Easy Learning Italian Conversation. Collins Dictionaries

in Italian, literally a one-room flat, with sleeping and cooking facilities in the one room. They can be quite smart, and are often rented by professionals who need to be in a town from time to time, or by visitors who prefer them to hotels.

      • If a flat is described as being in a stabile d’epoca, it means it is in a period building.

      • If you are looking to rent for a longer period, you will find adverts in local papers and on websites, as well as signs on doors of buildings with contact phone numbers. You could also contact the local agenzie immobiliari (estate agents), who will normally charge a commission.

      • As a tourist, you may be staying in un hotel or albergo, una pensione, un bed&breakfast (now quite common), un agriturismo (where guests eat the farm’s own produce), un appartamento, una villa or un residence (very often a luxurious option, with serviced furnished flats of different sizes, fitness area, pool, conference rooms, etc.).

Wining and dining

       Buon appetito! – Enjoy your meal!

      If you’re going out for a meal in Italy either in a local trattoria or in a fancy restaurant, the phrases in this unit will give you the confidence to talk to the waiter and chat with your Italian friends in easy, natural Italian. We’ll also give you some tips on getting advice about what to order, and a few key phrases waiters are likely to use.

MAKING ARRANGEMENTS

      If you want to make arrangements such as where and when to meet when you go out for a meal with Italian-speaking people, you can start by asking Dove…? (Where…?) and A che ora…? (What time…?).

      Where…?

Dove andiamo a mangiare?	Where shall we go to eat?
Dove ci troviamo?	Where shall we meet?
Dove volete che vi venga a prendere?	Where do you want me to pick you up?

      What time…?

A che ora ci troviamo?	What time shall we meet?
A che ora arriva Giulia?	What time is Giulia going to get here?
Per che ora hai prenotato il tavolo?	What time did you book the table for?

      If you want to check that the arrangements suit your friends or colleagues, you can use Va bene se…? (Does it suit you if…?).

      Does it suit you if…?

Va bene se andiamo fuori a cena domani sera?	Does it suit you if we go out for a meal tomorrow night?
Va bene se ci troviamo alle sette?	Does it suit you if we meet up at seven?
Va bene se ci incontriamo là?	Does is suit you if we meet there?
Vi andrebbe meglio sabato sera?	Would Saturday evening suit you better?

      It would suit me best to…

Per me andrebbe meglio incontrarci là.	It would suit me best to meet there.
Per me andrebbe meglio andarci per le otto.	It’d suit me best to be there for eight.
Per noi andrebbe meglio andarci in macchina.	It’d suit us better to go there by car.

      To check what is the best thing to do for others, use È meglio…? (Had we better…?).

      Had we better…?

È meglio prenotare?	Had we better book?
È meglio arrivare presto?	Had we better arrive early?
Sarebbe meglio cambiare la prenotazione?	Had we better change our reservation?