As a member of the industry, it is imperative that you are familiar with the following hospitality terms.

A La Carte. This is a restaurant term for how a meal is served and ordered. Think of this as the opposite of a “set menu.” Here, the guest can order whatever dish they like with adjustments.

Table d’Hôte. A multi-course menu offered at a fixed price.

Foodie. Someone who appears to know everything about food and cooking (that may or may not be true).

SOS. This is an abbreviation of “sauce on the side.”

Charcuterie. Add this to your must-know list of hospitality terms if you work at a wine bar or other swanky businesses. This is a specific type of cooking that’s focused on the preparations of sausage, bacon, ham, and other meats. It also usually refers to a board of assorted meats, cheeses and light accompaniments.

Dupe. Information passed to the kitchen from the front-of-house team so the chef knows what dishes to prepare.

Ghost restaurant. This is a restaurant that doesn’t contain seats and makes all of its money through food delivery.

Mise en Place. A French term for the procedure kitchen staff must follow to ensure everything is in place correctly.

Omakase. A Japanese term that means “leave it up to you”. It’s when guests leave the choice of their meal to the chef.

Runner. The person who runs back and forth between the kitchen and dining area delivering dishes. Typically, they’re not assigned specific tables.

Sommelier. A person who specializes in wine and knows how to match dishes to their perfect bottle.

Three Martini Lunch. Dining experiences that take place at lunchtime and cater to lawyers and businesspeople. This hospitality term is also a slang term.

Zero out. When a customer completes payment on their balance.

“5 out!”. A term chefs use to tell the kitchen that a dish in progress will be ready in five minutes.

“86”. A restaurant slang term for when the kitchen has run out of a specific dish, beverage, or ingredient. They “86” that item from the menu, so other servers don’t try to sell it.

Adam and Eve on a Raft. A diner expression for two eggs on toast. You can add “wreck ‘em” if you need the eggs scrambled.

Bev nap. You know the small square napkins placed under the drink to prevent wetting the bar’s surface? They’re known as bev naps. Blue-plate special. Lower-cost menu options are usually switched up daily in diners and cafes.

Camper. The least favorite customer for a restaurant. Campers finish and pay for their meals but remain seated at their table for some time afterward.

Couldn’t cook their way out of a paper bag. Refers to someone who claims to be a great chef but isn’t exactly a master of the craft.

Dead plate. A dish that can’t be served to customers, usually because something’s gone wrong during the prep or cooking.

Dine and dash. Those unthinkable customers who have their meal but leave without paying for it.

“Nuke it.” This refers to microwaving a dish to heat it (or cook it) for the guest.

“Pump it out”. Prepare food quickly or “pump it out.”

“Push it.” If a restaurant needs a particular dish or drink to sell more readily than others, you need to “push it.”

16 Useful Expressions Associated with Hotel and Catering

 Expressions you say

1. I’d like a single room, please.
2. Does the hotel have a swimming pool?
3. Could I have a wake-up call at 6 am, please?
4. I’d like a room for two nights, please.
5. What time do we have to check out?
6. Is breakfast included?
7. I have a reservation under the name of Smith.
8. We need a cot for the baby, please.

Expressions you hear

1. Here’s your key. It’s room 897.
2. Check-out is at midday.
3. Would you like someone to help you with your bags?
4. What name was the reservation made under?
5. Breakfast is served between 7 and 11.
6. It’s on the fourth floor.
7. The lift is just over there.
8. Shall I call a taxi for you?

Words Associated with Hotels

Restaurant Equipment

• Ashtray
• Bottle opener
• Bowl
• Bread plate
• Bread-basket
• Candlestick
• Carafe
• Chair
• Chopsticks
• Coaster
• Coffee cup
• Coffee pot
• Condiment set
• Egg cup; egg holder
• Dish
• Folder
• Folk
• Flower vase
• Glass
• High chair
• Ice bucket
• Ice tongs
• Knife
• Menu
• Milk jug
• Napkin
• Pepper grinder
• Pepper shaker
• Pepperbox, pepper
• Placemat
• Plate
• Salt shaker
• Saucer
• Sauceboat
• Soup cup
• Spoon
• Stirrer
• Straw
• Sugar bowl
• Table
• Tablecloth
• Tent card
• Teapot
• Toothpick holder
• Tray
• Trolley
• Water jug

Words Associated with Hotels

  Toilet Amenities

• Adapter
• Bathtub
• Bathmat
• Bottle opener
• Button
• Clothes-line
• Comb
• Detergent; washing powder
• Eau de Cologne
• Hair-dryer
• Hand towel
• Mirror
• Needle
• (electric) razor
• Safety pin
• Sanitary napkin/towel
• Shampoo
• Shaver socket
• Shower
• Shower curtain
• Soap
• Tap
• Thread
• Toilet                                                            
• Toilet flush
• Toilet paper
• Toilet paper holder
• Towel; bath towel
• Towel trail
• Washbasin

15 Types of Hotel Rooms

 Adjoining rooms: Two or more attached or adjoining bedrooms.

 Bed-sitting room: Room for sitting during the day and sleeping at night.

Cabana: A type of shelter often found near beaches lakes or pools.

 Connecting rooms: Two or more bedrooms with open doors from the inside of the room.

Double room: Room with a large bed for 2 people

Double room with bath: Double bedroom with en-suite bathroom.

