قهوه و دونات
Coffee and Donuts
“Let’s go for coffee!” All over North America friends like to meet at the coffee shop. Here people sit and talk about the day’s business, news and sports, personal concerns, shop talk, or simply gossip. Coffee shops have an informal atmosphere that encourages conversation. You don’t have to dress up either! Students drop in wearing T-shirts and blue jeans, and sit beside businessmen wearing suits and ties. Many coffee shops are open 24 hours a day, including Sundays and holidays.
That way, people who work at night or who have trouble sleeping can drop in at any time. Because coffee and donuts are relatively inexpensive, people feel comfortable sitting for a while, knowing that they are not spending a lot of money. Although coffee and donuts are the main items sold at coffee shops, many also serve other beverages and desserts, and sometimes a light lunch. Many patrons have a favourite kind of coffee or other drink and will drive past other coffee shops to go to one that serves the flavour they like.
Visitors from other countries are often surprised at how roomy these coffee shops can be. Some are as large as regular restaurants. Having a nice bit of space around them encourages people to relax. Some people arrange regular dates and meet every day, or every week, at the same time. For example, retired friends may get together every weekday morning at 10:00 am. Others stop every morning at the drive-in line to get their coffee for work.
Even people who have coffee machines at home or at work like to go to coffee shops to get a special kind of coffee or a favourite treat. It might seem that the business owners would not make much money just selling a few items, but in fact, many coffee shops do extremely well, especially if they are located in a busy traffic area.
Then business tends to be steady all through the day. Not only do people come in and sit down, but there is usually a lot of take-out business as well. People go to coffee shops not only to socialize with family and friends, but also to discuss business or treat their employees to a snack. Others go there to read the newspaper or a favourite magazine.
Some people even go there to do work. This article was written in a coffee shop! Of course, people who come here usually like coffee and donuts. Coffee is the favourite hot drink in North America, but most shops also serve tea, hot chocolate and cappuccino, as well as some other cold beverages. Donuts are usually round, and are small deep- fried breads with various toppings.
Most donuts have a hole in the middle. Even these “holes,” which are punched out of the donut, can be sold separately, as a kind of mini- donut. Everywhere you go in North America, you will see coffee shops. So take half an hour to stop in and relax. You’ll enjoy the great North American “coffee break!”
gossip
[uncountable] information that is passed from one person to another about other people’s behaviour and private lives, often including unkind or untrue remarks
gossip about
Here’s an interesting piece of gossip about Mrs Smith.
What’s the latest gossip ? Do you want to hear some juicy gossip ? She had no time for idle gossip . It was common gossip how he felt about her. You miss a lot of office gossip when you have a day off work. On Sundays all the men gather in the square to exchange local gossip .
2
[countable usually singular] a conversation in which you exchange information with someone about other people’s lives and things that have happened
Phil’s in there, having a gossip with Maggie.
3
[countable] someone who likes talking about other people’s private lives – used to show disapproval
Rick’s a terrible gossip.
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dress up phrasal verb
to wear clothes that are more formal than the ones you would usually wear
It’s a small informal party – you don’t have to dress up.
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drop in
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suit
▶CLOTHES◀
a set of clothes made of the same material, usually including a jacket with trousers or a skirt
a grey light-weight suit
a business suit
a tweed suit
She was wearing a black trouser suit.
ￚsee also morning suit
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drop:
to visit unexpectedly or informally:
Drop in and see us when you’re next in Santa Rosa! | Drop by one evening next week. | Jane dropped in on me after supper. | Bill dropped by this morning.
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relatively:
1
something that is relatively small, easy etc is fairly small, easy etc compared to other things
The system is relatively easy to use. E-commerce is a relatively recent phenomenon.
2
relatively speaking
used when comparing something with all similar things
Relatively speaking, land prices are still pretty cheap here
.
Another Source:quite; when compared to others of the same kind: The exam was relatively easy. | a relatively warm day for the time of year | Relatively speaking it’s not important.
Look at these examples:
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beverageformal a hot or cold drink
alcoholic beverages the Food and Beverage Manager
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patron/ ˈpeɪtrən /
A patron of a particular restaurant, bar etc is someone who eats or drinks there. This is a fairly formal word and it is more usual to use customer
Patrons are asked to refrain from smoking.
Look at these examples:
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flavour
the particular taste of a food or drink
Which flavor do you want – chocolate or vanilla?
flavour of
a dry wine with flavors of honey and apricot
a nutty/smoky/bitter etc flavour
White poppy seeds have a distinctive nutty flavour .
a delicate/strong/rich etc flavour
The cheese is firm in texture and has a strong flavour .
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roomy
a house, car etc that is roomy is large and has a lot of space inside it
ￚsynonym spacious
Look at these examples:
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drive-in
a restaurant where you are served and eat in your car
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socialize
to spend time with other people in a friendly way
socialize with
People don’t socialize with their neighbours as much as they used to.
I enjoy socializing with my students after class.
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treat
▶BUY SOMETHING FOR SOMEBODY◀
to buy or do something special for someone that you know they will enjoy
treat somebody to something
We treated Mom to lunch at the Savoy.
I treated myself to a new dress.
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topping
something you put on top of food to make it look nicer or taste better
a pizza with extra toppings
