Dialogue
A-Ming (M): 不好意思,可以點餐了!
A-Ming (M): Bù hǎoyìsi, kěyǐ diǎn cānle!
A-Ming (M): Excuse me, we can order!
Waiter (F): 好,你要點什麼呢?Waiter (F): Hǎo, nǐ yàodiǎn shénme ne?
Waiter (F): Ok, what do you want to order?
M: 一個宮保雞丁,一份鍋貼,還有一個炒青菜
M: Yīgè gōngbǎo jī dīng, yī fèn guōtiē, hái yǒu yīgè chǎo qīngcài
M: One 宮保雞丁, one portion of potstickers, and also one stir-fried green vegetable.
F: 要白飯嗎?F: Yào báifàn ma?
F: Do you want white rice?
M: 要!誒,小李,你要吃飯嗎?M: Yào! Éi, xiǎo lǐ, nǐ yào chīfàn ma?
M: Want! Oh, Xiao Li, do you want to eat rice?
Xiao Li (L): 好啊Xiao Li (L): Hǎo a
Xiao Li (L): Ok!
M: 那我們要兩碗白飯M: Nà wǒmen yào liǎng wǎn báifàn
M: Then we want two bowls of white rice.
F: 這樣就好了嗎?F: Zhèyàng jiù hǎole ma?
F: Is that it?
M: 對,這樣就好M: Duì, zhèyàng jiù hǎo
M: Yep, that's it.
F: 好的,請稍等F: Hǎo de, qǐng shāo děng
F: Ok, please wait a moment.
M: 他們的鍋貼超好吃!對了,你要不要喝啤酒?M: Tāmen de guōtiē chāo hào chī! Duìle, nǐ yào bùyào hē píjiǔ?
M: Their potstickers are super delicious! Oh right, do you want to drink beer?
L:我不能喝酒,等一下還要開車啊L: Wǒ bùnéng hējiǔ, děng yīxià hái yào kāichē a
L: I can't drink alcohol, I have to drive in a second!
M:對齁,那... 我們喝茶吧!M: Duì hōu, nà... Wǒmen hē chá bā!
M: Oh right, then... let's drink tea!
L:好
L: Hǎo
L: OK.
M:好,我去拿M: Hǎo, wǒ qù ná
M: Ok, I'll go get it.
A note about pronunciation: The dialogue above includes the pinyin romanization of the text. The advantage of pinyin for English speakers is that it uses the familiar symbols of the Latin alphabet. The disadvantage is that English speakers are easily deceived into thinking these familiar symbols represent the same sounds they do in English. They don't. That said, pinyin can be a useful system to learn, but you must rely on your ears first, eyes second.
Don't expect to be able to pronounce anything just by reading the pinyin; the romanization is just a reference to jog your memory. The language exists primarily in its sounds, which is why daily listening and imitation practice is so important.
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