Fabulous Food and Eating Listening, Speaking and Vocabulary Lessons

When teaching a topic like food, eating and restaurants, it is great to have a variety of activities  at the ready. A mix of vocabulary, listening, speaking, brainstorming  and grammar exercises can help create a successful lesson.

1 Talking about food and eating vocabulary dictation

This is a fun way to start a class and introduce the language for talking about  food and eating to English language learners. Get students to watch the video or listen to the audio and write the vocabulary on the pictures on the PDF worksheet. Or you can just dictate the words randomly.

Talking about food (PDF- teacher)

Talking about food (PDF- student)

(see the YouTube video)

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 2 Restaurant dialogues speaking and listening worksheet (with audio answers)

This is an English language exercise to help students prepare to work in a restaurant or just learn about common restaurant exchanges so they are prepared to travel abroad or eat out with English language speakers. Students attempt to complete the dialogues. Then they can listen to the conversations and compare their answers.

Asking for information: restaurant dialogues (PDF)

(Youtube video of this exercise)

 3 Elementary  food conversation listening/speaking worksheet

Students can listen to the audio dialogue and complete the conversation. They can practice the conversation  or create their  own  conversation.

Food conversation dialogue (PDF)

(see the video on YouTube)

Elementary  food conversation

4 Ordering in a restaurant listening activity and conversation worksheet (with audio answers)

This is a  fun “Ordering in a Restaurant” gap fill speaking activity for an English language  class.   Students listening to audio and  complete the conversation. Then the students can practice  the conversation, perform role plays and/or write their own “Ordering in a Restaurant” dialogues.

Ordering in a restaurant dialogue (PDF)

(see the video on YouTube)

5 Common expressions for talking about food (listening/speaking with answers and audio)

    This  is a vocabulary, listening  and speaking activity for using common expressions to talk about food and eating. Students match the sentences the pictures and answer the questions.  The listening activity could be done first or last. The students listen to the short conversational exchanges and match the letter of the item to the pictures.  

Common expressions for talking about food (PDF)

6 Talking about food and eating vocabulary dictation 2

Another vocabulary and common expressions listening exercise.

Talking about food dictation 2 (PDF)

Related Resources for the Hospitality Industry

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Food, Restaurants and Cooking Home

8  Hotel Vocabulary and Speaking Skills Exercises

5  Airport and Airline Vocabulary and Language Skills Exercises with Answers

5 Intercultural Communication Language Exercises and Worksheets

5 Cool Advertising & Branding Vocabulary & Language Exercises

7 Listening and speaking skills worksheet: restaurant troubles (with audio and answers)

For this exercise students listen to the conversations and match the items (A-I) to the pictures. Then they listen to the short exchanges again and try to complete the speech bubbles. This kind of exercise encourages students to expand their vocabulary and improve their listening skills.

Restaurant troubles vocabulary and speaking exercise (PDF)

8 Flavor sorting

This is a flavor sorting exercise.

9 Types of food sorting

This is a sorting exercise for types of food.

(download PDF)

10 Restaurant problems

What is going on in the pictures?

(download PDF)