Buttery (shop)

In the Middle Ages, a buttery was a storeroom for liquor, the name being derived from the Latin and French words for bottle or, to put the word into its simpler form, a butt, that is, a cask. A butler, before he became able to take charge of the ewery, pantry, cellar, and the staff, would be in charge of the buttery. Over time, the buttery became a general food storeroom; the larders of Oxbridge colleges in particular became places where students purchased food and drink.

Most Oxford and Cambridge colleges, University College and Trevelyan College, Durham, King's College London, the University of Bristol and Trinity College, Dublin call their eating places butteries to this day, as do a few schools in the United Kingdom.

The residential colleges of Yale also refer to their snack bars by this name. Trinity College at the University of Toronto also uses the name to refer to its cafeteria located in the Larkin building. Bruce Hall at the Australian National University also maintains a buttery, which is an informal canteen and bar.

Rooms, spaces, and architectural elements

Public areas	Airport lounge Auditorium Cafeteria Classroom Changing room Conference hall Doctor's surgery Function hall Mailroom Library Lobby Office Refectory Restroom Security Waiting room

Passages and spaces	Alcove Atrium Balcony Breezeway Corridor Deck Elevator Emergency exit Escalator Entryway / Genkan Foyer Hallway Loft Loggia Nook Patio Pedway Pergola Porch porte-cochère Portico Ramp Secret passage Skyway Spear closet Stairway Terrace Veranda Vestibule Wheelchair ramp

Utility and storage	Attic Basement Box Room / Carport Cloakroom Closet Electrical room Equipment room Furnace room / Boiler room Garage Janitorial closet Laundry room / Utility room Mechanical room / floor Pantry Root cellar Semi-basement Studio Server room Wardrobe Workshop Vault Wine cellar Wiring closet / Demarcation point

Shared residential rooms	Billiard room Bonus room Common room Common Room (university) Conversation pit Den Dining room Drawing room Family room Great room Hearth room Home office Kitchen Kitchenette Library Living room / Lounge / Sitting room Man cave Home cinema Mehmaan khana Recreation room Shrines Study Student lounge Sunroom / Solarium

Private rooms	Bathroom / Toilet (room) Bedroom / Guest room Boudoir Cabinet Jack and Jill bathroom Nursery Safe room State room Suite Walk-in closet

Great house areas	Ballroom Butler's pantry Buttery Drawing room Fainting room Great chamber Great hall Larder Long gallery Lumber room Parlour Root cellar Salon Saucery Scullery Servants' hall Servants' quarters Smoking room Solar Spicery Still room Undercroft

Other areas	Barn Boathouse Conservatory Gym Loading dock Moon gate Outhouse Secondary suite Shed Stable Storm cellar or Storm room

Architectural elements	Arch Baluster Ceiling Colonnade Column Courtyard Fireplace Floor Gate Lighting Medaillon Ornament Swimming pool Vault Wet bar Roof

Related terms	Building Furniture House House plan Rooms

Famous quotes containing the word buttery:

“Hunger makes you restless. You dream about food—not just any food, but perfect food, the best food, magical meals, famous and awe-inspiring, the one piece of meat, the exact taste of buttery corn, tomatoes so ripe they split and sweeten the air, beans so crisp they snap between the teeth, gravy like mother’s milk singing to your bloodstream.”
—Dorothy Allison (b. 1953)