Speaking Boost · A2 · Lesson 12 of 50
Speaking Boost A2 · Block 3: Food

How do people drink coffee around the world?

Espresso at the bar in Italy, coffee "fortune telling" in Turkey, egg coffee in Vietnam and coffee houses in Lviv. Learn to order politely, use a real menu, and play both the customer and the waiter.

1

Warm-up

5 min
1.1

Cafés

Answer each question with 2–3 sentences.

  1. How often do you go to cafés?
  2. What do you usually order?
  3. Do you prefer coffee or tea?
  4. What is your favourite café? Why?
  5. Do you leave a tip in cafés?
  6. What is the best dessert you know?
2

Words and phrases

12 min
2.1

New words

Read each word and the example. Then use it in a café sentence.

2.2

Which word?

Choose the word that fits.

  1. Could we see the , please?
  2. Excuse me, we're ready to .
  3. The was very friendly and fast.
  4. Can we have the , please?
  5. The service was great, so we left a big .
  6. For , I'll have chocolate cake.
  7. I'm in a hurry. A coffee , please.
  8. Can I pay ?
2.3

Café pairs

Choose the right answer, then press Check answers.

  1. still ↔
    water
  2. with sugar ↔
    sugar
  3. in cash ↔
  4. to eat here ↔
  5. starter → main course →
  6. Before you eat: "Enjoy your
    !"
2.4

Useful phrases

Use these phrases to order in a café.

  • A table for..., please.Столик на..., будь ласка.A table for two, please.
  • Can I have..., please?Можна мені..., будь ласка?Can I have a latte, please?
  • I'd like...Я б хотів(-ла)...I'd like the chicken salad.
  • I'll have...Я візьму...I'll have the soup of the day.
  • What do you recommend?Що ви порадите?What do you recommend for dessert?
  • Does it have... in it?У ньому є...?Does it have nuts in it?
  • Could we have the bill, please?Можна рахунок, будь ласка?That was delicious. Could we have the bill, please?
  • Keep the change.Решти не треба.Here's 200 hryvnias. Keep the change.
3

Read and react

8 min
3.1

Coffee around the world

Read the text. Hover over the dotted words for help.

How do people drink coffee around the world?

Coffee is one of the most popular drinks in the world. But people drink it in very different ways.

In Italy, people often drink a small, strong espresso very quickly, standing at the bar. Many Italians drink cappuccino only in the morning. Ordering a cappuccino after lunch can make the waiter smile!

In Turkey, coffee is very strong and thick, and it's made in a small pot. Turkish coffee culture is so important that it's on a UNESCO list of cultural heritage. After drinking, some people "read" the future in the coffee in the cup!

In Hanoi, Vietnam, you can try "egg coffee". A man called Nguyen Van Giang made the first one in the 1940s, when there wasn't enough milk in the city. He used egg yolks and sugar instead. Today tourists love it.

And in Ukraine, Lviv is famous for its coffee houses. Some of them are like museums or theatres. How do you like your coffee?

3.2

True or false?

  1. In Italy, people often drink espresso standing at the bar.
  2. Many Italians drink cappuccino in the evening.
  3. Turkish coffee is on a UNESCO list.
  4. Egg coffee was invented because there wasn't enough milk.
  5. Lviv is famous for its tea houses.
3.3

What do you think?

  1. How do you drink your coffee or tea?
  2. Would you try egg coffee?
  3. What is special about cafés in your city?
  4. Why do you think Lviv is famous for coffee?
4

Grammar for speaking

10 min
4.1

Grammar for speaking

Ordering politely

Can I have...? / Could I have...? / I'd like... / I'll have...

Can I have a cappuccino, please? I'd like the soup. I'll have the fish.

Offering

Would you like...? (+ noun / to + verb)

Would you like some water? Would you like to see the menu?

Answering

Polite answers.

Yes, please. / No, thank you. / Yes, I'd love one.

I'd like = I would like (polite). I want can sound rude in a café. ✗ I want coffee. → I'd like a coffee, please. Also: ✗ Would you like drink? → Would you like a drink? / Would you like to drink something?

4.2

Choose the right form

  1. a glass of water, please?
  2. I'd
    the vegetable soup.
  3. some dessert? (offering now)
  4. I'll
    the chicken, please.
  5. Would you like
    now?
  6. have the bill, please?
  7. "Would you like some cake?" "
    ."
  8. A coffee
    sugar, please.
4.3

Fix the mistake

Each sentence has one mistake. Type the correct words.

  1. Can I has a tea, please? →
  2. Would you like drink something? →
  3. Can I having the menu? →
  4. Do you like some tea? (offering now) →
  5. I'd like to the soup. →
  6. Could we to have the bill? →
4.4

Talk about it

Answer in detail. Act out what you would say.

