來自世界不同地方的六位學生在美國相遇。他們都是交換學生，到美國大學就讀一個學期，學習英語，了解美國文化，同時修專業課程。英語「日常會話」 (Everyday Conversations)系列圍繞這六位學生在美國的經歷展開。這套材料適於中級或中級以上英語水平的學生使用。
三個學生(Ajay, Lucía and Jana) 到一個朋友家(Kayla’s)的餐館吃飯。他們談論這家餐館的菜餚以及城裡餐飲的國際風味。
Ajay: This food is so much better than the food in the dining hall!
Kayla: Of course it is. My grandmother cooks all of the food, and it’s the best Ethiopian food in the city. I’m biased, of course!
Lucía: Well, I tend to agree with you. This is the best meal I』ve had in a long time.
Kayla: Of course.
Jana: Agreed! I didn’t think I』d come all the way to the U.S. to have amazing Ethiopian food.
Kayla: Welcome to the U.S.! Because the country is so multicultural, there are fantastic restaurants serving delicious dishes from all over the globe.
Jana: Even from my country?
Kayla: Most likely. This is a large, cosmopolitan city. There are people from all over the world, and some of those people own restaurants.
Ajay: How about next week we try a different restaurant? One that serves food from one of our home countries?
Lucía: Sounds good. But first, I would like dessert. Kayla, what do you have?
讓我們來學習一些詞語（也可閱讀英文解釋）：
A dining hall：學校餐廳/食堂
to be biased：有偏見，在這個對話中指善意的傾向性，即Kayla總是會認為她祖母做的菜比其他人做的都好吃。
To be biased經常含負面意思；如果說be biased against something/someone，意思就是：某人對某事/某人有偏見，認為此事/此人不如其他事/其他人。例如： He is biased against women; he believes women are not as smart, hard-working, etc., as men.（他對女性有偏見；他認為女性不如男性聰明、刻苦，等等。）
如果說be biased toward something/someone，意思則是偏向某事/某人。例如：The professor was biased toward older students; the professor often helped older students study and gave them better grades.（這位教授偏向年齡較大的學生，經常在學習中幫助他們，還給他們好分數。）
A meal：一頓飯。例如：Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day. For breakfast, my father usually makes a delicious meal of eggs, toast and sausages.（早點是我一天當中最喜歡的一頓飯。我父親經常做好吃的雞蛋、土司、香腸早點。）
A dish：一個菜。The main dish指主菜； Side dishes是輔菜或小菜。
A cosmopolitan city：都市，人口往往來自世界四面八方。
I would like…我想要……是點菜的一種表達方式。例如： I would like the fish.（我想點魚。） I would like a small coffee, please.（我想請要一小杯咖啡。）
What do you have? 你們有什麼？在餐館，後面如跟介詞for，意思是問在一個類別中的更具體選擇。例如：What do you have for dessert?（你們甜點都有什麼？） What do you have for vegetarians?（你們有哪些素食菜？）
有興趣聽更多英語對話嗎？請瀏覽「英語學習」專題網頁。
American English 網站提供可供英語學生和教師免費使用的多種英語資源。American English Facebook網頁提供每天更新的英語學習資料。
「日常會話」由美國國務院教育與文化事務局英語語言項目處（Office of English Language Programs, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs）資深項目官員海蒂·豪蘭（Heidi Howland）編寫。
Everyday conversations: Let’s go to a restaurant [audio](Thinkstock)Six students from around the world meet. What do they have in common? They are all exchange students studying at a U.S. university for a semester. Throughout the semester, they learn more English, learn about U.S. culture, and learn more about their fields of study. This series of Everyday Conversations is about these six students and their experiences during a semester at a university in the U.S. These conversations are for intermediate-level English-language learners or higher.
Students (Ajay, Lucía and Jana) go to the restaurant owned by a friend’s (Kayla’s)family. They talk about the food at this restaurant as well as other restaurants in the city that serve food from different parts of the world.
Ajay: This food is so much better than the food in the dining hall!
Kayla: Of course it is. My grandmother cooks all of the food, and it’s the best Ethiopian food in the city. I’m biased, of course!
Lucía: Well, I tend to agree with you. This is the best meal I』ve had in a long time.
Kayla: Of course.
Jana: Agreed! I didn’t think I』d come all the way to the U.S. to have amazing Ethiopian food.
Kayla: Welcome to the U.S.! Because the country is so multicultural, there are fantastic restaurants serving delicious dishes from all over the globe.
Jana: Even from my country?
Kayla: Most likely. This is a large, cosmopolitan city. There are people from all over the world, and some of those people own restaurants.
Ajay: How about next week we try a different restaurant? One that serves food from one of our home countries?
Lucía: Sounds good. But first, I would like dessert. Kayla, what do you have?
Now let’s review the vocabulary.A dining hall is a large room in a school, university, etc., where meals are served and many people can eat at the same time.
In this context, to be biased is used in a positive way. Kayla has a tendency to believe that her grandmother’s cooking is better than everyone else’s cooking.
To be biased often has a negative meaning. Someone can be biased againstsomething/someone; in this case, one believes something/someone is not as good as another. For example: He is biased against women; he believes women are not as smart, hard-working, etc., as men.
One can also be biased toward something/someone; in this case, one believes something/someone is better than another. For example: The professor was biased toward older students; the professor often helped older students study and gave them better grades.
A meal is an occasion when food is eaten. The word meal can also mean the food eaten. For example: Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day. For breakfast, my father usually makes a delicious meal of eggs, toast and sausages.
A dish is food that is prepared in a particular way for a meal. The main dish is the largest or most important dish of a meal. Side dishes are smaller dishes served with the main dish.
A cosmopolitan city has people from many different parts of the world.
I would like… is one way to order in a restaurant. For example: I would like the fish. I would like a small coffee, please.
What do you have? This is asked when one wants more specific information about the food or drink offered, usually at a restaurant. It is often followed by the wordfor. For example: What do you have for dessert? What do you have for vegetarians?
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Everyday Conversations are developed by the State Department’s Heidi Howland, a senior program officer in the Office of English Language Programs, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.