English for waiters BC

English
for Waiters

Prepared by Manana Rusieshvili and Maya Rogava
With the assistance of the British Council
Tbilisi, Georgia

2008




inglisuri ena mimtanebisaTvis
saxelmZRvanelo profesiuli saswavleblebis turizmis kolejis studentebisaTvis

saxelmZRvanelo gamoica 3 wignad:
• inglisuri ena sastumros administratorebisaTvis. English for Receptionists
• inglisuri ena mimtanebisaTvis. English for Waiters
• inglisuri ena barmenebisaTvis. English for Bar Staff

proeqti ganxorcielda britaneTis sabWos daxmarebiT.
proeqtis koordinatori da redaqtori rusudan tyemalaZe

The project was supported by the British Council
Project coordinator and editor Rusudan Tkemaladze

ISBN 978-9941-404-22-1

2008 weli



Con tent s
In t r o d u c t i o n

5

Part 1

Ordering Meals

6

Lesson 1 Ordering wine

6

Lesson 2 Let me invite you

8

Lesson 3 How to reserve a table (1)

10

Lesson 4

How to reserve a table (2)

12

Lesson 5

At a restaurant

14

Lesson 6

What can I get for you?

16

Lesson 7

Can I make an order?

18

Lesson 8

Restaurant Karaleti



20

Lesson 9

Ordering food

22

Lesson 10 I’d like to have…

24

Lesson 11 Ordering a complete meal

26

Lesson 12 Complaints

28

Part 2











Restaurants and Staff

30

Lesson 1

Advertising a restaurant

30

Lesson 2

Restaurants in the cities of Georgia

32

Lesson 3

Eating out in London

34

Lesson 4

Tsisartkela - a newly decorated restaurant

36

Lesson 5

Eating out in Georgia

38

Lesson 6

A cup of coffee

40

Lesson 7

Restaurant manager

42

Lesson 8 Restaurant staff

44

Lesoson 9 Who are waiters?

46




Part 3

Healthy Food

48

Lesson 1  Georgian wines

48

Lesson 2

Common liquors

50

Lesson 3 Recipes

52

Rainbow bar menu

54

Lesson 5 Breakfast

56

Lesson 6 Breakfast and coffee break

58

Lesson 7 Coffee House menu (1)

60

Lesson 8 Coffee House menu (2)

62

Lesson 9 Menus (1)

64

Lesson 10 Menus (2)

66

Lesson 11 Menus (3)

68

Lesson 12 Menus (4)

70

GLOSSARY

72

ANSWER KEYS

82

Lesson 4




Introduction
English for Waiters is written for the students of Tourism College who are
training to become Waiters of hotels. The textbook serves two purposes:
a. upgrades general knowledge of English of future waiters; b. develops
professional language skills by means of close-to-life, authentic texts and
dialogues.
The textbook consists of three parts. Number of lessons per part vary from
9 to 12. Each text/dialogue is followed by a number of practical tasks and
exercises. Overall number of lessons is 33.
Level of language used in the textbook is from intermediate to post-intermediate.
English for Waiters was piloted in Tbilisi Tourism College in January - June
2008. We welcome any kind of recommendations or suggestions which might
arise during the teaching process.




Part 1 ordering meals


Lesson 1Ordering wine

Read the following dialogue and try to understand the underlined words from the context.
George and Nino are ordering wine in a restaurant.
Waiter:

The wine list for you, sir.

George:

Thank you, let’s see. What sort of wine do you prefer, Nino?

Nino:

I would like to have a glass of red.

George:

Sweet, semisweet or dry?

Nino:

Dry.

George:

Then let’s order Saperavi. It’s usually very good here.

Nino:

How often do you come here?

George:

Usually once a month. (to the waiter). Excuse me.

Waiter:

Yes, sir?

George:

We’ll have two medium glasses of Saperavi.

Nino:

And I’d like to have a bottle of mineral water Borjomi too.

George:

Good. Let’s look at the menu now. Waiter, can we a have menu, please?

