English Lesson (Listening and Speaking) "Restaurants – Eating Out and Complaining"

LESSON: TRAVEL ENGLISH
Topic: “Restaurants – Eating Out and Complaining”

Vocabulary 1
A. tricky (adj) – difficult, challenging.

B. play it safe (or be on the safe side)– to choose something easy and safe. Example: "I am not confident about other phone brands so to play it safe (to be on the safe side), I will just buy Apple or Samsung." Q: Do you always play it safe? Can you give an example? –

C. authentic local cuisines – traditional dishes from a specific region or culture.

D. Is it dine-in or take-out? (Is that for here or to go?)
Dine in or for here = eat in the restaurant.
Take out or to go = take the food home or somewhere

E. fancy restaurants – expensive/luxurious restaurants with elegant decor and gourmet food.

F. walk-in customers – customers who visit a store without an appointment.

G. complaints - expressions of dissatisfaction or problems with something.

Guide Questions
1. What did the speaker say about ordering in restaurants?
2. What do some tourists do?
3. What did the speaker say about fancy restaurants?
4. What are the common complaints of customers?

 

Vocabulary 2
A. complain – to express dissatisfaction or problems with something 

B. rude – not polite; showing bad manners or respect.

C. The meat is tough (hard). The meat is tender (soft).
D. The vegetables (or pasta) are soggy (too soft)

E. allergies

F. vegan - a person who does not eat any animal products.
G. vegetarian - a person who does not eat meat or fish.

H. bill (- British) (check – American) – a paper showing what you need to pay.
Example: Waiter! Can we have the check, please?

I. charge (verb)  – to ask for payment for something Example: "The hotel charged me 20 euros per day for using its parking space." Q: Has a hotel, restaurant, or other business charged you for something?—

J. tipping (tip) –  giving extra money for good service
Q: Do you tip? –
Q: What is the tipping system in France? –

Guide Questions
1. What are the common complaints of customers about food?
2. What did the speaker say about the bill?

 

 

Reservations

Waiter: What name is the reservation under?
You: It’s under Matthew Kim.

Q: Do you often make a reservation to eat out? -

Waiter: Good evening, how many will be dining?
You: Table for four, please.

Waiter: Good evening. My name is Henry. I will be your waiter. Are you ready to order? -
You: Can you give us 15 minutes? (This means we need 15 minutes to decide) -

You:
How long will it take to get our orders?
How soon can we have our orders?
Q: In France, how often do you have to wait for your food to arrive? -

Complaining
1. Excuse me.  I’d like to send back this spaghetti.

2. This is not the meal that I ordered.  I ordered spaghetti with white sauce, but this is tomato sauce.

3. We have been waiting for our food for 45 minutes. / We ordered 45 minutes ago, and we still haven’t gotten our food yet. Please check.

4. We’d like to follow-up on our orders.

5. Excuse me. This glass (spoon, fork, knife, plate) is dirty. Can we get new ones, please?

Common complaints about food
A. It is not spicy enough for me.
B. It is too spicy for me.

Taste
Sweet
Salty
Sour
Bitter
Spicy
Hot
Cold
Creamy
Oily
Dry

6. There’s a strand of hair in my spaghetti.

7. This spaghetti does not taste good. (or This spaghetti tastes like Japanese noodles)

8. The spaghetti smells bad (or strange).

9. I asked the waiter not to put cheese in my spaghetti, but I can taste cheese.  Please check again. I’m allergic to cheese.

10. The sauce is too runny.

11. I asked the waiter to put the sauce on the side, but the sauce is mixed with the spaghetti.

12. Please hold the mayo (mayonnaise)
Q: Have you ever complained about food or the service in a restaurant? If so, what? -

The Bill (British: bill / American: check)
Excuse me. I think there is something wrong with our check. We did not order any spring rolls, but you charge us with spring rolls.

You: And what is a service charge?
Waiter: That's like a tip ma'am (sir)

Q: Have you ever had a problem with the bill? -

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