Restaurant English: 25 Phrases Confident English Speakers Use

0:00Hi, and welcome to the Espresso English podcast, where you can improve your English in just a few minutes a day. My name is Shaina, and I'm the teacher at Espresso English. Make sure to visit the website, EspressoEnglish.net, where you can get online courses and e-books that will help you learn English even faster. Let's get started with today's lesson.

0:26Can you confidently go to a restaurant in English? If not, don't worry, you'll be able to do that by the end of this video. Today, I'll teach you 25 essential English phrases for restaurants so you can order your meal, ask questions, and enjoy eating without stress. Make sure to download today's lesson PDF so you can easily review and remember today's practical phrases. Click on the link in the video description and enter your email address to get that free lesson guide. So, shall we grab a bite to eat?

0:57Let's get started. First, arriving and getting a table. When you arrive, the host or hostess, that's the person who greets people just inside the door, might ask, do you have a reservation? Meaning, did you confirm your plans with the restaurant in advance? If you have a reservation, you can say, yes, for, and then say your last name. Or you can say, table for two, please, or table for three, table for four, table for five, depending on how many people are in your group. Say that if you don't have a reservation.

1:29The host or hostess might say, there's a 20-minute wait, meaning you'll need to wait before you can get a table. While you're waiting, you could say, can I see the menu? When it's time for you to go to your table, the host or hostess will say, right this way, which means, follow me. Now, let's move on to ordering food. The person who takes your order and brings you food can be called a waiter, for a man, a waitress, for a woman, or a server. That can be either a man or a woman. The server will ask, are you ready to order?

2:00If you're not yet ready, you can say, not quite yet, or I need a couple more minutes. You could also ask, are there any lunch specials? Specials are featured meals that might be available at a lower price. When you want to order food, don't say, I want. Instead, say, I'll have. For example, I'll have the chicken. You could also say, can I get? That's a very common and polite way to make requests. Can I get the salad dressing on the side?

2:30Make sure to ask, is this spicy? If you don't like spicy food. Another question that can be useful is, can I make a substitution? That's when you want to change part of the dish, like replace the French fries with a baked potato. You can also say something like, no onions, please, to make a simple request. During the meal, the server will probably come back to check on your table, and they'll ask, how is everything? The typical response is, everything's great, thanks. Or you could say something like, could we get some more water?

3:01Could we get is a polite way to make a request. Or, can we have another basket of bread? If the server is not near your table, but you need to get their attention, you can say, excuse me, with a little wave to get their attention. Let's move on to paying the bill. You can ask the server, can we get the check? We say check in American English, and they say bill in British English. If you're eating with another person or multiple people, and you each want to pay separately, you can ask, can we split the bill, or can we have separate checks?

3:33If you want to pay for the other person's meal, you would say, it's on me, or my treat. If you didn't finish your meal, and you want to save the leftovers for later, ask the server, can I get a box to take this home? Finally, some problems or special situations. One that's very important for safety. Tell the server, I have a food allergy, or I'm allergic to peanuts, I'm allergic to eggs, etc. to make sure that whatever you're ordering does not have that ingredient. If it's taking a really long time for your food to arrive,

4:06you could ask the server, could you check on our order? Let's say the food comes, but it's not warm. You can tell the server, sorry, but this is cold. And if they give you the wrong dish, you could say, actually, this isn't what I ordered. Now you know how to arrive at a restaurant, get a table, order food, ask for what you need, and pay the bill, all in English. Go ahead and download the free lesson guide by clicking the link in the video description so you can remember all of today's phrases and feel totally confident when you eat out.

4:38I'd love to teach you real phrases for lots of different situations in daily life, from shopping to traveling, phone calls, socializing, and lots more. You can find these lessons inside my Everyday English Speaking course. Learn more about that course by clicking the link under this video. If you want more great English lessons, visit EspressoEnglish.net where you can sign up by email to receive a free e-book

5:09with 500 plus real English phrases. You'll also find online courses to help you improve your English fast, even if you don't have much time to study. Keep practicing your English, and I hope you have a wonderful day.

5:26We'll see you next time.