VOA慢速英语2019--如何在美国餐馆点菜

How to Order at an American Restaurant

When I lived in Portugal, one of the simplest things to do was really hard for me: ordering food at restaurants. I worried about being laughed at or not being understood. Often, I said just the name of the food and “please,” instead of full sentences.

Ordering food in a foreign language can be frightening! But in today’s Everyday Grammar, we’ll give you some expressions and suggestions for ordering at American restaurants.

Begin by greeting

Let’s begin with greetings. When ordering food in any restaurant, it’s a good idea to greet the person taking your order. You can say things like:

Hi (or) hi there

Hello

Good morning, afternoon or evening (or)

How’s it going?

In the United¹ States, asking someone you’ve never met how it’s going is just a friendly way of saying hello.

Kinds of restaurants

The language we use to order food usually depends on the kind of restaurant. Is it a casual² place where you order at a counter³? Or, is it a full-service restaurant – where a server⁴ comes to your table and takes your order?

Counter service

Let’s listen to four common expressions used at American counter service restaurants. Imagine that you want to order tea:

Can I get a medium tea, please?

Can I order a medium tea, please?

I’ll take a medium tea, please.

I’ll have a medium tea, please.

The expressions “I’ll have…” and “I’ll take…” are useful at both counter service restaurants and full-service restaurants.

Listen to someone ordering food at a counter:

Hi there! How can I help you?

Hi, how’s it going? I’ll take a medium tea and a toasted whole wheat bagel with vegetable spread.

The worker might respond⁵ with one of these questions:

Do you want anything else with that?

Will that be all for you today?

If your answer is no to the first question or yes to the second, they might say this next:

Is that for here or to go?

They are asking whether you will eat at the restaurant or take the food away to eat elsewhere⁶. The appropriate⁷ response is:

To go, please (or)

For here, thanks.

Full service

OK, let’s move to full-service restaurants. These can range from very casual to very formal. At casual restaurants, you usually do not need a table reservation⁸. But, at very busy restaurants and for formal dining, you often do.

Arriving

At places where no reservations⁹ are needed, a host or hostess will greet you at the door with something like this:

Hi, welcome to Paprika! Party of how many?

They are asking how many people are in your group. Or, they may simply count your group and confirm¹⁰ the number:

Party of four? (or)

Table for four?

At places that require reservations, if you are the first of your group to arrive, tell the host what name the reservation is in and the time, for example:

Hi, I’m here for the 7:45 reservation for Bryant.

If some of your group members have not yet arrived, you will likely have to wait to be seated.

Ordering

OK, so imagine that you are now seated with your group. Here’s what a server might say when they first come to your table:

Hi, my name is Alice and I’ll be your server today. Our special today is a tasty vegetable gumbo. Can I start you off with something to drink?

If you’re ready, you can respond:

Yes, I’ll have an orange juice.

Yes, I’d like an orange juice.

When they return with your drinks, they’ll likely check whether you’re ready to order food or have questions:

Do you have any questions about the menu?

Are you ready to order?

You can tell them your questions, if any. Or, maybe you’re unsure what to order. In that situation, ask for a suggestion, more details or more time:

I’m having trouble deciding. What would you recommend¹¹?

Can you tell me more about today’s special – what’s in it?

We just need a few more minutes, please.

Paying the bill

OK, now imagine you’ve enjoyed your meal. It’s time to pay your bill. You can use eye contact to catch the server’s attention or just raise your hand halfway¹² when they look in your direction. Here are three ways to ask for the bill:

We’re ready for the check, please.

Can we have the check, please?

Check, please.

If people in your group wish to pay separately¹⁴, you can request separate¹³ checks. Many – but not all – restaurants offer this.

And, lastly, at an American restaurant, don’t forget to leave a tip! A good tip is between 15 and 20 percent. But, read your bill carefully since some restaurants add the tip into the bill.

Final thoughts

Ordering food in a foreign language is not easy at first, but after a few tries, I promise you will feel more at-ease.

Here’s what I suggest:

Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Even if you use different expressions than you learned¹⁵ today, your server will probably understand you if you speak clearly. Also, don’t be afraid to ask the server to repeat themselves if their words are unclear or they speak too quickly.

Enjoy your meal!

I’m Alice Bryant.