Waiter:

Yes, sir. Here you are




Task 1. Match 1 - 8 with a - h.
1. wine list



a. tkbili

2. sort

b. mSrali

3. prefer



c. saSualo

4. sweet



d. inebeT

5. semisweet



e. Rvinis CamonaTvali

6. dry



f. naxevradtkbili

7. medium

g. tipi, saxeoba

8. here you are



h. upiratesobis miniWeba

Task 2. Complete the dialogue with the words from the box (two words are extra).
here

prefer

medium

dry

water

list

like

wine

George: Can I have a wine (1) ………… , please?
Waiter: (2) ………. you are, sir

George: I’d (3) ……………. to have a glass of red (4) …………………
Waiter: What would you (5) ……………….. Saperavi or Khvanchkara?
George: I’d take semisweet Khvanchkara, please.
Waiter:

Would you like a large glass or (6) ………………….?

George: Large, please
Waiter: A large glass of Khvanchkara. Thank you, sir.

Task 3. Work in pairs. Make up and act out a dialogue using the words and phrases from Task 1
and 2.


Task 4. Work in pairs or small groups. Write down names of 3 red and 3 white wines.






Lesson 2 Let me invite you

Read the following dialogues and try to understand the underlined words form the context.

Dialogue 1
John:

Hi, Jill, this is John. What are you doing tonight?

Jill:

Nothing special, why?

John:

How about going out? Let me invite you to the Seafood restaurant.

Jill:

Can we go to the Mexican restaurant? I love hot food and besides it is pretty hot today and the



Mexican restaurant has a pavement section as well.

John:

Right. Let’s try Mexican food tonight then. Shall I pick you up at your office?

Jill:

Yes, please. I’ll be free at 6 o’clock.

Dialogue 2
John: Next time let’s try seafoood restaurant. I love fish.
Jill:

Why not? Do you have any idea where to go?

John: If we are not going to have seafood, we can go to the regular restaurant, can’t we? or shall we go


to the carver’s (looking at the leaflet). We would not like to go to BYO, of course,…wait, shall



we try a family-run restaurant? I know the owner, Mr. Saladze. The location is also brilliant.



Besides it has an entertaining complex .

Jill:

I hope the music is not too loud. I would like to have a quiet evening somewhere in a small



brasserie, provided it is quiet ……..




Task 1. Match a - j with 1-10.
a. carver’s

1. saojaxo restorani

b. regular restaurant

2. gasarTobi kompleqsi

c. brasserie

3. zRvis sakvebis restorani

d. steak house

4. sakmaod iafi restorani sadac frangul kerZebs mogarTmeven

e. pavement café

5. Semwvari xorcis saxli

f. seafood restaurant

6. xorcis restorani

g. entertainment complex 7. Cveulebrivi standartis restorani
h. family-run restaurant

8. restorani, sadac sasmelis Setana SeiZleba

i. BYO

9. Caixana

j. tearoom

10. kafe qvafenilze, Ria kafe

Task 2. Work in pairs or small groups. Make up dialogues using the following words and phrases.
family-run restaurant
steak house
invite
pizzeria
Can I help you?
What would you like to order?
Would you prefer?

Task 3. Answer the following questions.
1. Where do people who want to organise a tea party go?
2. Where do people who love meat go? (more than one answer)
3. Where do people who love fish go?
4. Where do people who want to spend an evening in the open air go?
5. Where do people who love pizza go?
6. Where do people who love French (Mexican, Italian, Georgian, Chinese, Indian) food go?




Lesson 3

How to reserve a table (1)

Read the following dialogue and try to understand the underlined words form the context.
Waiter:

Hello. Can I help you?

Guest:

Hi, yes. We’d like a table for two.

Waiter:

Do you have a reservation?

Guest:

No, we don’t.

Waiter:

I’m sorry, we are fully packed at the moment.



But we have a cancellation at 9:00.

Guest:

At 9:00? That’s fine.

Waiter:

O.K. Your name, please?

Guest:

Brown.

Waiter:

Would you prefer smoking or non-smoking area?

Guest:

Non-smoking, please.

Waiter:

Good. Can you, please, go to table12.

Guest:

Sure. Thank you.



