Ordering Drinks and Snacks in Russia

You will learn

• to find out what is available for a meal, or part of a meal
• to make your choice
• to ask advice about cafes and about recommended dishes
• to ask for a seat at a table
• to pay for your meal

and you will be introduced to traditional Russian cuisine

Russian sweets

Study guide

🔊 Dialogues: Breakfast & Coffee

1. Tanya has stayed the night at a friend’s.

каша [kasha] porridge
просто [prosta] simply

2. What about coffee?

ой [oi] oh
если можно [yesli mozhna] if possible

Practice what you have learned

1. Ol'ga Ivanovna has a family - Marina, Vasily and their two children Natasha and Ira - staying with her. Listen to their orders for breakfast and then decide whether the following statements are true or false. You'll notice that the children use дайте [daitye] when they speak to Ol'ga Ivanovna, an adult.

I. Vasily asks for porridge and black coffee. true; false.
II. Natasha asks for salami sandwiches. true; false.
III. Ira wants porridge with sugar. true; false.
IV. Marina wants coffee with milk and salami sandwiches. true; false.

Grocery packaging for sugar lumps

‘Hercules’ oatflakes

2. Later on Natasha asks everyone what they would like to drink but becomes hopelessly confused. Listen to the recording and match the request with the person.

3. Your name is Nina and you will be finding out from your brother what there is for breakfast. Andrei will prompt you.

🔊 Dialogues: Ordering Lunch in a Cafeteria

3. Natasha drops into the company cafeteria for lunch.

суп гороховый с мясом [sup garokhavy smyasam] pea soup with meat
суп рыбный с картошечкой [sup ribny skartoshichkay] fish soup with potato

4. Lyena is next in line and asks about the second course.

рыба отварная [riba atvarnaya] poached fish
беф-строганов [befstroganof] beef Stroganoff
мясо тушёное [myasa tushonaye] stewed meat
бифштекс с луком [bifshteks slukam] beefsteak with onion
запеканка творожная со сметаной [zapikanka tvarozhnaya sa smitanay] baked cottage cheese dish with sour cream
картофельное пюре [kartofil'naye pyure] mashed potatoes

Practice what you have learned

4. Oleg and Larisa find the following menu in a local cafeteria. See how much you can make out before looking at the transliterated version below.

Listen to the recording and mark the correct box.

5. Still using the same menu, this time it’s your turn to order. Follow Andrei’s instructions.

🔊 Dialogues: Paying & Finding a Seat

5. Lyena is now at the cashier’s desk.

6. Lyena has taken her tray and is looking for a seat.

7. Ira doesn’t have much luck finding a place to eat.

только [tol'ka] only

Recipe for an open jam tart:

Пирог открытый с повидлом

Мука - 546, сахар - 38, маргарин столовый - 27, яйца для теста - 27, соль - 5, дрожжи - 16, вода - 230, повидло - 333, яйца для смазки пирога - 27, жир для смазки листа — 3,3.

Выход — 1 кг.

Дрожжевое тесто, приготовленное так же, как для булочки дорожной, раскатать в пласт толщиной 1 см, положить на смазанный жиром лист и выровнять поверхность. Сверху на тесто положить подогретое до 30°С повидло. Края теста загнуть на 1,5-2 см, а сверху на повидло положить узкие полоски теста в виде решетки и смазать яйцом. Оставить пирог в теплом месте для расстойки 20—30 мин. и выпекать при температуре 200°С.

Now the exercises based on these dialogues.

Practice what you have learned

6. The price list below is in a sorry state. Listen to the recording and match each dish with its price.

7. Ol'ga Ivanovna's guests ask passers-by for advice about where they can ‘fortify themselves’ during a long day’s excursion. Listen to their conversation and fill in the missing words in Vasily's diary. You will find the answers out of order beneath the diary.

NB Russians will of course write rather than print, but then they already know the printed alphabet very well! For now, use the printed form when writing.

8. It’s time to pay for the meal you ordered in the previous exercises. Don’t worry if you've forgotten what you had - Andrei will guide you.

To understand

The five letters we will look at in this lesson are:

9. Can you match the following capital cities with their country?

10. a) Which of the following would you be unlikely to eat?

b) And who might feel a little out of place?

11. Here are some signs you might want to look out for:

a) For which place might you need to make a reservation?

b) Where could you go for a snack?

c) Where would you probably find grilled chicken?

A word of warning: г [g] is sometimes pronounced quite differently - as [v]. This happens for example in the word сегодня [sivodnya] today. As a rule it happens with the combinations -ого [-ovo] or -его [-yevo], but since there are exceptions even to this, be patient with such eccentricity and just try to remember the words in question.

Кофе чёрный или с молоком? [kofye chorny ili smalakom?]
Coffee black or with milk?

С [s] is used before a noun to mean ‘with’ (in grammatical terms it is a preposition). In addition, however, the ending of the noun changes.

Masculine and neuter nouns normally end in -ом ([om] but pronounced [am] if not stressed). Hence бутерброды [buterbrody] with сыр [syr] becomes бутерброды с сыром [buterbrody syram] ‘sandwiches with cheese’. And кофе [kofye] with молоко [malako] becomes кофе с молоком [kofye smalakom] ‘coffee with milk’.

Feminine nouns normally end in -ой ([oy] but pronounced [ay] if not stressed). So бутерброды [buterbrody] with колбаса [kalbasa] becomes бутерброды с колбасой [buterbrody skalbasoy] ‘salami sandwiches’.

The с [s] is normally pronounced as part of the next word.

12. Four friends are perusing the menu in a cafeteria. Katya is ravenous, Kolya just a little hungry, Tanya is a vegetarian and Ira only wants something to drink. What might each order?

💡 Did you know?

Traditional Russian cuisine is very rich. Much of it is fried and may then be served with dollops of sour cream. For breakfast your hotel or a café is likely to offer блины [bliny] pancakes or сырники [syrniki] cottage cheese patties, often со сметаной [sa smitanay] with sour cream. If you prefer something lighter, there will usually be сыр [syr] cheese, колбаса [kalbasa] sausage, яйца [yaitsa] eggs, каша [kasha] porridge and хлеб [khlyep] bread. Чёрный хлеб [chorny khlyep] black (rye) bread is particularly tasty!

What Russians eat for breakfast depends a lot on the person and the time of year. Buckwheat, oats and semolina porridge (all called каша [kasha]) are common, but a quick breakfast of fried potatoes or an omelette, a sandwich (бутерброд [buterbrot]) with sausage or cheese, and a cup of кофе [kofye] coffee or чай [chai] tea is just as usual on a working day.

Breakfast is normally eaten at home, but many people, especially in big cities, like to grab a bite at a café – there are plenty of them nowadays, and there are no queues like in Soviet times. A popular snack on the go is пирожки [pirashki], small filled yeast buns, along with ice cream and other treats.

Your turn to speak

You will be ordering breakfast in the hotel restaurant. Read the following phrases, then turn on your recording and let Andrei guide you.

здесь свободно? [zdyes' svabodna?]
что у вас сегодня на завтрак? [shto uvas sivodnya na zaftrak?]
дайте, пожалуйста, ... [daitye, pazhalsta, ...]
с удовольствием! [sudavol'stvyem!]
кофе с молоком [kofye smalakom]

FAQ