Lesson 24 · Beginner · 4 min
At the restaurant: table and menu
Asking for a table, reading the menu and asking for a recommendation.
- Unreviewed: this lesson’s Darija and translations have not yet been checked by a native speaker.
In this lesson
- Ask for a table for several people
- Choose inside or outside
- Ask what the waiter recommends
Tajine, couscous, grilled fish: at a restaurant the waiter is often your best guide. Ask for advice!
No audio for this lesson yet
This lesson hasn’t been recorded yet, and we won’t fake it with a made-up voice. Read the dialogue out loud with the help of the transliteration key.
Dialogue
- CustomerSalam, wach kayna chi tabla l jouj?Hello, do you have a table for two?
- WaiterIyyeh, tfeddlo. Bghitou dakhel wla berra?Yes, please come in. Inside or outside?
- CustomerBerra, 3afak.Outside, please.
- WaiterHak lmenu. Kayn tajine, keskes w l7out.Here’s the menu. There’s tajine, couscous and fish.
- CustomerChno katnse7na lyoum?What do you recommend today?
- WaiterTajine d l7em b lbr9o9. Bnin bzzaf.The meat tajine with prunes. It’s delicious.
- CustomerWakha, jib lina jouj, w l9ar3a d lma.Okay, bring us two, and a bottle of water.
- WaiterWakha, daba nji b lkhobz.Fine, I’ll be right back with the bread.
How to read the transliteration
Darija is written here in Latin letters, the way many Moroccans text. A few symbols stand for sounds English, French and Swedish don't have:
- 3
- a tight sound from the throat (Arabic ع)
- 7
- a breathy h, stronger than English h (ح)
- 9
- a k made deep in the throat (ق)
- gh
- like a French r (غ)
- kh
- like the ch in Scottish loch or German Bach (خ)
- ch
- like English sh (ش)
Vocabulary
- tablaطبلة
- a table
- l joujلجوج
- for two
- tfeddloتفضلو
- please, come in (plural)
- dakhelداخل
- inside
- berraبرا
- outside
- lmenuالمنيو
- the menu
- katnse7naكتنصحنا
- you recommend (to us)
- tajineطاجين
- tajine (slow-cooked stew)
- keskesكسكس
- couscous
- l7outالحوت
- fish
- l7emاللحم
- meat
- jib linaجيب لينا
- bring us
Repeat after me
Read each phrase out loud, then cover it and say it from memory.
Salam, wach kayna chi tabla l jouj?
السلام، واش كاينة شي طبلة لجوج؟
Hello, do you have a table for two?
Berra, 3afak.
برا، عافاك.
Outside, please.
Chno katnse7na lyoum?
شنو كتنصحنا اليوم؟
What do you recommend today?
Wakha, jib lina jouj, w l9ar3a d lma.
واخا، جيب لينا جوج، والقرعة د الما.
Okay, bring us two, and a bottle of water.
Quiz
Your turn
Walk into a restaurant: ask for a table for three inside and ask for a recommendation.
Show an example answer
Wach kayna chi tabla l tlata, dakhel? Chno katnse7na?
واش كاينة شي طبلة لتلاتة، داخل؟ شنو كتنصحنا؟
Do you have a table for three, inside? What do you recommend?
Summary
“Wach kayna chi tabla l…?”, “dakhel / berra”, “chno katnse7na?” and “jib lina…” to order.
Finished?
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