English through Dialogues, Puzzles and Jokes
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– Has anything in the test surprised you? Is it true about your character? Do you agree with the results?
– Do you really think that we are what we eat?
– How does food influence on our character? Give examples.
Part Five. Food Chat
Two chefs, Evelyn Winters, a British chef, and Monsieur Leblanc, a French chef, are having a hot discussion where the best food in the world comes from. Read it and answer the questions:
1. Have you ever tried British/French food?
2. What is your opinion about them?
ML: Well, I know this is going to upset you, my dear friend, but frankly speaking, French food is the best in the world. For a start we have vichyssoise. It is the best soup in the world.
EW: The best soup? It’s just cold soup. You couldn’t be bothered to heat it up. We have tomato soup.
ML: OK, but we have the great French baguette.
EW: A thin bit of bread! Rip-off! What about a good old loaf?
ML: And, for example, our coffee is some of the best in the world. “Cafe au lait” is the best thing to wake you up in the morning.
EW: Yeah, with a stupid machine. Instant coffee is easier and quicker, and tastes just as good.
ML: OK, and “pommes frites”. You don’t get better “pommes frites” in the whole world.
EW: Yeah, that’s just chips with a fancy name. And anyway we invented them. First mentioned in Charles Dickens’ book ‘A Tale of Two Cities’.
ML: And we have great dishes like “pies e pacquets”.
EW: Lamb’s feet and tripe in a vomit sauce! Yuck!
ML: How dare you! It’s our national delicacy, and our “cuisses de grenouilles”. Where do you find a dish like this?
EW: Frog legs. That’s disgusting!
ML: OK, and what about our “coq au vin”? What have you got to say about “coq au vin”?
EW: Chicken in a wine sauce. Roast chicken and a pint of beer? Can’t get better than that, can you?
ML: OK, and our internationally famous “quiche lorraine”. What have you got to say about that, mister?
EW: What do you mean, “mister”? Madame!
ML: Sorry, I thought you had changed sex.
EW: Egg with pastry and a bit of bacon. Mmm… If we want bacon and eggs, we have our breakfast.
ML: I refuse to listen to this rubbish any more. French food is the best in the world, and you cannot say anything that will make me change my opinion.
EW: Yeah, the only one saying that is you, because everyone knows that British food is the best.
Vocabulary
To upset – to make angry or sad
Vichyssoise – a type of soup made from leeks (a long, green vegetable)
Couldn’t be bothered – if you “couldn’t be bothered” to do something, you are too tired to do that thing
To heat up – to make food warm/hot
A rip-off – a trick; something that deceives you
A loaf – a rectangular piece of bread
Instant coffee – coffee grains that you use to make coffee. You just add boiling water
Pommes frites – literally, fried pieces of potato; “chips”, in British English
Fancy – expensive and elaborate in the negative sense
Tripe – an animal’s stomach
How dare you! – this is an expression of anger. It is used when someone has been disrespectful to you
A national delicacy – a plate of food that is considered representative of a country
Pastry – food made from flour, fat and water. It is then cooked in the oven
To refuse – to say that you will not do something
Rubbish – an expression used to refer to something that you think is untrue or ridiculous
Discuss in small groups of 3-4 students. Then give your resolution to the whole class.
– What cuisine do you prefer? Do you have any special likes in this cuisine? How often do you eat dishes of this cuisine? Do you cook them yourself or do you order them in the restaurants?
– Do you like restaurant food? Do you have favourite restaurants? How often do you go there? Is it expensive? What do you usually order there? Would you recommend it to your friends?
Part Six. Jokes
1. Tom: I eaten seven hamburgers for breakfast.
Teacher: Ate, Tom! Ate.
Tom: No, Miss, seven. There were eight on the plate but I couldn’t manage the last one.
2. Mother: How was your cookery lesson?
Daughter: Awful. I was sent out of the class because I burnt something.
Mother: That wasn’t very fair. What did you burn?
Daughter: The classroom.
3. Teacher: Are you chewing gum?
Pupil: No, I’m Andrew Brown.
4. A clever butcher
A Norfolk butcher was famous for his rabbit pies, which he used to bake himself. As time went by, however, customers started to complain that his pies weren’t quite as nice as they used to be. One day a friend said:
– Frank, what happened to your rabbit pies?
– Why?
– They don’t taste as good as they used to.
– Well between you and me, – said the butcher, – my pies have been in such great demand that there aren’t enough rabbits to go round.