Food. at the restaurant - basic vocabulary

FOOD. AT THE RESTAURANT - Basic Vocabulary

Breakfast – mic dejun, masa de dimineata

Lunch – 1. Pranz, dejun (atunci cand masa principala se serveste la pranz) 2. Gustare (atunci cand masa principala se serveste seara)

Tea – ceai

Dinner – 1. Cina 2. Masa principala a zilei (pranz sau cina)

Supper – cina, masa de seara (dupa cina)

Meal – mancare, masa

Course – fel de mancare

Main course – fel principal de mancare

Dish – 1. Fel de mancare 2. Farfurie mare

Restaurant – restaurant

Canteen – cantina, bufet

Snack bar – bufet expres

Pub (from public house) – restaurant, carciuma

Table d’hote / set lunch – meniu fix

A la carte – a la carte

Fish and chip shop – local unde se serveste peste cu cartofi prajiti

Hors d’oeuvre [o: d∂:vr] – gustare inaintea mesei, aperitiv

Bacon and eggs – ochiuri cu slanina

Ham and eggs – ochiuri cu sunca

Raw egg – ou crud

Soft oua moi

Hard boiled eggs - oua tari, rascoapte

Scrambled eggs – oua jumari

Poached eggs – ochiuri romanesti

Fried eggs – ochiuri

Omelette – omleta

Sausage – salam

Olive – maslina

Butter – unt

Cheese – branza

Pressed cheese – cascaval

Swiss cheese – svaiter

Yoghourt – iaurt

Jellied meat – piftie

Jellied fish – peste in aspic

Pickled fish – zacusca de peste

Minced-meat balls – chiftelute

Meat croquettes - parjoale

Vegetable salad – salata de legume

Mayonnaise dressing – maioneza

Caviare – icre negre, caviar

Manchuria hard roe – icre de Manciuria

Paté de foie gras – pateu din ficat de gasca

Canapé – paine prajita in unt

Soup – supa

Chicken soup – supa de pui

Clear chicken soup – supa limpede

Tomato (+ alte legume) soup – supa de rosii

Meat – carne

Minced meat – carne tocata

Beef – carne de vita

Veal – carne de vitel

Mutton – carne de oaie

Lamb – carne de miel

Pork – carne de porc

Poultry – 1. pasari de curte 2. carne de pasare

Chicken – carne de pui

Duck – carne de rata

Goose – carne de gasca

Vegetables – legume, zarzavaturi (abrev. Veg)

