Fluvia

Eating out

Practise ordering food in English, in a restaurant and a café

The specials go past fast and nobody repeats them, and when the wrong plate arrives almost nobody says anything. Here you order from a waiter in a hurry, and chat to a barista while your coffee is made. Free, no sign-up.

Situations
2, the restaurant and the café
Who you meet
a waiter in a rush, a chatty barista
The complication
the plate that arrives is not the one you ordered
Correction
as you speak, not at the end
Sign-up
none
Price
free

The two situations

  • Ordering a meal and asking what is in it

    You avoid restaurants where you have to order out loud in English.

    Ellis — a waiter working a full section on a busy evening

    Order what you actually want, and say something when the plate is wrong.

    Start →

  • Small talk at a coffee shop

    You want to stop dreading the counter when you order.

    Maya — a cheerful barista at a neighbourhood café

    Order a drink and hold a relaxed, natural small-talk exchange.

    Start →

Ordering is not the hard part

Anyone can read a dish off a menu. What throws you is a waiter reeling off two specials at full speed and then waiting. Here he does it on purpose, without slowing down, and you have to ask him to repeat it or explain what it is. It is one sentence, "could you run that by me again?", and it changes the whole meal.

The second half is the wrong plate. In the rehearsal you are brought something you did not order and the waiter does not notice by himself. If you say nothing, it stays. Saying it without sounding rude is the skill this page trains.

The café is the short everyday version: order, and hold a brief conversation while the drink is made.

Frequently asked questions

How do I ask for the specials to be repeated?
"Sorry, could you run that by me again?" or "What was the second one?". Asking for a repeat is normal and waiters do it without blinking; the block is believing it looks bad.
How do I say the plate is wrong without being rude?
"I think there's been a mix-up, I ordered the salad" works anywhere. It flags the error without blaming anyone, which is exactly what gets it fixed quickly.
How do I ask what is in a dish?
"What comes with it?" for the sides and "is that on the side?" for sauces. Those two remove most of the surprise when the plate lands.
Do I need a microphone?
Yes, it is a spoken conversation. It runs in a phone or desktop browser with nothing to install.

FROM WHAT YOU READ TO WHAT YOU SAY

Order what you actually wanted

Five minutes with a waiter who moves fast, and you stop picking the dish you know how to say.

Practise ordering