Words in This Story

greeting – n. something that is said or done to show people that you are happy to meet or see them

casual – adj. designed for or permitting¹⁶ ordinary dress, behavior or language

counter – n. a piece of furniture with a flat surface that workers and customers stand on opposite sides of

bagel – n. a bread roll shaped like a ring

formal – adj. requiring or using serious and proper clothes and manners¹⁷

reservation – n. an arrangement to have something (such as a room, table, or seat) held for your use at a later time

bill – n. a document that says how much money you owe¹⁸ for something you have bought or used

check – n. a bill for the food and drinks that are served in a restaurant

tip – n. an extra amount of money that you give to someone, such as a server, who performs a service for you

1 united   

adj.和谐的；团结的；联合的，统一的

参考例句：

• The whole nation is closely united.全国人民紧密团结。
• The two men were united by community of interests.共同的利益使两个人结合在一起。

2 casual   

adj.漠不关心，冷漠的；随便的，非正式的；偶然的，碰巧的

参考例句：

• He earns a living by casual labour.他靠做临时工为生。
• The guests wore casual clothes.客人们穿着便服。

3 counter   

n.柜台；计数器；adj.相反的；adv.与…相反地；vt.反对，反击；vi.反对，反击

参考例句：

• This counter is closed now.这个柜台现在已停止营业。
• Set the counter to zero and you'll know where the recording starts.把计数器拨到零，你就会知道录音从哪儿开始。

4 server   

n.服伺者，服勤者，伺候者

参考例句：

• The server is introducing the pub.侍者正在介绍这家酒吧.
• My server is having problems this morning.我的服务器今天早上出了问题。

5 respond   

vi.回答，响应

参考例句：

• I offered him a drink but he did not respond.我请他喝酒，但他未作回答。
• I greeted him but he didn't respond.我跟他打招呼，他没答理我。

6 elsewhere   

adv.在别处，到别处

参考例句：

• Our favourite restaurant was full so we had to go elsewhere.我们最喜欢去的那家饭店客满了，因此不得不改去别处。
• I have half a mind to move elsewhere.我有点想搬到别处去。

7 appropriate   

adj.适当的，合适的；v.拨出，挪用，盗用

参考例句：

• It is appropriate that he should get the post.由他担任这一职务是恰当的。
• We should take appropriate measures to improve our teaching.我们应当采取适当的措施提高教学质量。

8 reservation   

n.保留条件，限制条件；预订座位

参考例句：

• The instruction should be carried out without any reservation.应当不折不扣地执行这个指示。
• I accept your statement without reservation.我完全相信你的话。

9 reservations   

n.[法律]（权益等的）保留( reservation的名词复数 )；预订；保留地；保留意见

参考例句：

• Most of these workers are American Indians living on reservations. 这些工人中的大多数是住在居留地的美洲印第安人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Have you made the reservations for our holiday yet? 你为我们度假做好预订安排了吗？ 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 confirm   

vt.证实；确认；v.确认

参考例句：

• I'll call you back to confirm.我会给你回电话确认的。
• I need to confirm my reservation on the next flight.我要确认我预订的下一个航班。

11 recommend   

vt.推荐，介绍；劝告，建议；使成为可取，使受欢迎

参考例句：

• Can you recommend me a good book?你能给我介绍一本好书吗？
• I can recommend this play to all lovers of good theatre.我把这个剧推荐给所有爱好优秀戏剧的人。

12 halfway   

adj.中途的，不彻底的，部分的；adv.半路地，在中途，在半途

参考例句：

• We had got only halfway when it began to get dark.走到半路，天就黑了。
• In study the worst danger is give up halfway.在学习上，最忌讳的是有始无终。

13 separate   

n.分开，抽印本；adj.分开的，各自的，单独的；v.分开，隔开，分居

参考例句：

• Are they joined together or separate?它们是合在一起还是分开的？
• Separate the white clothes from the dark clothes before laundering.洗衣前应当把浅色衣服和深色衣服分开。

14 separately   

adv.单独地，分开地

参考例句：

• Bulky items will be collected separately.大件物品将分开收集。
• Text and graphics are prepared separately and then combined.文字和图分别编排后再进行混排。

15 learned   

adj.有学问的，博学的；learn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He went into a rage when he learned about it.他听到这事后勃然大怒。
• In this little village,he passed for a learned man.在这个小村子里，他被视为有学问的人。

16 permitting   

允许( permit的现在分词 )； 许可

参考例句：

• We will go out for a walk, weather permitting. 如果天气好，我们就出去散散步。
• For her it was a special relationship, permitting intelligent exchanges. 对她来说，那是一种特殊的关系，可以用明智的方式进行角逐。

17 manners   

n.礼貌；规矩

参考例句：

• You should mend your manners.你的态度应当纠正。
• His manners are rough,but he is a kind man at heart.他虽然举止粗鲁，但心地善良。

18 owe   

vt./vi.欠（债等）；感激；把……归功于某人

参考例句：

• We still owe one hundred dollars for the car.为这部车我们还欠着100美元。
• We owe it to society to make our country a better place.把国家建设得更美好是我们对社会应尽的责任。