10


Task 1. Match 1 - 4 with�������
�����������

a - d.
1. have a reservation

a. adgili, sadac moweva akrZalulia

2. fully packed

b. gadatvirTuli

3. cancellation

c. gauqmeba

4. non-smoking area

d. dajavSna

Task 2. Fill in the blanks with the words from the box.
fully

family-run

smoking

reservation

cancel

1. In order to get a good table in the evening you should make a …………………. in time.
2. When there are no vacant seats the restaurant is ……………… packed.

3. If you want to smoke a cigarette you should go to ……………………….. area.
4. If the guests are busy they can ……………………… the reservation.
5. ……………………….restaurant is smaller and friendlier.

Task 3. Work in pairs or small groups. Put the lines in order and act out a dialogue.
1. Hello, Hotel Tsisartkela. Can I help you?
2. Sure. That’s possible. Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow evening.
3. That’s fine. Can I make a reservation for 7 o’clock tomorrow?
4. I’m sorry, we are fully packed at the moment. What about tomorrow?
5. Yes, please. I’d like to reserve a table for 7 o’clock today.

11


Lesson 4

How to reserve a table (2)

Read the following dialogues and try to understand the underlined words form the context.
Dialogue 1
John:
Clerk:
John:
Clerk:


John:
Clerk:
John:
Clerk:

John:

Hello, is that the Mexican restaurant? I’d like to reserve a table for two.
Is this for today, sir?
Yes, today seven o’clock, please.
Yes, would you prefer a table at the window or in the centre of the hall? You can
reserve a table on the outdoor terrace as well which remains open until midnight on warm
evenings.
Actually, I would prefer it outside on the terrace.
Right, your order is confirmed, sir. Thank you for choosing us.
Thank you. Oh, just one more question… Can I ask you if this restaurant is BYO?
No, sir. We have our own drinks.
O.K thank you.

Dialogue 2
Waiter:

Would you like a drink while you are waiting?

Jane:

Yes, er…. Can I have some sparkling mineral water, please?



Waiter:

And for you, sir?

John:

I’ll have a beer and some water, please.



Dialogue 3
Waiter:

Excuse me. This way, please. Is this table all right for you?

Jane:

This is fine, thank you.

Waiter:

Here is the menu. The specials are on the board.

Jane:

Thank you.

12


Task 1. Match 1 - 6 with a - f.
1. reserve a table

a. rCeba

2. outdoor terrace

b. dadastureba

3. remains

c. SekveTa

4. order

d. magidis dajavSna

5. confirm

e. gare terasa

6. specials

f. safirmo kerZi

Task 2. Fill in the blanks with the words from the box.
brasserie
1.

steak house

BYO

seafood

carver’s

(1) ………………….. restaurants sell fish .

2. French dishes are served in (2) ……………………..
3. If you go to (3) ………………. you can take your own drinks in.
4. If you want to have meat dishes you can go to (4)………………… or (5) ……………

Task 3. Work in pairs or small groups, put the phrases in order.
a. I’d like to reserve a table
b. Four
c. Is this for today sir?
d. For how many people, sir?
e. Your order is confirmed, sir.
f. Thank you, sir.
g. Looking forward to seeing you today, sir.
h. No, Sunday, five o’clock.
i. Thank you.

Task 4. Role play: Work in pairs and make up a dialogue between a waiter and a customer.
Student A is a waiter.

Student B is a customer and speaks first.

a) Greet your customer.

a) Greet the waiter and ask for a table.

b) Offer him a table

b) Say you don’t have a reservation

c) Offer him some drinks.

c) Accept the offer of the table

d) Tell him when the table is ready

d) Order drinks

e) Give him the menu and take the order.

13


Lesson 5At a restaurant
Read the following dialogues try to understand the underlined words.
Dialogue 1
John and Fiona are at the restaurant.
John:



Waiter:

I have reserved a table for two.

What name, please?

John:

Mr. Smith.

Waiter:

Thank you. Would you like to have a table in the corner?

Fiona:

Can we have a table by the window?

Waiter:

Sure. This is no smoking area.

