How ordering food in a restaurant helped me to learn French in earnest

If you are still contemplating whether to learn French, maybe a vacation will convince you. Perhaps you were inspired by French movies or an author whose books fascinate you.

But, in daily life, to really feel the essence of a language, a vacation in France is a superbe way of beginning a journey of learning French. As with many other things, by pushing yourself a bit out of your comfort zone can lead to great situations. So try to speak in French although you don’t know much, it works for me and it works for most who want to learn a language.

I’m not going to bore you with bonjour, comment allez vouz and the sorts. Instead, as you saunter into an establishment to order a drink or food, try these phrases!

Est-ce que je peux voir le menu, s’il vous plaît?

Can I please see the menu?

Je voudrais le menu du jour.

I would like the menu of the day.

[Name of dish or menu item], qu’est-ce que c’est ?

[Name of dish or menu item], what is that?

And if you learn those phrases with a decent prononciuation, you may find that the waiter or waitress responds in French. That is a remarkably opportunity to learn more!

So.. When you do not understand their response, what to do? Well, by showing that you are learning French, you might also find help with explaining, part in English or in French.

Une minute encore, est-ce qu’il y a un plat du jour?

One moment please, is there a daily special?

And there you go, you are already having a conversation. Just have patience and fun. 🙂