Mixed vegetables – ghiveci de legume asortate

Cold meat salad – salata boeuf

Boiled cartofi fierti

Roast cartofi prajiti

Mashed          potatoes cartofi piure

Chipped cartofi pai

Egg-plant / aubergine – vanata

Endive - andive

Cabbage – varza

Red cabbage – varza rosie

Brussels cabbage – varza de Bruxelles

Sauerkraut – varza acra

Pickles - muraturi

Carrot – morcov

Tossed carrots – sote de morcovi

Cauliflower – conopida

Tomato sauce – bulion

Tomato juice – suc de rosii

Beetroot – sfecla rosie

Peas – mazare

Beans – fasole

French beans – fasole verde

Cucumber – castravete

Green-pepper – ardei gras

Red pepper – gogosar

Hot pepper – ardei iute

Mushrooms – ciuperca

Mushrooms cooked in sauce – ciulama de ciuperci

Lettuce – salata verde

Spinach - spanac

Onion – ceapa

Leek - praz

Spring onion – ceapa verde

Grill – gratar, friptura la gratar

Beefsteak – biftec, muschi in sange

Rump-steak – ramstec, friptura de muschi de vita

Roast chicken – friptura de pasare

Roast beef – friptura de vita

Roast liver – ficat prajit

Kidney – rinichi

Chop – cotlet

Cutlet – cotlet, snitel

Steak, rib – antricot

Pork sausages – carnati de porc

Roast duckling – friptura de ratusca

Stew – tocana

Stewed meat – carne fiarta, inabusita

Boiled meat – carne rasol

Chicken in white sauce – ciulama de pui

Dish of breaded brain – creier prajit

Goulasch, stew – gulas

Sweetbread – momite

Leg of a fowl – picior de pasare

Brisket – piept/ garf de porc

Sauté – sote

Scallop – snitel

Venison - vanat

Fish – peste

Fresh-water fish – peste de apa dulce

Salt-water fish – peste de mare

Haddock – batog, egrefin

Herring – hering, scrumbie

Kipper – scrumbie afumata

Sole – calcan

Halibut – peste de mare din genul Hipoglossus

Cod – cod

Perch – biban

Trout – pastrav

Sturgeon – sturion

Plaice – platica

Carp – crap

Salmon – somon

Tunny/ tunna fish – ton

Crawfish – raci

Crabs - crabi

Pike – stiuca

Zander – salau

Lobster – homar

Dessert – desert

Sweet – desert dulce

Cake – prajitura

Pastry – placinte, patiserie

Apple-tart – tarta/ placinta cu mere

Cheese pie – placinta cu branza

Pudding – budinca

Biscuits – biscuiti

Muffin – briosa

Pancakes – clatite

PROIECT: Absurdul - categorie estetico-literara derivata din cultivarea in fertilele PROIECT: INCEPUTURILE LITERATURII CULTE (primii scriitori „profesionisti”)

Doughnuts – gogosi

Sponge cake – pandispan

Sweet biscuit – piscot

Trifle – sarlota, prajitura facuta din frisca, migdale si biscuiti inmuiati in vin

Gingerbread – turta dulce

Fruit salad – salata de fructe

Stewed fruit – compot de fructe

Grape – strugure

Currant – stafida mare

Pine-apple – ananas

Ice-cream – inghetata

Custard – crema de oua

Jam – gem, dulceata

Marmalade – dulceata sau marmelada de portocale

Cream – caimac, smantana

Whipped cream – frisca

Cereals – mancare pregatita din cereale (fulgi de ovaz, porumb) Cornflakes – fulgi de porumb

Porridge – fiertura din fulgi de ovaz sau porumb, cu lapte, caimac, cu sau fara zahar

Oatmeal – faina de ovaz, ovaz pisat

Pastas – paste fainoase

Drink – bautura

Soft drink – bautura nealcoolica, racoritoare

Lemonade – limonada, citronada

Juice – suc

Fruit juice – suc de fructe

Orange juice – suc de portocale

Mineral water – apa minerala

Cider – cidru

Milk –lapte

Coffee – cafea

Black coffee – cafea neagra

Strong/ hard/ alcoholic drink – bautura alcoolica

Beer –bere

Mug, a pint of beer – o halba de bere

Bitter – bere amara

Stout – bere neagra

Ginger ale – bere nealcoolica

Draught beer – bere de la butoi

Ale – bere englezeasca

Brandy – rachiu, coniac

Wine –vin

White wine –vin alb

Red wine –vin rosu

Dry wine –vin sec

Sweet wine – vin dulce

Sherry – vin de Xeres

Port – vin de Porto

Liqueur – lichior

Champagne – sampanie

Whisky – whisky scotian

Spices – condimente

Salt – sare

Pepper –piper

Vinegar –otet

The dishes – vesela, vase

Crockery – vase (de faianta, ceramica)

Cup – ceasca

Glass – pahar

Jug – cana, ulcior

Saucer – farfurioara

Plate – farfurie

Dinner plate – farfurie intinsa

Soup plate – farfurie adanca

Cutlery – tacamuri

Spoon – lingura

Tea spoon – lingurita de ceai sau de cafea

Soup spoon – lingura de supa

Dessert spoon – lingurita

Knife – cutit

Fork – furculita

Salt cellar – solnita

Mustard-pot – borcan de mustar

Pepper-pot – pipernita

Corkscrew – tirbuson

Sauce-boat – sosiera

Soup-tureen – castron de supa

Sugar basin – zaharnita

Napkin – servetel

Toothpick - scobitoare

Table-cloth – fata de masa

Drinking straw – pai de sorbit

Ashtray – scrumiera

Wine-decanter – carafa de vin

Teapot – ceainic

Flavour – aroma

Vanilla – vanilie

Strawberry – fraga, capsuna

Fat (d. mancare, carne) - gras

Lean (d. mancare, carne) – slab

Thin (d. lichide) – slab, diluat

Underdone in sange, nefacuta

Well-done (d. friptura) bine facuta

Overdone uscata, arsa

Warm / warmlike – cald / caldut

Fresh – proaspat

Stale (d. mancare) – vechi

Saw – crud

Strong – tare

Weak – slab

Fizzy – gazos, spumos

Brown (d. paine)  - neagra

Plain – simplu

Spicy – condimentat

Savoury (d. mancare) – picant, sarat, piperat

Vacant (d. loc, masa) – liber

Taken (d. loc, masa) – ocupat

Semi-prepared semipreparate

Ready-packed preambalate

Ready-cooked                        foods gata preparate

Ready-bottled imbuteliate

Frozen congelate

A slice of bread/ ham – o felie de paine/ sunca

A lump of sugar – o bucata de zahar

A piece of cake – o bucata de prajitura

To steam – a fierbe

To roast – a praji, a coace

To grill – a frige la gratar

To fry – a praji

To bake – a coace

To boil – a fierbe

To stir – a mesteca

To poach – a fierbe (d. ex. oua fara coaja)

