Dialogue about Cafes in English with Quiz

Advance Listening Series 3 Lesson 19- Dialogue about Cafes in English

In this lesson, you listen to an English conversation between two people’s dialogue about cafes.

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English Listening Lesson Audio with Script

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Lesson Script

What makes a nice cafe?

Curtis: So speaking of places like Starbucks, what do you think really makes a good café or a good coffee shop?

Spencer: Well, number one is it has to be the employees themselves. People who run a café who are generally amicable people, really just make me want to come back and to talk to them and also the setting of cafés. I have some of my favorite cafés that usually like to hang local artists so they’re constantly kind of like not only getting involved with the community but also like helping them with their work and helping people in the community kind of see what other people in the community are into and doing every day. Also sometimes like cafes that have like music or shows is really, really cool to me. What do you think?

Curtis: Actually, I agree with that quite a bit. I think the atmosphere is a very important part of it. And actually I have another question for you. When you go to a café, do you actually go there for the coffee or do you go there for something else and you happened to buy a coffee there?

Spencer: Sometimes both. I am a bit of a coffee addict. So I definitely go for the caffeine boost but I do like to, you know, now and then I’ll say “Oh, that café looks kind of cool.” Like You know, look at what they have hanging inside or look at the music that’s being played and, “Oh look, they have lots of board games”. I’d like to sit down and you know, see who’d maybe want to play with me and then end up buying a cup of coffee.

Curtis: Okay. I think for me so often it’s that I want to sit down somewhere and read a book but I want to get out of my house. I want to get out and go somewhere where there’s energy and people. And so I think the atmosphere plays a big role for me because I don’t really go there to get a coffee as much as I go to do some work or read a book or study language or things like that.

Spencer: That’s so true, I could never study in a library because it’s so quiet that I fall asleep but if I were to go to a coffee shop, there’s the ability to kind of zone out because there’s so much going on around you, people meeting to chat, you know the blending machine making a special café iced mocha but plenty of table space to where you can go and you know just kind of sprawl out with all of your different belongings and study or even get lost in a book.

Curtis: Right. And I think when I’m reading I want a really comfortable cushy chair but I find that actually when I’m studying especially if I’m writing, I’d rather have maybe a wooden chair and a table that I can work with.

Spencer: Also sometimes too like when I study, studying is really not that much fun so if you’re in a café you always have the ability of possibly running into somebody who’s going to distract you.

Curtis: Exactly, just a way to procrastinate and…

Spencer: What about your favorite bars, what about the atmosphere for them?

Curtis: My favorite bars, I really like pub style settings more than places that are strictly a bar. When I go to a bar usually I try not to go alone as much as go with friends. So I would like to have an atmosphere where I can sit down at a table with my friends and everybody’s chatting with each other as they have a couple of drinks and become more and more relaxed. How about you?

Spencer: I love bars that are true to like a theme. Like my favorite bar probably in my home town, it’s only beer and wine but it has a massive lawn. And it has like just kind of karaoke that they do on like Sunday nights and it’s all wood. And you can just … the good thing is you can just sit outside at a picnic table and just drink beer and wine. It’s not like you have to be classy, not like you have to dress up. It’s very kind of got its own like, yeah, we’re just going to hang out and have a summer time like beer and maybe listen to music if they have a band playing on the lawn.

Curtis: Right. For me too. Also I like a place that has very nice drinks, to be honest. I don’t go drinking that often and I don’t really drink too much so if I’m going to be drinking a bit as I chat with my friends, I’d like to maybe enjoy something that’s really nice, slowly over that conversation.

Spencer: That’s true. Another of my favorite bars back at home, it’s actually like on the beach but it’s just kind of … it’s not very posh but they kind of offer any sort of cocktail that you want so you can just sit in a rocking chair overlooking the ocean and like have you know your one mojito or one margarita, whatever you want.

Curtis: That sounds like a pretty nice place to me.

Spencer: Yeah, it’s really nice.

English Listening Lesson Quizzes

Answer these questions about the conversation.

1) She likes cafes that are _____ .

1. a) alternative
2. b) artsy
3. c) amicable

2) They go to cafes for _____ .

1. a) coffee
2. b) atmosphere
3. c) inspiration

3) She likes to ______ .

1. a) nod off
2. b) sprawl out
3. c) get lost in a book

4) What is important to them?

1. a) Sitting down
2. b) Meeting new people
3. c) Hanging out

5) They like places with ____ drinks.

1. a) nice
2. b) cheap
3. c) cocktail

Answers

• 1=b,c
• 2=a,b
• 3=b,c
• 4=a,c
• 5=a,c

English Grammar Tips

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English Listening Lesson Phrases

amicable

People who run a café are generally amicable people.

Amicable means friendly and chatty. Notice the following:

1. My teacher is very strict, but he is very amicable.
2. Police are rarely amicable when they stop you.

hang

My favorite cafés likes to hang local artists.

Here, ‘hang an artist’ means to hang an artists work or painting on the wall. Notice the following:

1. He hung a few local artists on the wall.
2. I hung my kid’s drawings on my wall.

play a role

I think the atmosphere plays a big role for me.

When something ‘plays a big role’ it has great influence on a person’s decision. Notice the following:

1. Weather plays a big role where people like to vacation.
2. My mother plays a big role in my life.

sprawl out

You can sprawl out with all of your different belongings.

Sprawl out means to spread out, or extend in every direction. Notice the following:

1. My dog loves to sprawl out on the floor.
2. My clothes are sprawled out on the bed.

get lost in (something)

I love to get lost in a book.

When you get lost in something, like a book or a store, you stop paying attention to the world around you. Notice the following:

1. On plane rides, my father always gets lost in his book.
2. He often gets lost in his work and forgets to leave on time.

Quizzes for Lesson Phrases

• amicable
• play a role
• sprawl out
• hang
• get lost in

1. I love to……….  a good book.
2. The staff here is very……….  .
3. They……….  famous artists on the wall.
4. Your work will……….  in you getting a promotion.
5. She likes to let her books……..  on the counter.

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