South African Restaurant: How Many People?

Learn how to answer the first question you are asked at a restaurant

Dialogue

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Vocabulary

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Lesson Transcript

INTRODUCTION

There is a wide variety of South African dishes and your job as a visitor is to try as many different foods as possible! However, before you start eating, you have to get to the table! In this lesson, we will cover getting to the table in a restaurant.

BODY

When entering a restaurant in South Africa, they will greet you with Goeiemiddag, which means literally, "Good noon.”

(slow) Goeiemiddag

Goeiemiddag

Or when you visit the restaurant for a dinner, you’ll hear Goeienaand, which is, "Good evening."

(slow) Goeienaand

Goeienaand

In South Africa, when entering a restaurant, the waiter or waitress will ask you the question, "How many people in your party?" Practicing this phrase will come in handy at some point. "How many people in your party?" in Afrikaans is Hoeveel mense?

Let’s break it down:

(slow) Hoeveel mense?

Once more:

Hoeveel mense?

The first word, hoeveel, which means “how much”

(slow) hoeveel

hoeveel

After this comes mense, which means “people.”

(slow) mense

mense

Now let’s go over how to answer.

In Afrikaans, you would respond by giving the waiter or waitress the number of people you're with. So for example, let's say there are three of you. In Afrikaans, this would be drie mense.

Let’s break it down:

(slow)

drie mense.

Once again.

drie mense.

Now we're going to review some numbers in Afrikaans in case your party happens to be bigger. The numbers one through five are een, twee, drie, vier, and vyf. Once again, that's een, twee, drie, vier, vyf. If there are four of you, you will simply say the number "four" plus persons. Vier mense.

(slow) Vier mense.

Vier mense.

If you are by yourself, the proper answer to the question would be Net ek. In English, this means, "Just me." Let's break these words down and see them one more time.

(slow) Net ek.

Net ek.

The first word, net, means, "only."

(slow) net

net

The second word, ek, means, "I."

(slow) ek

The whole phrase once again is Net ek, or in English, "Only me." Let’s hear once again.

(slow) Net ek

Net ek

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