To heat – a incalzi

To smoke – a afuma

To flavour – a condimenta, a aromatiza

To eat at home – a manca acasa

To eat out – a manca in oras (la restaurant)

To drink the wine neat – a bea vinul fara sifon

To lay the table – a pune masa

To clear the table – a strange masa

To wash up, to wash the dishes – a spala vasele

To reserve a table in advance – a rezerva o masa in avans

To be on a diet – a tine dieta, regim

I’ll take … for the first course – primul fel o sa iau

I’ll have/ order … - am sa comand

What would you say to … - ce-ai zice de …

Will you pass me the salt, please? – vreti sa-mi dati sarea, va rog?

May I have another helping of…? – pot sa mai iau o portie de…?

Would you like some more…? – mai doriti niste…?

Have you made your choice? – v-ati hotarat? Ati ales?

No, thank you, I don’t care for…/ not for me, thank you – nu, multumesc, nu iau, nu-mi place…

I’m afraid it’s off – regret, dar nu mai avem

What do you recommend? – ce-mi recomandati?

I could do with a snack – as dori/ mi-ar prinde bine o gustare

Pork disagrees with me – nu-mi face bine carnea de porc

I’ve had enough. Thank you – nu, multumesc. M-am saturat.

No more (for me). Thank you – multumesc. Nu mai vreau

Say when – spune cand sa ma opresc (din servit)

I’m not keen on – nu ma dau in vant dupa

Help yourself to… - serveste-te cu…

May I offer you…? – pot sa va ofer…?

Do you fancy…? – v-ar placea…?

I can’t stand it – nu suport aceasta mancare

I don’t like it either – nici acest fel nu-mi place

Will you have…? – ati dori sa serviti…?

ENGLISH FOOD

Four meals a day are served traditionally in Britain: breakfast, lunch, tea and dinner.

In many countries breakfast is a snack rather than a meal, but the traditional English breakfast, served at about eight o’clock in the morning, is a full meal. Some people begin with a plateful of porridge, with milk or cream, and salt or sugar; others may have fruit-juice, or perhaps cornflakes or some other cereal. Then comes at least one substantial course, such as haddock or fried herrings, or bacon and eggs – boiled, fried or poached –, or sausages and bacon, or ham and eggs. Afterwards comes toast, with butter and marmalade or jam and perhaps some fruit. The meal is ‘washed down’ with tea or coffee. Many English people now take such a full breakfast only on Sunday mornings.

English lunch, which is usually served at one o’clock, is based on plain, simply cooked food. It starts with soup or fruit-juice. Then follows some meat or poultry – beef, veal, mutton, lamb, pork, chicken, duck – with potatoes, boiled or roast, and a second vegetable (probably cabbage or carrots), and Yorkshire pudding.

Apple pie is a favourite sweet, and English puddings, of which there are various types, are an excellent ending to a meal, especially in winter. Instead of the pudding some people may have stewed fruit or cheese and biscuits. Last of all coffee – black or white.

But what shall we drink with our meal? Of course English beer, preferably bitter or pale ale, or cider.

Tea, the third meal of the day, is served between four and five o’clock. A pot of tea with a jug of hot water, a jug of milk and a basin of sugar are brought in. Thin slices of bread and butter are handed round, and cakes, jam and cream. Tea is not always served at table, for it is the most sociable meal of the day, and friends and visitors are often present. The members of the tea-party sit round on chairs.

Dinner is the most substantial meal of the day. The usual time is about seven o’clock, and all the members of the family sit down together. Soup is the first course. Then comes the second course, fish – sole, halibut, salmon. A joint of meat, perhaps the roast beef of old England, forms the third course, served with vegetables. Then comes the dessert: some kind of sweet and black or white coffee.

This is the traditional order of meals. But some people in the towns, and nearly all country people, have dinner in the middle of the day instead of lunch. They have tea a little later, between five and six o’clock, and then in the evening, before going to bed, they have a light supper.

