Polish · Real conversations
Cafés: Polish conversation practice
Order a drink and clarify a small detail. Read the exchange, reveal the translations when you need them, then try your part before looking at the sample answers.
A1 · Read and rehearse
Your role: A customer ordering at a café.
Goal: Order a drink and clarify a small detail.
Read the conversation
Partner
Co dodać do kawy?
Show English translation
What would you like in your coffee?
You
Czy mogę prosić bez cukru?
Show English translation
Could I have it without sugar?
Partner
Na miejscu czy na wynos?
Show English translation
Is this for here or to take away?
You
Na wynos, proszę.
Show English translation
To take away, please.
Partner
Oczywiście. Czy podać zwykłą kawę?
Show English translation
Certainly. Would you like regular coffee?
You
Czy może być bezkofeinowa?
Show English translation
Could you make it decaf?
Partner
Tak, możemy tak zrobić. Coś jeszcze do picia?
Show English translation
Yes, we can do that. Anything else to drink?
You
Czy mogę prosić o wodę z kranu?
Show English translation
Can I have tap water?
Partner
Oto woda. Łączna kwota jest podana tutaj.
Show English translation
Here's your water. The total is shown here.
You
Czy obsługa jest wliczona?
Show English translation
Is service included?
Try your part first
Partner says: What would you like in your coffee? Your goal: Could I have it without sugar?
Reveal a sample reply
Czy mogę prosić bez cukru?
Could I have it without sugar?
Partner says: Is this for here or to take away? Your goal: To take away, please.
Reveal a sample reply
Na wynos, proszę.
To take away, please.
Partner says: Certainly. Would you like regular coffee? Your goal: Could you make it decaf?
Reveal a sample reply
Czy może być bezkofeinowa?
Could you make it decaf?
Partner says: Yes, we can do that. Anything else to drink? Your goal: Can I have tap water?
Reveal a sample reply
Czy mogę prosić o wodę z kranu?
Can I have tap water?
Partner says: Here's your water. The total is shown here. Your goal: Is service included?
Reveal a sample reply
Czy obsługa jest wliczona?
Is service included?
Make it your own
- Change the drink.
- Ask for a different ingredient to be left out.
- Stay at the café instead of taking the order away.
Keep the useful expression and change the detail. There can be several appropriate answers; the revealed replies are examples to learn from.
This rehearsal in other languages
A note on speaking Polish
Polish distinguishes familiar ty from polite pan and pani. Choose pan when addressing a man and pani when addressing a woman formally; the paired forms shown in examples are alternatives, so say one. A formal question usually uses a third-person verb, such as Czy może pan …? First-person past and conditional forms can change with the speaker’s gender.
Keep letters such as ą, ę, ł, ń, ó, ś, ź, and ż. Noun and adjective endings can change with their role in the sentence. Learn the complete expression before replacing a name, object, or time.