John:

That’s alright. Thank you. (To Fiona) �����������������������
Are you ready to order?

Dialogue 2
Fiona and John are in the restaurant choosing wine for their meal.
Waiter:

Would you like to order something to drink?

John:

What would you recommend?



Waiter:

We have very good house rose wine served in a carafe. Would you like to try it?

John:

Fiona, what would you prefer to have?

Fiona:

I have not decided yet. Can I have a glass of dry red? What can you offer?

Waiter:

We don’t sell wine by glasses. Wine is sold by bottles. I can offer President’s XV or El Bombero.

John:

Can we sample the wine?

Waiter:

Yes, Sir.

John:

That’s alright then.

14


Task 1. Match 1 - 4 with a - d.
1. recommend

a. grafini

2. rose wine

b. dagemovneba

3. carafe

c. vardisferi Rvino

4. sample

d. rCeva

Task 2. Fill in the blanks with the words form the box.
order

red

drink

semisweet

offer

Waiter:

Would you like to (1) ……………….. something to drink?

John:

What would you recommend?

Waiter:

We have very good (2) ………………... wine served in a carafe. Would you like to try it?

John:

Fiona, what would you prefer to (3) …………………..?

Fiona:


I have not decided yet. Can I have a glass of (4) ………………… red?
What can you (5 ) ………………….?

Waiter:

I can recommend Saperavi or Khvanchkara.

Fiona :

Thank you very much. I’ll take Saperavi.

Task 3. Write the waiter’s part in the dialogue.
Waiter:

(1) …………………………………………….

Fiona:

Yes, please. I’d like to have something to drink.

Waiter:

(2) …………………………………………….

Fiona: A glass of red wine, please.
Waiter:

(3) …………………………………………….

Fiona:

Dry, please.

Waiter:

(4) …………………………………………….

Fiona:

Yes, a glass of mineral water, please.

Waiter:

(5) …………………………………………….

Fiona:

Borjomi. Thank you.

15


Lesson 6�����������������������
What can I get for you?
Read the dialogue and try to understand the underlined words from the context.
Waiter:

Hi there. What can I get for you?

George:

I need something cold.

Waiter:�������������������������������
You’ve come to the right place.
George:

Do you have any specials on?

Water:

We have highballs on for half price.

George:

Sorry, I meant beer.

Waiter:

Our special beer tonight is a pitcher of local draft Kazbegi with a dish of roasted nuts for 5. 50 GEL.

George:

I guess I should have brought a friend; a pitcher is too much I think. I’ll just have a Lomisi for now.

Waiter:

Sure, would you like that on draft?

George:

Do you have it in a bottle?

Waiter:

No, I’m afraid we don’t.

George:

That’s okay. I’ll have a pint of draft.

Waiter:

A pint of Lomisi coming up.

George:

Actually, you’d better just make it half a pint.

Waiter:

Sure. And should I start you a tab?

George:

No, I’m driving. How much do I owe you?

Waiter:

3 GEL

George:

Here’s 4. Keep the change.

Waiter:

Thank you.

16


Task 1. Match a - f �����������
with�������
1 - 6.
a. specials

1. Semwvari

b. decanter

2. Camosasxmeli ludi

c. roasted

3. specialuri SeTavazeba

d. nuts

4. Txileuloba

e. canned

5. grafini

f. draft

6. Tunuqis qilebSi

Task 2. Read the dialogues again and find the Georgian equivalents for the following words and
phrases.
1. pint ……………………………
2. draft ……………………………
3. roasted nuts ……………………………
4. local beer……………………………
5. highball.…………………………
6. decanter……………………………
7. I’d like to order ……………………………
8. Shall I make it a pint or half a pint? ……………………………

Task 3. Work in pairs. Act out a dialogue between the waiter and the guest.

Task 4. Work in pairs or small groups. Make up a dialogue between a bartender and a customer,
using active vocabulary of the lesson.

17


Lesson 7

Can I make an order?

Read the following dialogues and try to understand the underlined words form the context.

Dialogue 1
Customer: Can I order food?
Waiter:

Yes, you can, sir.

