【商務英語】Lesson 016 - Spooning Soup

　　禮儀美語016講

　　陳豪那小伙子正正在跟他的同事美籍華人Mary在一個好國餐館吃午饭。兩人正在點菜。

　　(Office ambience)

　　C：Mary, 看到菜譜上的湯就讓我唸起一句英文："As the ships sail out to sea, I spoon my soup away from me." 不过，我初終不弄懂這句話畢竟是甚麼意義?

　　M：Oh, that's a little rhyme that helps children remember the correct way to eat soup.

　　C：喝湯还有准確禁绝確的呀? 不即是一勺一勺舀了往嘴裏放嗎?

　　M：好國人正在正式場所喝湯時有一定之規。"I spoon my soup away from me" means you spoon the soup toward the front of the bowl and then bring the spoon back to your mouth.

 

　　C：用調羹往湯碗的中邊舀，而後再把調羹發进来支到嘴邊。Why so complicated?

　　M：如許能够免勺上面的湯滴在桌佈上或衣服上。

　　C：Mary，let's each order a soup and try it out. I'm hungry, I want a clam chowder.

　　M：Clam chowder with sea food and meat. It's too filling. 我不飢，要個渾湯就行了。

　　******

　　(Soup arrives and they start to eat，中日翻譯. Sounds of slurping)

　　M：陳豪，你吃得好噴鼻呀! It sounds as if you're enjoying your soup..

　　C：It's delicious! 味道實好。

　　M：But I'm sorry to say that slurping is considered bad manners in Western etiquette.

　　C：据說過西圓人喝湯不克不及有聲音。這湯也太燙了。我吹吹再吃。

　　M：不要吹。If your soup is too hot, stir it slightly or simply wait.

　　C：又不能做聲，中韓互譯，又不能吹。那我便用勺攪動攪動，等它涼一點。

　　M：陳豪，你留心到沒有，我喝的是清湯。我在勺的邊上往裏喝。而您的clam chowder 裏裏有肉，土荳等，沒法從邊上往裏放。

　　C：That's right。我的純燴裏好多貨色，出法象浑湯那樣往嘴裏喝。

　　M：This is a good restaurant. The soup is wonderful, we should come more often.

　　(Sound of spoon scraping the bowl)

　　M：Chen Hao，don't scrape your bowl. Just tip your bowl away from you to retrieve the last spoonful of soup.

　　C：把碗往中抬起一里，讓湯皆到一邊往。Mary, what are the main points that I need to remember?

　　M：Spoon the soup toward the center or front of the bowl and then bring the spoon back to your mouth; slurping is considered bad manners in Western etiquette; if the soup is too hot, stir it slightly or simply wait; tip your bowl away from you to retrieve the last spoonful of soup.