Thus the four meals of the day are breakfast, dinner, tea supper or breakfast, lunch, tea, dinner.

A LIST OF BRITISH TRADITIONAL DISHES AND DRINKS

Bangers and Mash. Sausages and mashed potatoes. Traditional pub dish.

Cornish / Devonshire Cream. Thick, rich cream usually served over fruits and desserts.

Cornish Pastry. Small pastries filled with meat, onion and potato.

Dover sole. There are many recipes for this delicious fish, but perhaps it is best when plain grilled.

Fish and chips. Fried fish and potatoes seasoned with salt and vinegar. A fine British institution!

Gingerbread. Spicy cake often made in the shape of a man and decorated with currants.

Goose. A Christmas favourite.

Ham. As popular for breakfast as it is for dinner. Often smoked.

Herring. Delicious baked, fried, grilled or smoked (kippers).

Irish Stew. Mutton, potatoes, carrots and onions.

Lamb. Prepared in many ways, but perhaps best when roasted and served with mint sauce.

Lobster. Grilled, boiled or backed and served in rich sauce.

Mince Pies. Small pies filled with currants and spices. A Christmas favourite.

Oysters. Some say the real reason Julius Caesar invaded Britain 2,000 years ago was his attraction to the delectable British oyster. Some of the most prized come from Colchester.

Porridge. Boiled oatmeal with milk or cream and flavoured with salt or sugar. A Scottish breakfast favourite.

Roast Beef. The most famous of Britain’s national dishes. A favourite choice for Sunday lunch. Served with roast potatoes, green vegetables and, of course, Yorkshire pudding.

Salmon. Served hot, cold or smoked. Scotch salmon is the best in the world.

Scotch Broth. Thick, creamy vegetable soup.

Steak and Kidney Pie/ Pudding. A mixture of steak, kidney and mushrooms. A pub favourite.

Syllabub. A refreshing dessert made from brandy, fresh fruit, white wine or sherry, cream and sugar.

Tea. A British way of life. Although traditionally ‘tea time’ is approximately 4 p.m. a ‘nice cup of tea’ is liable to be produced at any time of the day, usually accompanied by biscuits and / or cakes.

‘High Tea’ is a meal you would expect to get in a Scottish or North Country guesthouse instead of dinner. It combines afternoon tea (bread and butter, cakes, biscuits, etc.) with cold meat and / or a hot dish.

Trifle. A dessert of cake, fruit, and sherry set in jelly and topped with custard, served with whipped cream.

Trout. Grilled, poached or fried, one of the most delicately flavoured river fish.

Yorkshire Pudding. Savoury baked batter. Traditional accompaniment to roast beef.

Bitter. Clear and golden, it is the most popular of British draught beers. Served by the pint or half-pint.

Brown Ale. A dark, sweet bottled beer.

Mild Ale. Dark, full-flavoured draught beer. Low in alcoholic content. Sometimes combined with bitter.

Pale Ale. A slightly fizzy bottled beer.

Cider. Fermented apple juice. Often quite strong – so beware!

Irish Coffee. A mixture of coffee, whiskey and sugar drunk through a top layer of cream.

Whisky. Mellow, golden Scotch whisky is the best in the world.

FAT

Heavy – greu, gras

Massive - masiv

Overweight - supraponderal

Corpulent - corpolent

Obese - obez

Stout – solid, gros

Solid - solid

Bulky – mare, voluminos, voinic, greoi

Dumpy – bondoc

Plump - durduliu, grasut, rotofei

THIN

Skinny - slabanog

Underweight - subponderal

Slender - zvelt

Slim – slab

Cooking instruments and the ways of cooking

To steam – casserole (caserola)

To fry – frying pan (tigaie)

To poach – cooking pot (oala de gatit)

To grill – grill (gratar)

To boil – saucepan (cratita)

To heat – microwave oven (cuptor cu microunde)

In a supermarket

A box of cereals                     a carton of milk

A bag of onions                                  a pack of cigarettes

A can of soup                         a six-pack of soda

A bottle of oil                         a bunch of flowers

A jar of peanuts                                 a bar of soap

A tube of toothpaste             a slice of bread

In a restaurant

A box of French-fries             a glass of water

A piece of toast                                  a bowl of cereal

A cup of coffee a cup of ice-cream

A mug of beer

The Changing Eating Habits of Americans

Most people think that the typical North American diet consists of fast foods – hamburgers and French fries. It also includes convenience foods, usually frozen or canned, “junk food” without much food value – candy, potato chips, cereal – and so on. This diet is very high in sugar, salt, fat but not in vitamins.

