B1 · Reservations and Special Requests
Working Around Peak Dinner Times
- CEFR level:
- B1
- Sentences:
- 12
- Duration:
- 1 min
- Speakers:
- Emma & Tom
"Working Around Peak Dinner Times" is a B1-level English conversation about reservations and special requests, 12 lines long (about 1 minute) between Emma & Tom. Read the full script below with the translation next to each line, then try speaking one of the roles out loud.
Dialogue script
Each entry shows the English sentence first, with the translation on the line below it. To practise speaking, cover the translation and repeat after the audio.
- Line 1Emma 0:00
Friday prime-time slots are full, and our reservation got rejected.
- Line 2Tom 0:04
Could we accept a non-standard time like 6:40 or 8:50?
- Line 3Emma 0:09
Last month we insisted on seven and ended up eating too late.
- Line 4Tom 0:13
Flexibility might beat ideal timing when the city is packed.
- Line 5Emma 0:17
Some friends think odd times are inconvenient for transport.
- Line 6Tom 0:21
True, but waiting an hour at the door is worse.
- Line 7Emma 0:25
Let's request 6:40 and ask for a ninety-minute table window.
- Line 8Tom 0:30
Backup is 8:50 with shared starters ready on arrival.
- Line 9Emma 0:34
I'll poll everyone now and lock the option by 3 p.m.
- Line 10Tom 0:39
I'll call the restaurant to confirm grace period rules.
- Line 11Emma 0:42
If two people run late, we start with drinks nearby first.
- Line 12Tom 0:47
Great, we keep momentum without losing the booking.
Native audio, line-by-line recording and pronunciation scoring for this dialogue are in the EngTalk app.
Key vocabulary
Content words from this dialogue, ranked by the CEFR level at which they appear across the whole 500-dialogue library. Function words and proper nouns are excluded.
- accept /əkˈsɛpt/ verb
to agree to receive something or agree with a proposal
- eating /ˈitɪŋ/ verb (present participle)
taking in and swallowing food
- ideal /aɪˈdiəl/ adjective/noun
perfect or most suitable; a standard of perfection
- timing /ˈtaɪmɪŋ/ noun
the choice or control of when something happens
- transport /trænˈspɔrt/ verb
to carry people or goods from one place to another
- true /tru/ adjective
real, correct, or not false
- shared /ʃɛrd/ adjective
used or owned by more than one person
- arrival /əˈraɪvl/ noun
the act of reaching a destination or coming to a place
- option /ˈɑpʃən/ noun
a thing that can be chosen.
- period /ˈpɪriəd/ noun
a length of time; a full stop
- people /ˈpipəl/ noun
human beings; persons
- losing /ˈluzɪŋ/ verb
failing to keep, find, or win something