Dialogue

Vocabulary

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Lesson Transcript

INTRODUCTION
Finally, you're at the table and have your seat. Now it's time to order!
In this lesson, we'll cover how to ask for a menu and then order your drink and food.
BODY
Normally, to get the waiter's attention you can just raise your hand and simply say Suniye! ("Excuse me"), and then ask for a menu by saying menu dijiye. meaning "A menu, please."
Let's hear the entire sentence: menu dijiye.(SLOW) menu dijiye
"Please, give me" is dijiye in Urdu: (SLOW) dijiye, dijiye.
This was preceded by menu, which in English means "a menu."
Once you have looked at the menu, you can finally call the waiter for the order.
Firstly, in ninety-nine percent of cases they will ask you what you would like to drink first. "What would you like to drink?" is aap kia piyenge? (SLOW) aap kia piyenge?
In Urdu, aap is the polite pronoun "you," kia means "what," and finally, piyenge means "will drink". Let's break it down and hear it one more time: (SLOW) aap kia pi-yen-ge? aap kia piyenge?
Now let's see some beverages you could order with dinner.
lassi, a "drink of water and curd")
Pani, "water")
Rabri, "milk and butter drink" - which is actually more of a dessert
Let's break down these words and hear them one more time.
(SLOW) la-ssi, lassi
(SLOW) pa-ni, pani
(SLOW) rab-ri, rab-ri
If you want to ask for recommendations or the house specials, you can say
koi khas dish bataa sakte hain?
(SLOW) koii khaas dish bataa sakte hain?
This literally means "Would you recommend anything special to eat?" Let's have a quick look at the bits and pieces of this phrase. The Urdu words, koi khas, mean "anything special" in English. We follow this with the word for "dish," which is dish. "Can you tell me" is (SLOW) bata sakty hain. bata sakty hain.
Let's hear the whole sentence one more time: (SLOW) koi khas dish bata sakte hain?
koi khas dish bataa sakte hain?
This would be the equivalent of "What are the recommendations?" in English.
When you order in Pakistan, you usually just say the name of the dish you want. However, there is a polite way of saying "I would like" following the name of the things you want to eat. This is lena chahun ga. Let's break down this word and hear it one more time: (SLOW) le-na cha-hun-ga. lena chahun ga.
Now, that was how a male would say it. If you are a female, you would have to say lena chahun gi. (SLOW) le-na cha-hun-gi. lena chahun gi
Now let's see some good dishes you can find on a typical Pakistani menu.
- pakoray - the traditional Pakistani appetizer, made of chopped vegetables fried in spicy gram-flour batter
- tanduri murgi - chicken marinated in yogurt and spices
- Briyani - spicy rice mixed in chicken curry
- Daal chawal - Boiled white rice with pulses
- Raita - yogurt-based dressing with garlic and cucumber
Let's break down these words and hear them one more time.
- (SLOW) pa-ko-ray, pakoray
- (SLOW) tan-du-ri mur-gi,tanduri murgi
- (SLOW) bri-yan-i, briyani
- (SLOW) da-al cha-wal, daal chawal
- (SLOW) rai-ta, raita
Let's imagine you would like to order briyani and raita. You should tell the waiter briyani aur raita lena chahun ga.
(SLOW) briyani aur raita lena chahun ga
briyani aur raita lena chahun ga this means "I would like briyani and some raita."
As we have seen, lena chahun ga means "I would like." It simply follows the name of the food you are ordering. If you are a woman, you will have to say briyani aur raita lena chahun gi. (SLOW) briyani aur raita lena chahun gi
briyani aur raita lena chahun gi.
Review
"A menu, please."
(3 sec) مینیو دیجیے
menu dijiye [slow version]
menu dijiye [normal speed]
"What would you like to drink?"
(3 sec) آپ کیا پیئیں گے؟
aap kia piyengay? [slow version]
aap kia piyengay? [normal speed]
"What are the recommendations?"
(3 sec) کوئی خاس ڈش بتا سکتے ہیں؟
koi khas dish bata sakty hain? [slow version]
koi khas dish bata sakty hain? [normal speed]
"I would like briyani and some raita (masculine)"
(3 sec) بریانی اور رائتہ لینا چاہوں گا .
briyani aur raita lena chahun ga. [slow version]
briyani aur raita lena chahun ga. [normal speed]
"I would like briyani and some raaytaa. (feminine)"
(3 sec) بریانی اور رائتہ لینا چاہوں گی.
briyani aur raita lena chahun gi. [slow version]
briyani aur raita lena chahun gi. [normal speed]

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