Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. the stomach.

1819		P. Egan Key to the Picture of the Fancy going to a Fight 17: The rag being in queer street, he is taking a few whiffs just to prevent his grubbery from being troublesome.
1824		Annals of Sporting 1 Mar. 199: A little, round, fat, oily man [...] with a grubbery like an alderman’s.
1832		Egan Bk of Sports 25: The grubbbery was again knocked about by the Pet.
1857		Bell’s Life in Sydney 23 May 2/6: Tom popped a left-hander on the ‘grubbery’.
1903		(ref. to 1810s–50s) Bulletin (Sydney) 23 July 21/4: The following sentence leaves no room whatever for doubt – ‘Tom then napped a left-hander on the grubbery.’.

2. food.

1821–6		‘Bill Truck’ Man o’ War’s Man (1843) 376: After finishing our snack of grubbery, we told the landlord who we were.
1829		Vidocq Memoirs (trans. W. McGinn) III 95: I shall not cut my stick until I have had some grubbery.
1841		W.L. Rede Sixteen String Jack II iii: Wery capital things them boarding-schools, ’specially if the grubbery’s good.
1845		J. Lindridge Sixteen-String Jack 324: Is there anything in the grubbery line to be had?
1852		‘Epistle from Joe Muggins’s Dog’ in Era (London) 22 Feb. 3/4: Loads uv grubbery for ther upper sort.

3. a cookshop; an eating house.

1823		‘Jon Bee’ Dict. of the Turf, the Ring, the Chase, etc.
1825		Bell’s Life in London 10 Apr. 2/3: I vas so peckish, that I proposed going to the grubbery.
1890–1904		Farmer & Henley Sl. and Its Analogues.

4. a public meal.

1837

Boston Herald 31 Jan. 4/2: The out-and-out speech of Lord Spencer at the late grubbery.

5. (UK Und.) a workhouse.

1889–90

Barrère & Leland Dict. of Sl., Jargon and Cant.

6. a dining room.

1890–1904

Farmer & Henley Sl. and Its Analogues.