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The hospitality of the Ukrainian people is well-known throughout the world. When a foreigner sets foot in Ukraine first he gets acquainted with our cookery – national dishes and meal-times. Frequently he gets to know that in this country they are not the same as in his. But he has to do in Ukraine as the Ukrainians do.

The usual meals in Ukraine are breakfast, lunch, dinner and supper. Sanatoriums, rest-homes, hospitals and other public establishments generally follow the former order of meals. But a number of Ukrainian families follow the latter order. Breakfast is the first meal in the day. Lunch or luncheon is a light meal usually in the middle of the day. Dinner is the chief and the most substantial meal. It isn’t served at a definite hour in our country. When it is in the middle of the day, the lighter evening meal is called supper.

Working people usually have a break for dinner at their place of employment. During the break they have either dinner or lunch. In great many Ukrainian homes dinner is followed by a cup of tea with a slice of lemon, jam or home-made pastry.

If you have a special dinner, a housewarming party for example, you should know how to lay the table on such an occasion. First you spread the table-cloth and put out table-mats to protect the table from the hot dishes: a tureen of soup, a bowl of hot vegetables, a platter of meat, a boat of sauce, etc. Then you take out of the drawer in the sideboard soup spoons, for the soup, spoons for the sweet and all the cutlery – knives and forks, including a small knife for the butter, a small knife and fork for the hors d’oeuvres and a fruit knife for the dessert.

You should put the knives and the soup spoon on the right-hand side and fork on the left, except the spoon for the sweet which you should put across the top. Then you put out the bread-board and a knife to cut the bread. On the left of each guest you put a small plate for bread and on the right a wine-glass. Don'’ forget to put out the table napkins for each guest and place several salt-cellars. Once again have a look at the table and see if it is laid for each person. Then you are ready for the friends to come and don’t forget to put a bowl of beautiful flowers on the dinner table.

I remember my last receiving the guests. It was my birthday party. I had thought over the menu of that dinner-party before the guests came to my place. I began with hours d’oeuvres followed by a clear soup with meat pasties, the second course included chicken with rice and vegetables, salad and so on. Then ice-cream for the sweet and fruit for dessert. And, of course, there was a nice cake with the candles lighted. What a lovely birthday party I have had!

Word List:

hospitality [hospı ’tæ lı tı ] – гостеприимство, радушие

a foreigner – иностранец

to set foot in – ступать на

to get acquantied with [∂ ’kweı ntı d] – знакомиться, ознакамливаться

cookery [‘kuk∂ rı ] – кулинария, стряпня

national dishes – национальные блюда

establishment [ı s’tæ blı ∫ m∂ nt] – учреждение, заведение

substantial [sλ b’stæ n∫ ∂ I] – существенный, важный, значительный

employment [ı m’ploı ment] – работа, служба, занятие

home-made pastry [‘peı strı ] – домашняя выпечка, домашние кондитерские изделия, пирожные

to lay the table – накрывать на стол

occasion [∂ ’keı zn] – случай, возможность, событие

to spread [spred] – расстилать

to protect [pro’tekt] – защищать, ограждать

a tureen [tĵ u’rı: n] – супник, супница

a platter [‘plæ t∂ ] – деревянная тарелка

sauce [so: s] – соус, приправа; гарнир из овощей

cutlery [‘kλ tl∂ rı ] – ножевые изделия

hors d’oeuvre [o: ’d ∂: vr] – закуска

for dessert [dı ’z ∂: t] – десерт, сладкое блюдо

a napkin [‘næ pkı n] – салфетка

a salt-cellar – солонка

receiving the guests – прием гостей

a menu [‘mæ nju: ] – меню

a clear soup – бульон

a pasty, a pie – пирог

the second course – второе блюдо

a candle [‘kæ ndl] – свеча