Food and Drinks, Eating Habits and Restaurants

Maturita topic 16, general part, at Cambridge B2 First level. The specific part of this topic is the comparison of festive meals in Festivals and Holidays in English-Speaking Countries and Festivals and Holidays in the Czech Republic.

What to talk about

• your eating habits – meals during the day, favourite food, cooking
• Czech cuisine vs. British and American food
• healthy eating, diets, vegetarianism, food allergies
• eating out – types of restaurants, ordering, tipping
• food trends – fast food, food delivery apps, food waste

Model answer

My eating habits are probably quite typical for a student. On weekdays I don’t have much time for breakfast, so I just have a coffee and a roll. At school I have lunch in the canteen, which in the Czech Republic is usually the main warm meal of the day – soup and a main course. In the evening we have dinner at home with the family. At weekends my mum or dad cooks something special, and I’ve recently started cooking too – I can make pasta, risotto and pancakes.

Traditional Czech cuisine is rich and quite heavy. Typical dishes are roast pork with dumplings and sauerkraut, svíčková – beef in a creamy vegetable sauce with dumplings – goulash and fried cheese. Czechs also love soups and sweet dishes such as fruit dumplings. And of course, Czech beer is famous all over the world. British food has a reputation for being bland, but there are some tasty dishes: the full English breakfast with eggs, bacon, sausages and beans, fish and chips, the Sunday roast and afternoon tea with scones. In the USA people eat a lot of fast food like hamburgers, hot dogs and pizza, but American cuisine is also very multicultural – Mexican, Italian and Asian food is everywhere.

More and more people today are interested in healthy eating. They try to eat more fruit and vegetables and less sugar and fat, and many young people become vegetarians or vegans, for health reasons or because of animal welfare and the environment. Some people have to follow special diets because of food allergies or intolerances, for example to gluten or lactose.

I enjoy eating out, especially with friends. We usually go to an Asian restaurant or to a pizzeria, or we get a burger. When you go to a restaurant, you book a table, order from the menu, and at the end you ask for the bill. In the Czech Republic people usually leave a tip of about ten per cent, while in the USA a tip of fifteen to twenty per cent is expected, because waiters’ wages are low.

One problem I’m worried about is food waste – about a third of all food produced in the world is thrown away. I think we should buy only what we really need and use up leftovers.

Vocabulary

Grammar worth showing

• countable vs. uncountable nouns: a lot of vegetables, much sugar, a few apples, a little salt.
• used to: I used to hate vegetables, but now I love them.
• passive for recipes and traditions: Svíčková is served with dumplings.

Useful phrases

• I’m not a big fan of…, but I love…
• It tastes / smells…
• Could I have…, please? / I’ll have the…
• I’d recommend trying…
• In my opinion, the healthiest option is…

Speaking practice

Part 1 – about you

Part 3 / 4 – discussion