Duplex: 2-storey suite with stairs inside

Hospitality room / display room: A room with banquet facilities

Junior suite: large room that separates the bedroom from the living room area.

Non-smoking room: A type of room that is intended for people who do not want to smoke.

Parlor: It is a room where people can sit and talk and relax.

Room with balcony: Bedroom with a raised balcony extending from the building.

Single room: assigned to one person or a couple. This type of rooms has one bathroom, a small dressing table, a small bedside table, and a small writing table.

Single room with shower: Single bedroom with shower.

Studio room: Room with 1 bed and a sofa bed that can be converted into a bed for 1 or 2 people.

Suite: A much larger accommodation with a living room, an attached bathroom, one or two bedrooms, a living area, and a dining area as well.

Inside a Hotel Room

Here are some words that you might need to use when talking about the inside of a hotel room.

• complimentary — This word means “free.” Often hotels will serve a complimentary breakfast (included in the cost of your room), or have complimentary shampoos and soaps in the bathroom.

• bathtub — A bathtub is in the bathroom, where people can clean themselves by taking a bath.

• shower — Showers allow people to wash themselves while standing up. The shower head is the part that sprays water, and the drain is on the floor, where the water leaves. Most bathtubs have showers in them, but a standing shower is in a smaller space by itself (without a bathtub).

• towel — People use towels to dry themselves off after taking a shower or a bath. There are also hand towels, which are smaller, and a bath mat—a towel you put on the floor to stand on.

• robes — Some hotels provide robes for guests to wear after they shower. They are also called bathrobes.

• toiletries — Toiletries are small personal items you might use in the bathroom, such as shampoo/conditioner (for washing hair), soap, toothbrush and toothpaste (for brushing teeth).

• hair dryer — Most hotels will have an electric hair dryer for guests to use to dry their wet hair after washing it. In standard hotels, hair dryers are attached to the walls with a cord. These are also called blow dryers.

• sink — The sink is where people wash their hands. It has a faucet, where the water comes out, and a drain, where the water leaves.

• soap — Soap is used to kill germs and bacteria when you wash your hands. It can be either liquid (stored in a soap dispenser) or a solid bar. Some hotels have both hand soap and body soap.

• lamp — Lamps provide extra light somewhere in the room. Guests might tell you that a light burned out in their lamp, meaning it needs a new light bulb.

• executive desk — Some rooms might come with a desk to sit and write or work. These are sometimes called executive desks (just a fancier name, often used in business suites).

• kitchenette — This is a mini-kitchen where people can prepare basic food, usually with a microwave and sink. Most hotel rooms have a mini-fridge (small refrigerator) that has some beverages and snacks inside. If guests eat the snacks and beverages, they have to pay for them when they check out.

• coffee machine — Coffee machines in hotel rooms allow guests to make their own coffee in the morning. Guests might need more filters or coffee grounds when they run out.

• room service — This is a service that lets guests order food or drinks and have it delivered to their hotel room.

• turndown service — This is a service that has housekeepers go into the room and remake the beds. They might put a mint or chocolate on the pillow to show the bed has been “turned down.”

• curtains — These usually hang from a curtain rod to cover a window. Curtains can be pulled open or closed to let sunlight in or keep it out.

• TV — Most rooms have a TV with a remote control (small hand-held device used to change the channel or volume). The TV remote might need new batteries from time to time. Some hotels have a listing of the local TV channels. There are also often pay-per-view channels or movies, that guests are later charged for.

• safe — This is a small box locked with a combination or key where guests can keep valuable items locked and secure.

• cot — This is a small bed that folds up and rolls on wheels, so it can be moved into rooms when an extra bed is needed.

• pull-out sofa — This is a couch that can pull out into a sofa-bed.

• armchair — This is a more comfortable chair with rests for both of your arms.

• linens — These are cloths such as sheets on the bed, pillow cases to cover the pillows, a blanket to keep warm or a comforter (the thick blanket on top of a bed). Sheets have a thread count, which tells their quality/smoothness.

• iron and ironing board — When clothes are wrinkled, guests can get rid of the wrinkles by using an iron with an ironing board.

• private jacuzzi — This is a hot tub somewhere inside or attached to the room. “Private” is the opposite of “public,” and means that this jacuzzi is just for the people in that room.

Room Features

                Here are various features that hotel rooms might offer.

• amenities — Amenities is just another way of saying “features,” often used in the hotel business.

• AC — Air conditioning (usually shortened to “AC”) keeps rooms cool when the weather is hot.

• heating — When the weather is cold, heating will keep the rooms and hotel warm.

• bathroom — This is the room where you’ll find a toilet, sink and shower. Most hotel rooms have their own bathroom attached.

• internet access — If a hotel has internet access, it means guests can use the internet somewhere inside. They might have Wi-Fi (wireless internet), which could be free, require a password to access or cost money to use.

• wireless printing — This allows guests to print from their own computers to a printer somewhere else in the hotel (without being connected to the printer with a wire).

• fan — Some rooms might have ceiling fans or electric fans to move air around in a breeze and stay cool.

• balcony — A balcony is a platform outside that’s enclosed by some type of railing, connected to the hotel room. Balconies are on floors higher than the ground level (second floor and higher).

• patio — A patio is a paved area outside (on ground level) that usually has an outdoor table and chairs.

• smoke-free — If rooms are smoke-free, it means that smoking is not allowed. Smoking and non-smoking are two other terms used to describe if smoking is allowed or not.