the purposes of training the students; it was thus called to differentiate it from the Staff and Student canteens.

Otherwise, I can see no justification for adding the word 'public', since by deinifiton, a restaurant will normally be open to the public, unless it is within some kind of corporate establishment. Or possibly unless it is in a formal legal context, where the collocation might not be considered redundant.

Tony M
France
Local time: 09:45
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 20

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Sheila Wilson: that's what I thought of
36 mins
  -> Thanks, Sheila!

agree  Yvonne Gallagher: what jumped to my mind too
1 hr
  -> Thanks, G2!
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3 days 23 hrs   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
a pub


Explanation:
Perhaps the reference is to a "pub," i.e. a public house.

Could be "fully licensed"

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Note added at 3 days23 hrs (2013-10-28 18:24:29 GMT) Post-grading
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Or maybe Joe's Pub Restaurant is meant

Charlesp
Sweden
Local time: 09:45
Native speaker of: English

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
neutral  Tony M: Unlikely, if this was written (or suggested) by a native EN speaker (which I doubt!) — I don't think anyone would confuse those two. / Like I said, I think it is "unlikely".
26 mins
  -> How do you know that?
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