Welcome to the Listening Time Podcast.
Hey everybody, this is Connor and you're listening to episode 55 of the Listening Time Podcast.
I hope you're all doing well and I hope you appreciate the fact that I've switched back to weekly episodes.
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All right, so in today's episode, we're going to talk about restaurants.
So I love this topic, so I'm happy to talk about it today.
And make sure to listen until the end of the episode, because I'm going to teach you some useful words and phrases at the end.
Some words and phrases related to restaurants that might be helpful for you if you go to restaurants in the US.
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All right, let's get started.
Are your ears ready?
You know what time it is.
It's listening time.
Okay, so let's talk about restaurants.
So first of all, I wanna talk about my relationship with restaurants, because going to restaurants is one of my favorite hobbies.
I know it sounds like a weird hobby to have, but I consider it my hobby because my wife and I try to do this every week.
We try to go to restaurants And we actually dedicate time and money to this.
And so I consider it a hobby, because this is something I like to do in my free time and I spend extra money on it and I spend time on it.
And I do it regularly.
So that's why I consider it a hobby of mine.
So in the past I went to restaurants like maybe three times a week, twice for dinner and once for breakfast.
I haven't done that recently, but I might start doing it again once I move back to my old city.
I mentioned in the last episode that I'm moving again.
So in my city right now I don't go to restaurants as often, but in my old city I went to restaurants all the time.
So I'm hoping to do that again.
So why do I love going to restaurants so much?
Well, there are a number of reasons.
First of all, I really love going out.
So obviously, I spend a lot of time at home because I work from home. but I'm not a homebody.
I like going out.
In English, when we say that somebody is a homebody, this means that that person prefers to stay home most of the time.
So I'm not this type of person.
I like going out and being outside and breathing fresh air.
I really love this and it's exciting for me to leave my house and to go somewhere new.
I really like this.
So that's one of the reasons why I really like going to restaurants.
Another reason is that I really like trying new food.
I'm the type of person that likes every food.
I rarely dislike a new food that I try.
So of course, this means that I always have good experiences when I eat out because I
I like many different types of food.
So it's very fun for me to try new dishes, new foods that I haven't eaten before.
So I really like that.
And I like the environment of restaurants.
I like going to a place where someone serves me food and I can enjoy the ambience of the restaurant.
In English, when we say the word ambiance, this just refers to the environment or the atmosphere.
So I like going to different restaurants that have an interesting ambiance, and I like admiring the decoration inside the restaurant.
So there are a number of reasons why I like going to restaurants so much.
So how do I choose which restaurants to go to?
There are two main ways that I do this.
So number one is if I'm walking down some street and I see an interesting looking restaurant, what I'll do is I'll look it up on my map and I'll mark it down and I'll remember that that restaurant looked like an interesting place to try.
I might not go to it the next day or whatever, but I'll at least save it in my map so that I remember it for the future.
So sometimes I'll see interesting looking restaurants or a new restaurant that just opened up nearby or whatever, and I'll see it in person.
But the main way that I choose which restaurant I want to go to is by looking at reviews online.
I usually look at Google Maps.
Here in Mexico where I live, Google Maps is the best app for reviews of restaurants.
In the U.S., a lot of people use the apps Yelp and TripAdvisor to review restaurants.
But in Mexico, those apps aren't that popular.
Here, the best reviews are on Google Maps.
So that's usually what I use to find different restaurants and see the reviews and see what people are saying about these restaurants.
So I have certain standards that I use to decide whether a restaurant is good enough for me to go to.
So usually on Google Maps, I only consider going to a restaurant if it has at least 4.5 stars.
Here I'm referring to the rating of the restaurant.
The rating is how many stars the restaurant has from 1 to 5.
So if it has 4.5 stars or more, then I consider it to be a restaurant worthy of my time.
In English, when we say the word worthy, we're saying that something deserves something else.
