Getting a Table (part 1 of 3)

The first thirty seconds inside a restaurant decide how the rest of the meal feels. Somebody greets you at the door, asks a question you did not expect, and suddenly you are pointing and smiling instead of speaking. Work through this part and you will walk in, answer the host, and get yourself seated in Spanish without a pause.

This section of the conversation covers everything that happens before you ever see a menu. You will learn to understand the question ¿Tiene una reservación? and answer it comfortably when the answer is no, say how many people are in your group with Para una persona, por favor., and state a preference when you are offered a choice of seating. You will also meet the polite invitation Sígame, por favor., which you will hear from staff in hotels, clinics, and shops just as often as in restaurants. Being able to ask a simple question about the food before you commit to a table is useful too, especially if you avoid certain ingredients. These are short, high frequency sentences, and once they are automatic, arriving somewhere new stops feeling like a test.