However, eating habits are changing. North Americans are becoming more interested in good health and nutrition is an important part of health. People are eating less red meat and fewer eggs, and they are eating more chicken and fish. For health reason, many people are also buying more raw vegetables. They may eat them without cooking them first or they might cook them quickly in very little water because they want to keep the vitamins.

The “typical” North American diet now includes food from many different countries. At lunchtime, many people go to ethnic fast-food places for Mexican taco, Middle Eastern falafel or Philippine lumpia.

In the future the Americans will still buy convenience foods but frozen foods will be better for their health and canned foods will have less salt and sugar. “Junk food” is not going to be “junk” at all because instead of candy bars there will be “nutrition bars” with a lot of vitamins and protein.

VOCABULARY PRACTICE

1.     After you have had a meal in a restaurant you ask the waiter for the ……

a. bill         b. recipe c. note d. prescription

2.     Do you like your steak well-done, medium or …..

a. blue       b. bloody c. raw d. rare

3.     Spaghetti is good if you …. cheese over it.

a. mince    b. slice c. chop d. grate

4.     She liked the dessert so much that she asked for a second ….

a. dish       b. go c. helping d. serving

5.     I forgot to put the milk in the fridge and it has ……

a. gone back         b. gone down c. gone in d. gone sour

6.     …. the bread in a hot oven.

a. grill        b. boil c. bake d. roast

7.     Curry is very …..

a. hot        b. peppery c. salty d. warm

8.     ….. the mixture into an oven proof dish.

a. beat      b. mix c. salty d. warm

9.     Roast beef is one of my favourite ….

a. bowl      b. plates c. dishes d. courses

10.  Your apple tart was absolutely delicious. Can you give me the ….

a. instructions      b. receipt c. recipe d. formula

11.  Garlic has a remarkable ….

a. flavor    b. garnish c. herb d. spice

12.  Don’t throw the potato ….

a. shell      b. skin c. core d. peel

13.  Let’s have a salad to start with and fish for the main ….

a. helping  b. course c. dish d. serving

14.  When the water comes to the …. put the vegetables in.

a. boil        b. cook c. heat d. steam

Shape

Conical

Semi-circular

Bell-shaped/ Egg- ~ / Pear- ~ / Wedge- ~

Smells

Scent/ smell

Smells  fruity/ aromatic/ smoky/ burnt/ bad

Size

Length/ Width/ Height - cms / inches

Tastes

Sour/ Sweet/ Bitter -  Salty / salted

Peppery / peppered - Spicy / spiced

Texture

Fruit and vegetables that are crisp are fresh and have a firm texture so that when you bite them they are hard and crunchy. E.g. he bought nice crisp apples at the market.

Cooked food that is crisp has been fried or toasted until it is hard, dry and crunchy. Crunchy food makes a noise when you eat it. E.g. he helped himself to some hot crisp rolls. I can feel the crisp frosty snow crunching under my feet. It’s the nuts that make this cake so crunchy.

Fleshy – peach, apple, kiwi fruit

Juicy – tomato, orange, peach, hamburger

Crunchy – nuts

Crisp – biscuits, fried chicken, potato chips

Smooth – tomato, apple

Rough – nuts

Bland – spaghetti, hot dog

Tender – steak

Watery – lemonade

Stale – cheese sandwich

Wilted – salad

Fresh – milk

Dry – baked potato

Creamy – macaroni and cheese

PROVERBS – concerning food and eating.

Appetite comes with eating.

An apple a day keeps the doctor away.

Eating an apple going to bed makes the doctor beg his bread.

Good broth may be made in an old pot.

The proof of the pudding is in the eating.

Don’t put al your eggs in one basket.

You can’t have your cake and eat it.

Too many cooks spoil the broth.

Omelettes are not made without breaking of eggs.

Half a loaf is better than none.

It’s no use crying over spilt milk.

One man’s meat is another’s man poison.

Use these exclamations to show surprise about food:

Oh! – said in surprise or wonder

Oh, boy! – said in excitement or enthusiasm

Hmm! – said when the speaker is thinking something over

Well! – said in surprise or as a preface to a remark

Well, well! – said in mild surprise or when the speaker has discovered something

Tsk-tsk! – a clucking sound uttered in disapproval

Wow! – said in surprise or admiration

Gosh! – said in surprise

Gee! – said in surprise

BREAKFAST, LUNCH AND DINNER – What’s on the Menu?