So if it's worthy of my time, this just means that it deserves my time.
I can spend some time on this thing and it's worth it.
So if a restaurant has 4.5 stars or more, it's worthy of my time and consideration.
So that's usually how I choose restaurants.
I usually find them on Google Maps.
The problem here in Mexico is that a lot of people don't write good reviews of restaurants.
In the US, people tend to write more detailed reviews.
They'll tell you everything.
They'll tell you about their whole experience.
This is very common.
In Mexico, it's common to see reviews that just say good or I liked it or something like that.
And this isn't very helpful.
So I have to read a lot of different reviews just to find more detailed ones that can give me a better idea of of what the restaurant is like.
So I usually use Google Maps and look at the reviews, but I have to read a lot of reviews before I'm convinced.
All right, so now let me talk a little bit about fine dining.
So in English, the phrase fine dining refers to restaurants that are very upscale.
And the word upscale means expensive and luxurious.
So fine dining refers to expensive, luxurious restaurants, places where you probably don't go every day.
So I've only been to a couple restaurants that could be considered fine dining.
I've been to a couple of these types of restaurants in Mexico.
And my experience was really awesome in these places.
It's not like in a normal restaurant, because in these places you know that everything on the menu is good.
You know that there are no wrong choices.
And I love that, because oftentimes I go to a new restaurant and when I look at the menu I'm confused about what to order, because I see some dishes that I'm more familiar with and I know that I'll probably like them.
But then I see some other dishes offered that are new to me and I've never seen them before, but they sound interesting.
But I don't know what to order because maybe those other dishes aren't as good as the dishes that I already know.
So I sometimes have this dilemma when I go to restaurants.
In English, the word dilemma just refers to some problem where you don't know what decision to make.
So when I go to fine dining restaurants, when I go to fancy restaurants, I know that everything is good and I know that I won't be disappointed, no matter what I choose.
So I like that.
And, of course, I really like the ambiance in these types of restaurants, because everything is beautiful.
And I remember one of the places that I've been to that would be considered fine dining.
They have this really beautiful garden with amazing sculptures and all kinds of things like that.
And it's a whole experience when you go there.
You don't just go there for the food, you also walk around the garden and take a look at all the interesting things they have there, and it's really a great experience overall.
However, I've never been to a restaurant that had any Michelin stars though.
If you don't know what a Michelin star is, this is the most famous rating of fine dining and good restaurants in the world.
So this is based on a three star system.
So if you have one Michelin star, that's already really, really good.
That's already saying like you're an amazing restaurant and there are so many good dishes and you're an amazing chef.
So most people are honored to just have one Michelin star.
In English, when we say that you're honored, this just means that you feel really good about something.
You really appreciate something because it's a very high distinction or something.
So most people feel really honored to just have one Michelin star.
But some restaurants have two Michelin stars or even three Michelin stars.
Restaurants that have three stars are considered some of the best restaurants in the whole world.
There aren't many restaurants that have this rating.
So if you hear that a certain restaurant has three stars, you know for sure that it's one of the best restaurants in the entire world.
So this is the system that they use to rate the best restaurants in different countries.
But I've never been to a restaurant that had a Michelin star, maybe in the future.
Lastly, let's just talk a little bit about tipping.
So in the US, we have an extreme tipping culture, okay?
What I mean by that is people view tipping at restaurants as almost mandatory.
It's not something you have the choice of whether or not to do.
Everyone tips.
OK, it's not a law, but it's almost a law.
So when I was growing up, we used to tip 15 percent at restaurants and that was the normal tip.
Nowadays, it's become more like 18 percent.
So now in many restaurants, they actually expect 18%, not 15%.
For me, this seems really high.
I think that 15% is more than enough.
So it's a little hard for people to go to a restaurant and pay a lot of money for their food and then also pay an extra 18.
It's a lot of money.
So I think this discourages people from going to restaurants if they don't have a lot of money.
