Lesson 04

Restaurant

Ordering food with confidence: recommendations, dietary requests, and paying the check

Adult Speaking English · Arc 2: Everyday Situations

By the end of this lesson

Today's Goals

You will be able to:

The student can order a meal and a drink using natural, common expressions.
The student can ask a server for a recommendation and respond to it.
The student can request a change to a dish (e.g. removing an ingredient) politely.
The student can handle a small problem at a restaurant (wrong order, missing item) without switching to Chinese.
The student can ask for the check and close out a restaurant visit smoothly.

Lesson flow — 45 min

Warm-up5 min

Input8 min

Controlled Practice8 min

Listening7 min

Role-play10 min

Free Speaking5 min

Review/Homework2 min

Lesson 04 — Restaurant3

Stage 1

Warm-up

55 min

Goal

Activate existing knowledge — ask about the student's favorite restaurant and last time eating out

Lesson 04 — Restaurant4

High-frequency words

Key Vocabulary

Press C to show or hide the Chinese.

菜单

Can I see the menu, please?

appetizer

开胃菜

I'll have the soup to start.

main course

主菜

For my main course, I'd like the grilled chicken.

dessert

甜点

Do you have any dessert today?

reservation

预定

I have a reservation for two, under Wang.

waiter / waitress / server

服务员

Excuse me, could I get the server's attention?

allergic (to)

对…过敏

I'm allergic to peanuts.

spicy

辣的

Is this dish very spicy?

Lesson 04 — Restaurant5

High-frequency words

Key Vocabulary (cont.)

Press C to show or hide the Chinese.

medium / well done

五分熟 / 全熟

I'd like my steak medium, please.

to be out of (something)

没有了/卖完了

I'm sorry, we're out of the fish today.

check

账单

Can we get the check, please?

tip

小费

Is the tip included in the price?

Lesson 04 — Restaurant6

2 of 7 patterns

Core Expressions 1–2

I'd like...

我想要…（点餐时最常用、最自然的表达）

I'd like the grilled salmon, please.

I'd like a glass of orange juice to start.

Your turn: Ask the student: "What would you like to order right now, if you were in a restaurant in [Destination]?"

Can I have...?

我可以要…吗？（比 I'd like 更随意，日常口语中同样常用）

Can I have the chicken sandwich, please?

Can I have some more water?

Your turn: Ask the student to order their favorite drink using "Can I have...?"

Lesson 04 — Restaurant7

4 of 7 patterns

Core Expressions 3–4

What do you recommend?

你推荐什么？（向服务员寻求建议）

I've never been here before — what do you recommend?

What do you recommend for someone who doesn't like spicy food?

Your turn: Ask the student what they usually say when they don't know what to order in [City].

Can I have it without...?

可以不要…吗？（用于饮食需求、忌口或过敏）

Can I have the salad without onions?

Can I have it without cheese? I'm allergic.

Your turn: Ask: "Is there any food you always ask to remove? What is it?"

Lesson 04 — Restaurant8

6 of 7 patterns

Core Expressions 5–6

Can we get the check, please?

可以结账吗？（美式餐厅结账最自然的说法）

Excuse me, can we get the check, please?

Can we get the check when you have a second? We're kind of in a hurry.

Your turn: Ask the student to practice this sentence as if they are finishing dinner with [Job] colleagues.

Is this dish spicy / vegetarian?

这道菜辣吗/是素的吗？（点餐前确认菜品信息）

Excuse me, is this dish very spicy?

Is the soup vegetarian?

Your turn: Ask the student what question they'd need to ask if traveling with a vegetarian friend.

Lesson 04 — Restaurant9

7 of 7 patterns

Core Expression 7

Could I get this to go?

可以打包吗？（打包/带走用语）

I couldn't finish it — could I get this to go?

Could I get the rest to go, please?

Your turn: Ask: "Do you usually finish your food, or take it home? What do you say in Chinese restaurants?"

Lesson 04 — Restaurant10

Stage 4

Listening

77 min

Server

Good evening! Do you have a reservation?

Customer

Yes, a table for two, under the name Chen.

Server

Great, right this way. Here are your menus. Can I get you something to drink to start?

Customer

Yes, I'll have a sparkling water, please. And could I have a few more minutes to look at the menu?

Server

Of course, take your time.

(a short pause)

Server

Are you ready to order?

Customer

I think so. What do you recommend?

Server

The grilled salmon is very popular tonight, and the mushroom risotto is great if you'd like something vegetarian.

Customer

The salmon sounds good. I'd like the grilled salmon, please. Actually — can I have it without butter? I'm trying to eat a bit healthier.

Server

No problem at all. And for you?

Customer 2

Can I have the chicken pasta? Oh, and is it spicy?

Server

Nope, it's pretty mild.

Lesson 04 — Restaurant11

Stage 4

Listening (cont.)

Customer 2

Perfect, I'll have that.

Server

Great choices. I'll bring those out shortly.

(later)

Server

I'm really sorry — we're actually out of the chicken pasta tonight. Would you like to try something else? The chicken sandwich is very similar.

Customer 2

Oh, that's fine, I'll try the chicken sandwich instead.

Server

Great, I'll put that order in right away.

(at the end of the meal)

Customer

Excuse me, can we get the check, please?

