Complaining Politely in Restaurants and Shops
Fix wrong orders, cold food and faulty items without a scene.
How's everything with your food? Yes, lovely, thanks.
Computer voice · not a real clip
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About 4 min Free, no account
All 15 phrases
Starting softly5
- How is everything? / Yes, lovely, thanksBrits often say 'lovely' even when it isn't.
- Sorry, I think there might be a slight problem with my orderA soft opening.
- Sorry to be a pain, butA very common, friendly way to start a request or complaint.
- I don't want to make a fuss, butA very British lead-in to a complaint.
- I'm not being funny, butComes before a criticism or blunt comment.
Saying what's wrong4
- Sorry, I ordered the chicken, but I think this is the beefClear and polite: say what you ordered and what arrived.
- It's a bit cold, actually. Would you mind warming it upAsking for a fix.
- Would it be possible toThe politest way to ask for something, like a different table or a refund.
- That's not really onThat's unacceptable.
The bill3
Returns and managers3
Check yourself15 questions
Question 1 of 15
When the waiter asks 'How is everything?', it's:
More packs
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- Office small talkThe kitchen and lift chat you'll have every working day.
About this pack
- Price
- Free
- Account
- Not needed, saved on this device
- Reviews
- 1, 3, 7, 14 and 30 days later
- Moments
- 1 of 15 phrases have a clip
- Sources
Picked by Talk, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Phrases
- Picked by Talk.
- How Talk picked them
- Part of Talk's themed British life packs. Talk wrote each phrase with what it really means, when to say it, what not to say instead and one quiz question. A phrase gets a moment only if Talk's spoken videos say it with the same meaning. One review picked each moment, and a second tried to reject it. This pack holds 15 phrases.
- Licence
- Talk shares this list under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Meanings and examples
- Written by Talk in plain English.
- Dictionary details
- From Wiktionary contributors (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Princeton WordNet, used under the WordNet licence. WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
Start practising
About 4 min Free, no account