Visits and parties访问聚会

1．招待朋友 Entertaining Friends

Mr. Lee: I know you’ve had Chinese food before, but I had to look all over town to find an authentic Chinese restaurant. I’m hoping this experience will be new and different for you.
我知道你吃过中国菜，但我还是找遍全城，终于找到这家地道的中国餐馆。我希望这次能给你新的体验。
Miss Lewis: It all looks delicious! I love the way they’ve stacked the dishes in the middle of the table. What’s the dish in the middle making all the noise?
看起来真可口! 我喜欢象这样把菜肴摆在桌子中央。桌子中间发出声响的是道什么菜？

Mr. Lee: That’s called tie ban niu rou. It’s basically strips of beef with onion, but it’s poured onto a heated iron dish, which acts as a grill. That’s why it’s sizzling; it’s literally cooking at the table.
是铁板牛肉。用洋葱和牛肉片做的，将洋葱和牛肉丝倒在加热的铁盘上，相当于烤炉，所以会发出咝咝声。这实际上是在餐桌上把菜做出来的。
Mr. Jones: So I guess we can be sure it’s hot. What’s this dish here? Looks like a salad or something!
那样可以保证菜是热的。这道菜是什么？看起来像沙拉一类的东西。

Mr. Lee: That’s cold dish. Believe it or not, we call it “Tiger Food.” It’s green pepper, cilantro, and cucumbers. I suppose we could consider that an appetizer.
那是道凉菜。信不信由你，我们把它称作“老虎菜”。由青椒，芫荽叶和黄瓜。我们把它当作开胃菜。
Miss Lewis: Is it hot?
它是热的吗？
Mr. Lee: Hot? It’s cold.
热？它是凉的。
Miss Lewis: I meant spicy-hot.
我是说辣。

Mr. Lee: It’s a little hot, but not too bad. For really hot, you should try the noodle dish in front of you. It’s called “Ants Climbing a Tree.”
有点辣，但不是很辣。说到辣，你应该尝尝你跟前的粉丝，这道菜叫“蚂蚁上树”。
Mr. Jones: What a funny name! I guess those little bits of pork are the ants. So what do Chinese people eat for dessert?
名字真有趣! 我猜这些小肉丁就是蚂蚁。那么中国人的甜点是什么呢?

Mr. Lee: We don’t have dessert. We end our meal with some sort of staple food like rice or noodles. But I think if you are hungry for something sweet at the end of the meal, you can try some of these steamed buns. They’ve been fried just enough to be crispy and golden. You dip them into this sweetened condensed milk.
我们没有甜点。我们在最后吃些主食，如米饭或面条。但如果你最后想吃些甜的食品，你可以尝尝这些馒头。它们被炸得酥脆焦黄。你可以蘸上些炼乳。
Miss Lewis: This food is just great! I don’t know how you manage to maintain a healthy weight with all this good food!
这些菜真不错! 真想象不出有这么好的食物，你们是怎么控制体重的!

authentic Chinese restaurant 地道的中国餐馆
strips of beef 牛肉片
grill 烤炉
sizzling 发出咝咝声
cucumbers 黄瓜
appetizer 开胃菜
spicy-hot 麻辣
dessert (饭后)甜点
staple food 主食
steamed bun馒头
crispy and golden 酥脆焦黄
Dip蘸，浸