Server

Of course, I'll bring it right over. How was everything tonight?

Customer

It was great, thanks.

Lesson 04 — Restaurant12

Comprehension & discussion

Listening Check

Before listening

Look at the title "At a Restaurant." What do you think the customers will order?
Do you think anything might go wrong during the meal? What kinds of problems usually happen at restaurants?

While listening

Listen and write down what each customer finally orders.
Listen and check: does the customer get everything they originally asked for? What changes?
Listen for the reason the server gives for the change. What does the server say?
What does the customer say at the very end to close the meal?

After listening

In your own words, what problem happened during the meal, and how was it solved?
Do you think the customer reacted well to the problem? What would you have said?
Has something like this (a restaurant being "out of" a dish) ever happened to you? What happened?

Lesson 04 — Restaurant13

Stage 5

Controlled Practice

88 min

Model

Teacher says the full sentence naturally with correct rhythm and stress: "I'd like the grilled salmon, please." Student listens only.

Repeat

Student repeats the exact sentence 2–3 times until pronunciation and rhythm feel natural.

"I'd like the grilled salmon, please."
"Can we get the check, please?"

Substitute

Teacher gives a new word/item, student swaps it into the same pattern.

Prompt: chicken sandwich → "I'd like the chicken sandwich, please."
Prompt: without onions → "Can I have it without onions?"
Prompt: dessert menu → "Can I see the dessert menu, please?"

Lesson 04 — Restaurant14

Stage 5

Controlled Practice (cont.)

Personalize

Student uses real information about their own preferences.

"What do you actually like to order when you go to a Western restaurant?"
"Is there something you always ask the server to remove or change?"

Remove prompts

Teacher describes a situation only; student must produce the full sentence without seeing the pattern written down.

"You want to order a steak. It should not be well done — say it."
"You're finished eating and want to leave. What do you say?"
"You want the server's suggestion because you don't know the menu — ask them."

Lesson 04 — Restaurant15

Stage 6

Role-play

1010 min

Situation

The student is having dinner at a restaurant in [Destination] with a friend or colleague (teacher plays the server, or another role if needed).

Teacher

Play the server: greet the customer, take the order, answer questions about the menu, and introduce one challenge card naturally during the conversation.

Student

Arrive at the restaurant, get seated, ask about the menu, place an order (including one dietary request), react to whatever problem the server introduces, and ask for the check at the end.

Useful language

I'd like...

Can I have...?

What do you recommend?

Can I have it without...?

Can we get the check, please?

Is this dish spicy/vegetarian?

Lesson 04 — Restaurant16

Make it unpredictable

Challenge Cards

Drop one of these in mid-role-play.

Out of stock

The dish the student ordered is no longer available. The server must suggest an alternative — the student has to react and decide.

Wrong order

The server accidentally brings the wrong dish. The student has to politely point out the mistake and ask for the correct one.

Unexpected question

The server asks an unusual question, e.g. "Would you like to try our new seasonal special, it's not on the menu yet?" — the student must respond naturally, not from memory.

Split the check

At the end, the student needs to ask to split the check between two people.

Lesson 04 — Restaurant17

Stage 7

Free Speaking

55 min

Ask the student to speak for 30 seconds to 2 minutes, without looking at any notes, either as a monologue or in a live extended role-play: "Imagine you are telling a friend about a recent dinner at a restaurant. Describe the whole visit — how you were greeted, what you ordered, one small problem that happened, and how you paid at the end. Try to use as many natural expressions as you can, and don't worry about small mistakes."

Lesson 04 — Restaurant18

Error correction

Review & Common Mistakes

Correct immediately

Errors that block the server/listener from understanding the order (e.g. wrong word order, missing key vocabulary).
Misuse of this lesson's core expressions ("I'd like" vs "I want" used too bluntly, incorrect "Can I have it without...?").
Complete communication breakdowns where the conversation cannot continue.

Note & correct later

Minor grammar slips (e.g. article errors: "a chicken sandwich" vs "the chicken sandwich") that don't block meaning.
Pronunciation issues that are noticeable but do not prevent understanding.
Overly literal translations from Chinese that are understandable but not fully natural — note these and revisit after the fluency-focused stages are done.

Lesson 04 — Restaurant19

Before next lesson

Homework

22 min

Speaking

Record a 1-minute voice memo narrating a full restaurant visit: being greeted, ordering, handling one problem, and paying the check. Use at least 4 expressions from this lesson.

Review

Review the 5 core patterns from Section 4 and write one new original sentence for each (not from the lesson).

Real life

Next time you eat at a restaurant (or watch a restaurant scene in an English show/movie), notice how people ask for recommendations or handle a problem with their order. Write down one new phrase you hear.

Lesson 04 — Restaurant20

Lesson 04 complete

Nice work.

Next up: Lesson 05

Adult Speaking English

Restaurant

Today's Goals

Warm-up

Key Vocabulary

Key Vocabulary (cont.)

Core Expressions 1–2

Core Expressions 3–4

Core Expressions 5–6

Core Expression 7

Listening

Listening (cont.)

Listening Check

Before listening

While listening

After listening

Controlled Practice

Controlled Practice (cont.)

Role-play

Challenge Cards

Free Speaking

Review & Common Mistakes

Homework

Nice work.

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