Eating Out

In most countries East or West eating out has become a very popular pastime. A lot of eating places ranging from high-class restaurants to factory canteens cater for all tastes at various prices. Small, often self-service restaurants, cafes or snack-bars serve quite cheap food and you don’t have to prepare it yourself. Traditional restaurants are famous for high quality and expensive cooking.

Every country has its own popular places which traditionally specialize in certain dishes. For example, kebab grills, “guss”, fried chicken are quite common in the Arab world. Fish and chip shops have been and are still very popular in Britain. Dishes made of potato are popular in Belarus. A fairly recent development is the growth of take-away restaurants. Here you can buy cooked meals which are packed in special containers or plastic bags for you to take away. Very popular are Chinese and Indian take-away restaurants.

Normally a meal in a restaurant takes time. Usually you tell the waiter what you want for the first two courses; he will take your order for dessert and coffee later. When paying the bill it is customary to tip waiters, however in most restaurants a service charge is nowadays added to avoid individual tipping. But if the waiter has been very helpful some people like to give a small tip. According to the restaurant etiquette you don’t shout “Waiter!” loudly across the room if you want to call him. You raise your hand and try to catch the waiter’s eyes without shouting or waving your arms. It’s not easy to get the waiter’s attention, but it’s much more polite than shouting which would make you very unpopular.

Staying at a hotel eases the matter considerably. At the hotel restaurant you are offered European cuisine along with specially prepared dishes, various hors d'oeuvres, wines and soft drinks. First-class five star hotels treat their guests to “Swedish Board” which gives you a quick and delicious meal. Other services such as Coffee Shops are also commonly available.

If you want to have a quick lunch you may decide on a snack-bar, a cafe or even your office vending machine where you can get sandwiches and other snacks. There are also hamburger restaurants specializing in cheap meals – especially hamburgers.

Ex. 6. Act out the following dialogue.

At a Restaurant

(S – student, W – waiter)

W: S: W: S: W: S: W: S: W: S: W: S: W: S: W: S: W:

Good evening. Have you got a reservation? No, I’m afraid not. Have you got a vacant table for two? Yes, sir. Over there by the window. Would you like something to drink while examining the menu? Yes, some sherry, please. Are you ready to order? Yes, I think so. What would you like to have? Would you advice me some national cuisine, please. We have a prawn cocktail and mushrooms in cheese source. And for the main course? I think you would like a steak and kidney pie. We also have roast chicken with special stuffing. Would you like wine with your meal? Kidney pie will be all right and I’ll have some red wine, too. Will that be all? That’s all for a while. Thank you. Can I have the bill, please? Here it is. Is service included? Yes, it is.

Ex. 7. Scan the text and answer the questions that follow.

Pubs

Pubs have become an important part of British social life. These are quiet, rather private places, large or small, new or old, in cities or in the countryside, with a friendly atmosphere where local people meet in the evening for company and conversation. They come to relax, talk, play games like darts or billiards and have their usual drink or a meal. You can buy many kinds of drinks in pubs, alcoholic and non-alcoholic. The typical drink is beer. There are many different types of beer both draught and bottled, which is served in pints (0,57 of a litre) or half pints. You never ask for a pint of beer, but for a pint of lager, bitter, keg, mild, Guinness or other particular name of the beer. You can also buy spirits (e.g. whiskey, gin, vodka) and usually wine (by the glass, but not by the bottle). There are also a lot of soft drinks, e.g. coca-cola (coke), fruit juice or lemonade. A very refreshing drink on a hot day is a shandy (lemonade mixed with beer).

People come to pubs to meet their friends and get to know other “regulars”. They talk about the weather or how the English cricket team is doing in the Test Match against Australia. And although the regulars see each other almost every night for years, they never go into each others homes.

There are strict laws regulating opening time and who is allowed into pubs. The times vary in different parts of the country but most of them are open from 11 a.m. to 2.30 p.m. and from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. on weekdays. Children under 14 are not allowed to get into a pub, and young people under the age of 18 are not allowed to buy alcoholic drinks.

Picnics are also popular, especially with women and children. Children are fond of picnics chiefly because there are no tables at picnics and consequently no table manners and they have an opportunity to eat things that don’t agree with them. Women are happy because they don’t have to trouble about thinking of a meal. There should be hard-boiled eggs and something from a paper bag. It is not food that matters. They are looking forward to start a fire, to play guitar, cards and to amuse themselves.

1. What is a pub?

2. Is it more popular than a restaurant?

3. Why do English people go to a pub?

4. What drinks do they normally have there?

5. Are there such places as pubs in our country?

Ex. 8. Act out the following dialogues.

In a Pub

(S – student, W – waiter)

W: S 1: W: S 3: W:

Can I get you some more drink? Yes, I’m going to buy this round. What will it be? Give us a pint of mild each, plus half a lager and lime and a glass of sherry. Cheers everyone and good health!