I know that this discourages me a little bit in the U.S. because it's a lot to pay.
In most other countries around the world, you don't really have this problem.
Like here in Mexico, the normal tip percentage is 10%.
I think that's fair.
I think that's a good amount.
Of course, you can give more if you want, but it doesn't seem too expensive.
And I know that in some countries, it's not even customary to give a tip.
In English, when we say that something is customary, we just mean that it's normal.
It's a custom in that place.
So, for example, in some countries in Western Europe, it's not customary to leave a tip.
So I remember being in Spain and in Portugal and it wasn't normal to leave any money after you finish eating.
And I thought that was a little strange.
But obviously it helped us out because we didn't have to spend that much money when we went out.
But I'm sure that the waiters and waitresses in those places wish that the culture was more like in the US, because They could probably make more money like that.
And in the US, you always tip even if the service isn't that great.
So if the service is just average or not very good, you still feel like you have to leave a tip.
So this is why tipping in the US is so important.
Because many foreigners think that, oh, I don't need to tip if I go to a restaurant.
But if you don't tip, this is considered to be very bad.
This is considered to be a very bad action to not leave a tip.
So this is something that I want to mention to you all in case you go to the U.S.
You need to leave a tip at restaurants.
OK.
And lastly, talking about how we pay at restaurants in the US.
In other countries you ask for the bill or for the check.
In the U.S., you don't do this.
So once the waiter or waitress sees that you're done eating, they will go and print the check and they'll come bring it to you.
So you don't ask for it in the U.S.
And then, when they give you the check, then you can put your credit card there or your cash, and And then you don't do anything else.
You just put your payment there and then they take this and they run your credit card and charge you and then they bring this back to you.
And then you leave the tip at the very end.
You write the tip on the receipt there on the check.
And then once you leave, they go and charge that extra amount to your card.
So this is different from other countries.
And so I wanted to explain this, because it can be confusing for foreigners who are traveling in the US.
All right.
Lastly, let's look at some helpful phrases that you can use and that you should know when you go to restaurants.
So when you order food, there are a number of ways that you can do this.
The most common way is probably to say, I'll have the, and then the dish.
For example, I'll have the cheeseburger.
Okay.
It's a really easy way to order food.
You could also say, could I have blah, blah, blah.
You could use that phrase as well or can I have.
You could say could I have the cheeseburger or can I have the cheeseburger.
So those are common ways to order food.
And one other way is to say I'll do the plus the dish.
For example, I'll do the cheeseburger.
Okay, so now you know a few different ways to order food and some important vocabulary words to know.
So the words starter and appetizer can both be used for the dish that you order before your main dish.
Okay.
So the waiter might ask you, do you want any starters or appetizers?
And then the main dish on some menus is referred to as the entree.
So if you go to a more expensive restaurant, it's likely that instead of main dish you'll see the word entree on the menu.
And this just refers to the main dish, the main course.
So that's a word that most people aren't familiar with if they're not an English speaker.
And so that's a good one to know.
Also, the word side.
So, for example, I want a side of fries or a side of mashed potatoes.
This refers to a side dish that isn't your main dish.
We call this a side.
Okay.
Also, separate checks.
When you want to split the bill between two different people, you can say we need separate checks.
So they'll charge one person a certain amount and then they'll charge the other person a different amount, depending on what you order.
And lastly, the word gratuity.
The word gratuity is a fancy way of saying tip.
So a gratuity is a tip.
All right, we'll stop there for today.
I hope this episode was helpful for you.
Remember to become a Listening Time member to receive my personalized training.
And remember to become a Listening Time family member if you want my advanced podcast episodes.
And the transcript is below this episode in the episode description.
And there you'll also find the link to become a member as well.
And remember that I'm doing weekly podcasts now.
So make sure to come back next week.
Okay.
Thank you for listening to this episode.
And I'll talk to you on the next episode of Listening Time.