Customer: Then I’d like to order steak and chips.
Waiter:

What would you like to drink, sir?

Customer: I’d like to drink red wine. Which wine would you recommend form your wine list?
Waiter:



I would recommend Spanish wines such as Rioja or Malena as well as local wines such as
Saperavi or Khvanchkara. Rioja is dark and delicious and matches well with sirloin steak.
Malena is good with grilled meat.

Customer: I will sample the local wine, please, and take a glass of Saperavi.

Dialogue 2
Waiter:

What would you like to order, sir?

Customer: I’d like to order a shot of Tequila with a plate of mixed nuts, please.
Waiter:

Mixed nuts are complementary, sir.

Customer: OK. Thank you.

18


Task 1. Match 1 - 8 with a - h.
1. steak and chips



a. sukis naWeri

2. local wine



b. muqi

3. dark



c. gemrieli

4. delicious



d. kargad midis, uxdeba

5. matches well

e. adgilobrivi Rvino

6. sirloin steak.



f. xorci da Semwvari kartofili

7. grilled meat.



8. complementary



g. grilze Semwvari xorci
h. ufaso

Task 2. Work in pairs and fill in the words and phrases from the box.
wine

would like

prefer

try

glasses of

sweet

take

like

George and Nino are ordering wine in a restaurant.
Waiter: The (1)……………………. list, please.
George: Thank you, let’s see. What sort of wine do you (2)……………………., Nino?
Nino:

I (3)……………………. white.

George: (4)……………………. or dry?
Nino:

Dry.

George: Then let’s (5)……………………. Saperavi. It’s usually very good.
Nino:

How often do you come here?

George: Usually once a month. (to the waiter) Excuse me.
Waiter: Yes, sir?
George: We’ll (6)…………………… two (7)…………… ………… of Saperavi.
Nino:

And I’d (8)……………………. a bottle of mineral water ‘Borjomi’ too.

19


Restaurant Karaleti

Lesson 8

Read the following text and dialogue and try to understand the underlined words form the context.
Restaurant Karaleti is situated in the centre of Tbilisi. It offers a wonderful service and friendly atmosphere.
The prices are reasonable: salads are from 2,50 to 6 GEL, main courses from 4,50 to 8,50 GEL, seafood
from 7 to 10,50 GEL, desserts from 3,50 to 6 GEL, cocktails from 4,00 to 17 Gel.
Lunch hours: 12:00 -14:00 p.m.
Music: One can enjoy Georgian compositions and songs, jazz, jazz-rock, European and Latin-American
pop music and film soundtrack by the best band in Tbilisi (from 20:00 to 24:00).
The bar is open for 24 hours.
Choosing good beer
Mr. Brown is a visitor from Britain. He is in the restaurant and wants to order Georgian beer.
Mr. Brown:

I would like to order local beer. Can you advise, please?

Waiter:

Would you like, canned or bottled beer or from the draft?

Mr. Brown:

Bottled, please.

Waiter:


I would recommend a number of good Georgian beers, such as Kazbegi, Natakhtari,
Argo or Shatili

Mr. Brown:

I have heard of Kazbegi, I will try that please.

20


Task 1. Read the text again and decide whether the statements are True or False.
1. Guests can eat salad for 5 GEL.

T

F

2. Restaurant offers only Georgian live music.

T

F

3. You can enjoy music at the restaurant if you like jazz.

T

F

4. Guests can listen to live music for five hours a day.

T

F

5. Guests can get lunch any time during the day.

T

F

Task 2. Match 1 - 7 to a - g.
1. wonderful service

a. saundtreki

2. friendly atmosphere

b. mTavari kerZi

3. reasonable prices

c. deserti

4. main course

d. kompozicia

5. desserts

e.zomieri fasebi

6. compositions

f. SesaniSnavi momsaxureba

7. soundtrack

g. megobruli atmosfero

8. bottled beer

h. maRali xarisixis sakvebi

9. high-quality food

i. Camosasxmeli ludi

10. beer from the draft

j. boTlSi Casxmuli ludi

21

Lesson 9�������������
Ordering food
Read the following dialogue and try to understand the underlined words form the context.

