6.13 Essen gehen

Guten Abend!

Zum Aufwärmen machen wir unseren Tagesminiplausch und eine Wiederholung.

Wiederholung

In the previous lesson, you learned what to expect at the Supermarkt, including how to ask for help. Let’s review what you have learned.

Jetzt bist du dran!

Imagine you cannot find something on your shopping list. Based on the conversation above, what question do you need to ask the employee to get some help? Write down your question in your written journal and then record it in your audio journal.

Lektionsüberblick

It’s fair to say that many people enjoy dining out from time to time, so it’s important to know how to navigate the restaurant scene in Germany.  The German dining experience can be exciting if you are dining in a big city or sehr gemütlich (cozy) if eating in a quaint restaurant. In the end, you will be able to 1) pick a restaurant based on what you want to eat, 2) read a menu, 3) order your meal, and 4) pay for your meal.

1) ein Restaurant wählen (choosing a restaurant)

As mentioned previously there is no shortage of diversity when it comes to cuisine in Germany. Many different types of restaurants can be found, especially in big cities. Was für Essen willst du? What type of food do you want to eat? Read, listen, and review the different types of cuisine below.

 

Now using the clues in the pictures, complete the activity below. Hint: Some images require that you look closely to see the clues.

 

Jetzt bist du dran!

Imagine that you are planning to go out to eat with your new German friend in Berlin. The sky is the limit! Was will du essen? Choose a specific dish or a type of cuisine that you would be interested in eating and write that down in your written journal: Ich will [dish or type of cuisine] essen. Now you can use Tripadvisor.de or a similar website and search “Restaurant in Berlin.” Find a restaurant that matches your preference! What restaurant did you choose and why? Write a complete answer in your written journal.

2) die Speisekarte (the menu)

Take a look at the images. What do you notice about the menu in each picture? That’s correct. It’s often positioned outside of a restaurant in Germany because it will catch the attention of people walking down the street.

The waiter or waitress will also give you a Speisekarte inside. You already know many of the words you might find there. Consider the Gerichte (dishes), Beilagen (side dishes), and Getränke (drinks) you have learned. You will also see a section on the Speisekarte that says Vorspeise. What do you remember about the word vor? Yes, before! So these are foods you eat before your main meal (a.k.a appetizers or starters).

 

Let’s practice with a scavenger hunt (ein Schnitzeljagd). Once you have found each of the words in the Speisekarte, check them off.

Now, look through the foods listed under each category. Pay special attention to the foods that you have learned and recognize. Was willst du essen?

Jetzt bist du dran!

Let’s look at another authentic Speisekarte using this example. Imagine that you are in Germany and this is one of the first times you have visited an authentic German restaurant. You are excited to discover that you recognize many words! In your written journal, write down all of the words that you recognize from the example. Then record yourself saying your word list aloud in your audio journal.

3) Ich möchte bitte…

There are certain questions that you are most certain to hear from the wait staff at a German restaurant. Listen and repeat the following questions to help train your ear to understand them.

Let’s practice how to answer these questions.

 

Remember that you have learned how to express food sensitivities, allergies, and special diets.

Here are some examples.

Ich bin allergisch gegen [Eier, Erdnüsse, Milch, Soja, etc.]

 

Or, if you would like to specify a particular diet…

Ich esse vegetarisch./Ich bin Vegetarier (or Vegetarierin).

Ich esse kosher.

Ich esse glutenfrei.

Ich esse kein Fleisch.

 

Kleiner Hinweis

There are notable differences between the German dining experience and the American one. For example there are no free refills on drinks and tap water (Leitungswasser) is rarely available. In addition, there is usually no hostess to show you to your seat. You just find our own table where you want to sit.

If there is no free table, it is quite customary to sit together with people you don’t even know. You would go to their table and ask: “Entschuldigung, ist hier noch frei?” and usually they would offer you the free seats: “Ja, bitte schön” (unless they’re expecting more of their friends to arrive).

One other notable difference: The waitress or waiter will not come by your table frequently to ask you how your food is. Some might see this as an advantage as you can eat in peace.

🎥Take a look at this Easy German video about how to order at a restaurant.

Jetzt bist du dran!

For this exercise you can look again at this authentic Speisekarte. Imagine that the Kellner (waiter) has asked you, Was darf’s sein? . Choose a dish and a drink from the Speisekarte and answer with, Ich möchte bitte [the name of the dish or drink].

Then record yourself placing your order in your audio journal. If you can do it immediately without reading, that’s great! Otherwise, practice saying it a couple times before recording. Or rerecord, if you are not satisfied.

4) Zahlen, bitte! (I’d/we’d like to pay.)

Your time at the restaurant is just about over, but first you have to pay. Listen and repeat how to ask for your check and how to ask if you can pay with a credit card.

Zahlen, bitte!  

Kann ich mit Karte zahlen? (or simply, Karte?) 

 

Your waiter might also ask you the following ja oder nein question.

Hat Ihnen alles geschmeckt? 

 

You can answer with….Ja, danke  or leider nein .

 

🎥You can watch as the bill for pizza delivery is paid on Nico’s Weg.

Kleiner Hinweis

Tipping is different between the United States and Germany. When you pay a bill in Germany, you only give a small tip (das Trinkgeld) as the service charge is included in the bill. Waitresses and waiters get higher hourly wages than in the North American context. Therefore, people usually tip less; you just round up to the nearest currency unit (9 Euro 20 -> you would give 10 Euro), or if the bill is larger, you round up and add a couple of Euros (37 Euro 40 -> you would give 40 Euro). With this in mind, if you intend to spend time in Germany, you will need to become comfortable with saying higher numbers aloud.

 

Jetzt bist du dran!

Imagine it is time to pay at the traditional German restaurant that you and your friend are eating at. In your audio journal practice saying, Zahlen, bitte! ) And, Karte? If you are feeling confident, you can try, Kann ich mit Karte zahlen?)

 

Zum Schluß

In this lesson, you learned to 1) pick a restaurant based on what you want to eat, 2) read a menu, 3) order your meal, and 4) pay for your meal. If you are feeling unsure about any part of the expanded introduction, go back to that section and review.
Now let’s put it all together. Imagine you have just sat down at a restaurant in Germany. Write a short dialog in which your waiter greets you and asks you what you would like to eat and drink. Using one of the Speisekarten from above, respond with a statement that expresses what you would like to eat and drink. Then imagine you have had a satisfying meal. How would you gain the waiter’s attention again in order to pay? What might the waiter say to you at this point in the conversation? How might the conversation end? Once you have your short dialog written, find a roommate, classmate, or friend who would enjoy reading it aloud with you. Then record the dialog in your audio journal.

*As you conclude this lesson, don’t forget to check Canvas!*

Before you go!

You have completed your first semester of German! Herzlichen Glückwünsch! Think about all you have accomplished this semester. If you were traveling to a German-speaking country over break, you would already be able to have a conversation with a German-speaker.

Don’t end your language journey here, be sure to sign up for your next class and make plans to study abroad. As you go forward in your language learning (or want to keep up over break), you can always come back to this book to review!

 

Media Attributions

Media Attributions

  • 1010-1020 banner long large reduced
  • Photo of Restaurant Weinstube Elefanten by Michael Coughlan, Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0
  • Photo of breakfast menu outside restaurant at night by pexels-jplenio-9798546
  • Photo of Speisekarte by Michaelaleo, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
  • Comic made at www.MakeBeliefsComix.com
  • Private: confidence scale_large horizontal_updated

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Deutsch im Alltag I (DE) Copyright © by Rebecca Steele and Stephanie Schottel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.