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If you’re lucky, you will find a great group of people to socialize with during your stay in the United States. However, if you’re going out in groups, it may lead to a sticky situation where you don’t know how to split a bill. Here are the common ways groups divvy up costs in America.
“It’s my treat!” Sometimes, one friend will pay for the group. In this case, you can go along as a guest and you will not need to pay. However, it would be polite if you return the favor in the future. In other words, if your friend takes you out to eat, plan on inviting him or her out to eat (and paying for the meal) soon. “Let’s go dutch.” If someone suggests going dutch, this means that he or she wants to split the bill equally among group members. That means that everyone will pay an equal percentage of the total cost, regardless of what you ordered or did. For example, if four people go out to eat and the bill totals $100, each person will need to pay $25. This is a very common way to pay for group events in the U.S., but some people dislike it because you may end up paying for more than you used. “Let’s get separate checks.” Since some people dislike going dutch, it is also common for groups to get separate checks. This means that the group completely divides expenses by person. To clarify, if you get separate checks, you will only be responsible for what you ordered or did because you separated the bills up front. If you want to do this at a restaurant, it is important to tell your server before you order. As a final note, in the U.S., couples often count themselves as one person. This means that when you go dutch with a couple, they may not divide the bill by head. Obviously, this may shift the balance of the bill, so just be sure to clarify how you will pay before you go out.
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Here are the answers from last week’s post. How did you do?
You can use our free e-book, 100 Words for Visitors to the U.S., to fill in the blanks in these sentences.
At home you probably have a good idea of where to go when you need different food items. At your new home in the U.S.A., you’ll need to dig around a little bit to figure out where to buy what. Hopefully, this post will give you some hints. It will cover different places to buy food and their pros and cons.
Farmers’ Markets At farmers’ markets, growers bring their crops to you directly. You can expect fresher produce because it spends less time in transit. In some cities, farmers’ markets are seasonal, but in the Bay Area they run year-round. While freshness is a definite advantage, farmers’ markets may not have prepared foods. In the Bay Area, you can visit the Ecology Center to find a farmers’ market near you. Supermarkets Supermarkets are big stores that have anything and everything you might need. They offer a lot of processed and packaged food, which can be convenient (but also pricey). Their produce typically comes from farther away, so it may not be as fresh. However, they will always have your kitchen staples and may even save you time because you can find what you need in one place. In the Bay Area, there are many different supermarket chains including Smart and Final ($), Grocery Outlet ($), Safeway ($$), Ranch 99 ($$), Berkeley Bowl ($$), and Andronico’s ($$$). Corner Stores Unless you just want a snack, corner stores are usually not the best place to find food. Typically, they sell a small selection of prepared or packaged food. They are often more expensive than other options. Still, they are almost everywhere, so they may help Here are the answers from last week’s post. How did you do?
Here are the answers for last week’s vocabulary quiz. How did you do?
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AuthorEast Bay ESL is an English language school for learners in the San Francisco East Bay. Archives
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