England

It has been said that to eat well in England, you should have breakfast three times a day – but things are changing! Now the standart of restaurants has improved tremendously, and fewer people have the time to prepare the huge breakfasts of the past. These mighty meals can include kidneys or kippers. A hotel may offer a continental breakfast, which is simply a bread roll or croissant, butter, jam and tea or coffee. Many people still manage to get through a cooked breakfast, however, even if it’s not every day of the week. This may start with porridge (a traditional Scottish dish of boiled oatmeal) or cereal followed by fried eggs, bacon, sausages, fried tomatoes and black pudding (a sausage made from pig’ blood with pieces of fat) – followed by toast and marmalade and accompanied by a bottomless pot of strong tea.

America

The early Americans settlers ate hasty puddings, a cornmeal porridge with molasses. Later, breakfast became a very generous meal indeed. Nowadays greater concern about diet and health means that many people have a fruit drink or eat a cereal with lots of fibre – but a typical American breakfast would still be eggs, bacon and coffee, accompanied by pancakes and maple syrup. In the south, grits are a breakfast dish, with blackeyed bean gravy. Biscuits, a kind of small breadcake, are often made for breakfast, as are french toast (bread dipped in eggs then fried), waffles (fried batter), English muffins and bagels. These breakfast are so delicious that in England and America you will often see restaurants with sign outside saying “Breakfast served all day”.

Lunch and Dinner

If you are likely to go to a café or  “caf” (UK) for breakfast, for lunch and dinner or supper (UK) the choice is vast: brasseries, bistros, bars, pubs, steak houses and salad centres are legion in the cities, alongside the curry houses, Chinese and Japanese restaurants and a choice of international food from Lebanon to Alaska. Italian cuisine is very much in favour at the moment and has overtaken French cuisine in terms of popularity. Menus abound with terms from both French and Italian cooking, with French being used more for minimalist, nouvelle cuisine dishes and Italian for the typically American massive-portion pasta dishes and meat/fish and salad combos.

Very often the same restaurant will offer an international menu, with appetisers from Mexico (a quesadilla, for example), Spain (ceviche – shrimps in a cucumber, tomato, chili, garlic and onion salad) and Greece (humus – a chickpea paste – kalamata olives, feta cheese, tomatoes, cucumber and pita bread). If you just want a snack, this will do – or you could go for an exotic soup like Mulligatawny or a slice of the ever-popular quiche. Slightly more substantial snacks might include Italian sausage with roast peppers. Southern style barbecue pork in the US, or a burger made from naturally grazed beef, marinated chicken or a veggieburger (a vegetable burger) for the non-meat-eaters. When you get onto the serious meals, expect dishes to be accompanied by ample sauces and toppings – phrases like “with a roasted garlic Dijon mustard butter sauce” or “served with whipped herb potatoes and topped with orange demi glace” are common nowadays.

Desserts are not usually designed for the diet-conscious: alongside the standard creme caramel, cheesecake and apple and blackberry pie, there is a return to traditional fare like bread pudding with a modern touch – served, for example, with whisky custard sauce and whipped cream.

All of this and much, much more is there for you to enjoy, but a world of warning: keep a wary eye on your wallet… and your waistline!

LUNCHEON LANGUAGE

An American lunch counter is small, informal restaurant where you can get simple, quickly-cooked meals. It might also be called a lunch stand or luncheonette; if it’s an old railway carriage, then it’s a diner. The language used by the staff at these lunch counters to describe the orders is vivid and idiosyncratic. Some terms, such as BLT (bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich) have passed into everyday speech. Here are some examples:

AC – a sandwich with American cheese

Adam and Eve on a raft – two poached eggs on toast

Axle grease – butter

Belch water – seltzer or soda water

Bottom – ice cream added to a drink

Bow bow – a hot dog

Breath – an onion

Burn one – put a hamburger on the grill

CB – cheeseburger

City juice – water

Crowd – three of anything (“Two’s company, three’s a crowd”)

With cow to cover – buttered toast

Hold the hail – no ice

Joe – coffee

Noah’s boy – ham (Ham was Noah’s second son!)

OJ – orange juice

Over easy – fried eggs turned over when cooking

No cow – without milk

Sinkers and studs – doughnuts and coffee

Squeeze one – orange juice

Stack – a pile of pancakes

Warts – olives