Dialogue 1
Waiter:

Are you ready to order, sir?

Customer: I’m still looking. What can you recommend?
Waiter:

If you like fish, I can recommend the salmon steaks. The salmon is fresh.

Guest:

I’ll have the salmon, then.

Dialogue 2
Waiter:

Yes, sir?

Guest:

One chick pea and parsley Greek salad, one Grilled salmon and two glasses of red wine, please.

Waiter:

Dry or semidry?

Guest:



Dry, please.

Dialogue 3
Waiter:

Hello. Are you ready to order?

Guest:

Yes. I think so. We’ll have one cheeseburger and one hamburger.

Waiter:

And what would you like to drink?

Guest:

I’ll have a pineapple juice and mineral water for my girlfriend.

22


Task 1. Match 1- 5 with������
����������
a-e.

1. salmon steaks



a. naxevrad mSrali

2. chick pea



b. ananasis wveni

3. parsley



c. qaTmis xorcis Rvezeli

4. semidry



d. oxraxuSi

5. pineapple juice

e. Semwvari oraguli

Task 2. Put the lines in order and act out a dialogue.
1. Are you ready to order, Madam?

2. I’ll have the house wine, a glass of red, I think.
3. The dessert?
4. I’ll have steak and chips, please
5. Which salad do you recommend?
6. Today’s special is Green salad
7. What about the main course?
8. What would you like to drink. Madam?
9. Fruit salad, please

Task 3. Fill in the missing words from the box.
dessert

mineral

chips

pineapple

steak

dry

1. I’d like to have (1) …………………juice and (2) ………………. water.
2. For the main course I prefer (3) …………………….. and (4) …………………..
3. My favourite (5) ………………….. is fruit salad.
4. I don’t like (6) ………………… wine. I’d like to have a glass of semisweet red please.

23

Lesson 10�������������������
I’d like to have...
Read the following dialogue and try to understand the underlined words form the context.
Dialogue 1
John:

I’d like to have a cheese sandwich, a chicken sandwich and cherry tart served with chocolate sauce.

Waiter:

OK. So, that’s a cheese sandwich, a chicken sandwich and cherry tart served with chocolate sauce.

John:

Ah, sorry. Can I change the cherry tart served with chocolate sauce?

Waiter:

Certainly.

John:

I’ll have fresh strawberries served with sugar and sweet champagne.

Dialogue 2
John:

I want a cup of coffee and two tuna sandwiches.

Waiter:

O.K. Do you want anything else?

John:

Yes. Bring me some beer.

Waiter:

Which beer do you want?

John:

Local beer will do.

Waiter:

I’ll go and see if there is some left.

John:

Right.

Waiter:

(some time later) No, we have not got any.

24

Task 1. Read the dialogues and discuss whether the participants are polite or not. Change the
polite forms into more direct ones and vice versa.

Task 2. Read the direct phrases, then write them in a more polite way. Choose from the box:
Could you…
Shall I…
I’m afraid…
Would you mind…
Would you like me…
Can you wait amminute…
Would you like…


Direct

Would you like to…
May I suggest…
There’s been a slight misunderstanding
Actually…;

More polite

1. Wait a minute!

1. ……………………………, please.

2. We haven’t got any left

2…………………………we haven’t got any left.

3. Sit down, please

3. …………………………… take a seat?

4. You are wrong. I’m not the head waiter. 4. …………………… I’m not the head waiter.
5. Do you want some water?

5. …………………………… some water?

6. Move to another table.

6. ……………………… moveing to another table?

7. Confirm that tomorrow, please

7. …………………confirm that tomorrow, please?

8. Do you want a taxi?

8. …………………………… to get you a taxi?

9. You’ve got the wrong date

9. …………………………… about the date.

10. Try this wine

10. ………………… that you try this wine?

11. Do you want my help?

11. ……………………………help you?

Task 3. Student A is a bartender; student B - a guest. Student B is organising Sunday lunch for
four people one of whom is a vegetarian, one likes fish, two are fond of cheese and beef.
Advise them which wines to match to their preferences. Make up a dialogue.

25