Activity 2 Reading
Read the following article and finish the following mini tasks.
How to Prepare for a Welcoming Dinner
A welcoming dinner is a commonly used way to entertain your guests, show your appreciation or just relax together in a welcoming setting. There is something very rewarding about eating together at a special and memorable moment. You may be wondering how to prepare for a welcoming dinner, especially if it’s your first time to do this.
All the arrangements may be leaving you feeling a bit frazzled or unnerved. Take heart, it isn’t as difficult as it may seem. The simple tips below will help you to prepare for a welcoming dinner and make sure you get the most out of your experience.
When preparing for a welcoming dinner, the first thing you need to decide on is the three“Ws”: who, when and where.
Once you know who you want to invite, when you would like to have the dinner and where you want to have it you can start to prepare for a dinner party worth remembering by:
* Inviting your guests either by telephone or, if you have more time, by written invitation perhaps with an RSVP included. This brings an elegant touch to your party planning and helps you with keeping track of the numbers.
* Checking with your guests to learn about any food allergies or dislikes. This is a good time to ask about your guests favorites too—it adds a personal touch to your menu.
* Deciding on your menu, taking into account your guests’ preferences and your theme if you have one.
* Making a list of groceries you will need for food preparation. Do this using your menu plan, to save time and ensure you don’t forget anything. When you prepare for a welcoming dinner, you should always be as organized as possible.
* Deciding on your table setting, theme, crockery and cutlery choice as well as the choice of flowers or other table decorations. Make sure you do this before your shopping trip or you will probably have to make an extra one for these items.
* Making a trip to the store to get all your ingredients. Do this 2 or 3 days before the dinner as this will guarantee all your ingredients are fresh and allow you to concentrate on meal preparation rather than run around searching for last minute ingredients. Try to get everything on your list in one trip.
* When you prepare for a dinner party, you might wish to set the table in the morning of the party. Don’t leave it till the evening as this could cause you to rush things. Doing it ahead of time also allows you to examine and improve it if needed. Cover the setting with a light cloth to avoid dust from settling on your tableware.
* The remainder of the meal should be prepared as close to dinner time as possible but make sure you allow yourself plenty of time to bathe and dress without rushing and feeling frazzled.
Mini Task 1 Questions
(1) What should you decide on first when preparing for a welcoming dinner?
(2) What are the reasons for you to invite your guests by written invitation?
(3) Why should you use your menu plan when making a list of groceries you will need for food preparation?
(4) When you prepare a welcoming dinner, you should set the table as early as possible,why?
Mini Task 2 True or false
(1) The only way for you to invite your guests is by telephone. ( )
(2) It is very necessary for you to check with your guests to learn about any food allergies or dislikes. ( )
(3) When deciding on menu, you don’t need to take into account your guests’ preferences.( )
(4) You should decide on your table setting, theme, crockery and cutlery choice as well as the choice of flowers or other table decorations before you go shopping. ( )
(5) To make sure you have plenty of time to bathe and dress without rushing and feeling frazzled, you should get everything ready before the dinner. ( )
Mini Task 3 Complete the sentences with the following expressions. Change the form where necessary.
entertain reward frazzle preference decoration
concentrate relax tableware remainder allergy
(1) Fifteen students in the class are girls and ________ are boys.
(2) When preparing for a welcoming dinner, the organizer should take the guests’________ into consideration.
(3) What kind of ________ are you going to use for the dinner?
(4) The company ________ their clients by holding a large welcoming party.(https://www.daowen.com)
(5) I did not expect the job to be intrinsically ________.
(6) How do you plan to ________ the house for the welcoming ceremony?
(7) Listening to the music can make you ________.
(8) I couldn’t ________ my work when I heard the sad news that my grandfather was seriously ill in the hospital.
(9) Michael was completely ________ when he finished the complex job.
(10) Catherine knew that her foreign guest has an ________ to seafood.
Mini Task 4 Translate the following sentences from English into Chinese.
(1) A welcoming dinner is a commonly used way to entertain your guests, show your appreciation or just relax together in a welcoming setting.
(2) All the arrangements may be leaving you feeling a bit frazzled or unnerved. Take heart,it isn’t as difficult as it may seem.
(3) Deciding on your menu, taking into account your guests’ preferences and your theme if you have one.
(4) Deciding on your table setting, theme, crockery and cutlery choice as well as the choice of flowers or other table decorations. Make sure you do this before your shopping trip or you will probably have to make an extra one for these items.
(5) When you prepare for a dinner party, you might wish to set the table in the morning of the party. Don’t leave it till the evening as this could cause you to rush things. Doing it ahead of time also allows you to examine and improve it if needed.
Words in Task III
entertain v. 款待；招待
crockery n. 陶器
relax v. （使）轻松；休息
cutlery n. 刀具；刀叉
memorable adj. 值得纪念的；值得记忆的
decoration v. 装饰
frazzle v. （使）磨损；疲惫
ingredient n. （烹调的）原料；（构成）要素
unnerved adj. 气馁的；丧失勇气的
concentrate v. 专心于；注意；聚精会神
elegant adj. （人或其举止）优美的；文雅的
tableware n. 餐具
allergy n. （对食物、花粉、虫咬等的）过敏症
remainder n. 剩余物；残余部分