So, someone named Great Coffee has breakfasts, salads, and light lunches, and someone else named Afternoon Tea has pastries and cakes and daily specials. "Panini's" is, of course, a mistake.

Since the modern conventions for apostrophe use weren't established until the mid 1800's it's likely that the English language's most famous writer made the same "mistake" that you see in this sign.

True. It's the arbitrary inconsistency that amuses me. (And yes, I am aware that Shakespeare was arbitrarily inconsistent even in the spelling of his own name). The current standard is to NOT use apostrophes in plurals. And let's face it "tea", "coffee" and even "panini" are hardly obscure or unfamiliar words.

Yes, and using them can cause confusion. I wonder why some have apostrophes and others don't. I found that strange.

quote:

Yes, and using them can cause confusion. I wonder why some have apostrophes and others don't. I found that strange.

It's simply that a whole generation in England has grown up without the benefit of a proper eductation in English grammar.

I recall speaking to a member of one of my training groups who was expounding on the flipchart work that he group had done. I jokingly asked why their scribe had put apostrophes in words like "video's" and "map's" and her response was that she just added them "where they looked right".

In other words, she had seen apostrophes used and felt that that they had some measure of importance, but had no idea what their function was. I suspect she spoke for her entire generation.