Do you know how to complain in a restaurant if something goes wrong?
What if your food is cold?
What if it's taking a long time for your food to come out of the kitchen?
What if the waitress brings you a dish that you did not order?
You have to complain!
But in order to do that, you need the right words and phrases.
In today's article, I will give you four scenarios and a few ways to complain in each situation.
Scenario #1: Your food is cold
"I'm sorry to bother you, but the food is quite cold."
- "Excuse me, but my food is cold. Could you warm it up for me?"
- "Sorry, is this generally served cold?"
- "Sorry, I am not sure why, but my food is cold. Could you take care of it for me please?"
Scenario #2: You got the wrong order
- "I'm sorry, but this isn't what I ordered"
- "Hi, is this the ____ that I ordered?"
- "Sorry, but I think I got the wrong order."
Scenario #3: The food is taking too long
- "I am so sorry to bother you, but we have somewhere to be. Could you check on our order?"
- "Any idea how much longer it will be?"
- "We're running late. Do you know how soon we'll be able to get our food?"
- "Is there any way that the chef could speed up our orders?"
Scenario #4: You don't like or can't eat your meal
- "Sorry, but I ordered a mild version of this dish and this is quite spicy."
- "Excuse me, this isn't what I was expecting at all. Could I try something else?"
- "I apologize, but I thought this dish was something different. Could I try something else instead?"
Do you want to learn more about this topic and practice using these phrases with a native speaker? If so, try our conversation program by clicking the button below. See you soon!
Photo credit: Rob Boudon, http://www.flickr.com/photos/aidanmorgan/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ejchang