  1. Order your favourite breakfast in a café.
  2. Order lunch for you and a friend.
  3. Offer drinks and food to a guest at your home.
  4. Describe your favourite café and what you usually order.
  5. Tell about a good or bad experience in a café.
  6. What would you like to try in a café abroad?
5

The Café Kalyna

8 min
5.1

Order from the menu

Order lunch for yourself and a friend. Your teacher is the waiter. How much is the bill? Then swap: you are the waiter, your teacher is the customer.

Drinks

Hot and cold

  • Espresso — 50 UAH
  • Cappuccino — 70 UAH
  • Herbal tea — 60 UAH
  • Fresh orange juice — 90 UAH
Food

Breakfast and lunch

  • Syrnyky with sour cream — 150 UAH
  • Borscht with bread — 140 UAH
  • Chicken salad — 180 UAH
  • Varenyky with potatoes — 130 UAH
Desserts

Something sweet

  • Lviv cheesecake — 110 UAH
  • Honey cake — 100 UAH
  • Ice cream (2 scoops) — 80 UAH
5.2

Café problems

Practise polite phrases for problems.

  1. Your coffee is cold. What do you say?
  2. The waiter brings the wrong dish. What do you say?
  3. The bill is wrong. What do you say?
  4. You have a food allergy. What do you ask?
6

Personal questions

10 min
6.1

Part I: Me

  1. What is your favourite drink?
  2. Do you prefer cafés or restaurants?
  3. How much do you usually spend in a café?
  4. Do you work or study in cafés?
  5. What do you order when you're hungry? When you're not very hungry?
  6. Do you like trying new dishes?
  7. Do you prefer big chain cafés or small local ones?
  8. What is the best café in your city?
6.2

Part II: Other people

  1. Where do you go with friends for coffee?
  2. What does your partner or best friend usually order?
  3. Do your parents go to cafés?
  4. Which café in your city is popular with tourists?
  5. Who in your family drinks the most coffee?
  6. What do children usually order?
6.3

Part III: A bit deeper

  1. Is it OK to work on a laptop in a café for hours?
  2. Should tips be included in the bill?
  3. Are cafés too expensive?
  4. Why are cafés so popular today?
  5. Is coffee healthy or unhealthy?
7

Roleplay

12 min
7.1

The waiter

You

Waiter

You are a waiter in a café. A customer (your teacher) comes in. Serve them from the menu above:
  • greet them and find a table
  • take their order and answer questions about the menu
  • recommend something
  • bring the bill and say goodbye
Speak for at least 2 minutes in total. Use Would you like...? and polite phrases.
Your teacher

Customer

Is a little difficult and says things like:
  1. Is the borscht vegetarian?
  2. I don't like sour cream.
  3. What do you recommend?
  4. Can I pay by card?
7.2

The difficult order

You

Customer

You are in a café with a friend (your teacher is the waiter). You have special wishes:
  • ask for a table by the window
  • order food with changes (no onions, extra cheese...)
  • ask about allergies
  • complain politely when something is wrong
You do most of the talking. Use: Can I have...? · I'd like... without... · Does it have... in it? · Excuse me, I think there's a mistake.
Your teacher

Waiter

Says things like:
  1. Sorry, the window tables are full.
  2. The salad has nuts in it.
  3. I'm sorry, I'll change it for you.
  4. Here's your bill.
8

Homework

at home

Your homework score

Do all four exercises, then press Check all homework. Correct answers will appear next to your mistakes.

– / 30
H1

Complete with a word

menuorderwaiterbilltipdessertto gobook
  1. Could I see the , please?
  2. Are you ready to ?
  3. The brought us some water.
  4. Can we have the , please?
  5. We left a because the service was great.
  6. For , I'd like apple pie.
  7. A latte , please.
  8. I'd like to a table for Saturday.
H2

Polite café English

  1. a tea, please?
  2. I'd the salad.
  3. some water? (offering)
  4. I'll the soup.
  5. Would you like now?
  6. have the bill?
  7. "Would you like a coffee?" " ."
  8. Tea sugar, please.
H3

Correct or incorrect?

Decide if each sentence is grammatically correct.

  1. I'd like a cappuccino, please.
  2. Would you like drink something?
  3. Can I have the bill, please?
  4. I want coffee, give me.
  5. Would you like some cake?
  6. Can I having the menu?
  7. I'll have the fish, please.
H4

Match the two halves

  1. A table for two,
  2. Can I have a latte,
  3. What do you recommend
  4. Does it have
  5. That was delicious.
  6. Here's 200 hryvnias.
  7. Here you are.

Finished the lesson?

Mark it as complete to keep track of your progress.

© Yevheniia Kolesnykova, Academy of Languages. All rights reserved. No copying or reuse without written permission.