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Lesson 228 of 240

New here? This is lesson 228 of a free 240-lesson English course.

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Helping a newcomer in English

A newer customer stands at the Blue Plate counter and does not know how to pay. Ana has been here long enough to help.

You will learn how to explain diner habits: free coffee refills, a tip of about 20 percent, and how to ask for the check.

You pay when you finish eating, not when you sit down. If someone looks lost, you can offer a little help.

By the end of this lesson

Help a newer visitor with diner habits: free refills, the check, and a tip of about 20 percent.

  • Refills are free here.They will fill your coffee again at no cost.
  • A tip is usually about 20 percent.People leave extra money, about twenty on every hundred.
  • You can say, "Can I get the check?"This is how you ask for the bill.
  • You pay when you're done, not first.At a diner you eat, then you pay.
  • I was new here too.I also started without knowing these habits.
  • Ask me if you get stuck.If you do not know what to do, I will help.

Scene — a newer visitor

Late afternoon at the Blue Plate. A newer visitor holds a menu and looks at the coffee pot, then at Dee, then at the register.

Ana is already in a booth. Murray sits on two stools with his unfinished coffee. The jukebox by the door stays quiet.

A newcomer pauses at the counter with a menu, looking from the coffee pot to Dee and the register.

Learn — diner habits

Six lines help you explain diner habits to someone new.

You cover free refills, the tip, the check, and a kind offer of help.

  1. Dee pours more coffee into Murray’s unfinished mug.

    Refills are free here.

    They will fill your coffee again at no cost.

    When to use it: Say this when someone thinks more coffee will cost extra.

    A refill is more coffee in your cup.

    Say it: Stress the first part of refills.

  2. Ana reassures the newcomer that diners eat before paying.

    A tip is usually about 20 percent.

    People leave extra money, about twenty on every hundred.

    When to use it: Say this when someone asks how much extra money to leave.

    A tip is extra money for the server, not the price of the food.

    Say it: The stress in percent is on the last part.

  3. Murray turns toward the newcomer with his coffee still unfinished.

    You can say, "Can I get the check?"

    This is how you ask for the bill.

    When to use it: Tell a new visitor these words when they want to pay.

    The check is the diner word for the bill.

    Say it: Can and I often link in Can I.

  4. Ana shows the newcomer how to ask for the bill.

    You pay when you're done, not first.

    At a diner you eat, then you pay.

    When to use it: Say this if someone tries to pay before they eat.

    You're is you are said as one piece.

    Say it: You're sounds like one short word.

  5. Extra cash rests beside a saucer as Ana shares a diner tipping habit.

    I was new here too.

    I also started without knowing these habits.

    When to use it: Say this so a new person feels less alone.

    Was is the past tense of am in this line.

  6. Ana leans toward the newcomer and offers help with an open hand.

    Ask me if you get stuck.

    If you do not know what to do, I will help.

    When to use it: Offer this when someone looks lost or unsure.

    Stuck means you do not know the next step.

Story — she explains

Watch Ana help a newer customer at the counter. Dee is busy, so Ana explains the check, the tip, and the free refills.

The highlighted words are the lines you just learned.

  1. The newer visitor stands at the counter with a menu and does not sit.
  2. DeeHave a seat, hon. I'll come by in a minute.please sit down
  3. Dee turns toward the coffee pot. Ana walks over from her booth.
  4. AnaAre you new here?you ask if they just arrived
  5. a customerYes. Do I pay now? Nobody is at the register.They think they must pay before they sit.
  6. AnaYou pay when you're done, not first.At a diner you eat, then you pay.
  7. a customerSo I sit, I eat, and then I pay?They check that they eat first and pay after.
  8. AnaRight. Refills are free here.She agrees, then says more coffee costs nothing.
  9. Murray looks at his cup, still unfinished, and then at the visitor.
  10. MurrayDee keeps pouring, so I never quite finish.Dee refills his cup, so it stays unfinished.
  11. The visitor turns back to Ana.
  12. a customerThen how do I ask for the bill?They want the words for asking to pay.
  13. AnaYou can say, "Can I get the check?"This is how you ask for the bill.
  14. a customerCan I get the check? Like that?They try the line and check if it is right.
  15. AnaYes. A tip is usually about 20 percent.She says yes, then explains the extra money for the server.
  16. a customerTwenty on every hundred. I didn't know that.They repeat the tip amount. It is new to them.
  17. AnaI was new here too.I also started without knowing these habits.
  18. a customerThank you. I still feel a little lost.They thank her and still feel unsure.
  19. AnaAsk me if you get stuck.If you do not know what to do, I will help.

Practice — check and tip

Eleven short exercises wait here. You'll listen, pick, match, fill a gap, and build a line.

They stay small, so the round moves fast.

0 of 11 done

  1. What did you hear?

  2. Match the pairs

    English

    Refills are free here.Drop the Simple English here
    A tip is usually about 20 percent.Drop the Simple English here
    You can say, "Can I get the check?"Drop the Simple English here
    You pay when you're done, not first.Drop the Simple English here

    Simple English

    Drag a Simple English line onto its English, or tap one and then the other.

  3. What do you say?

    A newer customer asks what to say when they want to pay and leave.

  4. What does it mean?

    A tip is usually about 20 percent.

  5. Find the mistake

  6. Build the line

    If you do not know what to do, I will help.

    .

    Tap the words in order.

  7. Pick the reply

    a customer says:

    This is my first diner in Chicago. I keep guessing the rules wrong.

    They are new and do not know the diner habits yet.

    And you reply with:

  8. Swap the word

    A newer customer walks to the register before they sit. Tell them the diner rule.

    You pay when you're done, not ____.

  9. True or false?

    You say this when you want someone to leave the diner.

  10. What do you say?

    Someone looks lost at the counter. You want to know if they just arrived.

  11. Pick the reply

    Dee says:

    Have a seat, hon. I'll come by in a minute.

    please sit down

    And you reply with:

Say it — help them out

Now you're Ana. A newer customer is stuck at the counter. When it's your turn, tap the microphone and speak the line.

Tap play first if you want to hear the line. Your recording stays on your device.

  1. a customerDo I pay now? Nobody is at the register.They think they must pay before they sit.
  2. Ana (you)Tell them they eat first, then they pay.

    You pay when you're done, not first.

    At a diner you eat, then you pay.

0 of 6 said

Recap — what you can say now

EnglishSimple English
Refills are free here.They will fill your coffee again at no cost.
A tip is usually about 20 percent.People leave extra money, about twenty on every hundred.
You can say, "Can I get the check?"This is how you ask for the bill.
You pay when you're done, not first.At a diner you eat, then you pay.
I was new here too.I also started without knowing these habits.
Ask me if you get stuck.If you do not know what to do, I will help.
Next: lesson 229The neighborhood meeting

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Keep practicing with Yak Cards

Want to keep these diner lines handy? Grab the Yak Cards for this lesson and review them anywhere.

A quick round with the Yak Cards each day keeps the check, the tip, and the refills ready.

Open Yak Cards