Day 130 of 159

Day 130: So What Is a Halve Hahn?

In a Brauhaus, a traditional brewery pub, in Cologne, Kai (A) and his girlfriend Saskia (B), who are visiting from Leipzig, look at what the owner, Heiko (C), has just brought to their table.

How to study this lesson 3 steps
  1. Read the situation under the title. It says who is talking and how they know each other, which decides how politely they speak.
  2. Read the dialogue line by line with its translation, until every line makes sense. Point at (or tap) a German word to see what it means.
  3. Spend at least 30 minutes listening to native German, for example from the Resources page. It doesn't matter if you don't understand it yet.

Dialogue

Audio recordings are on the way. For now, each lesson is the dialogue with its English translation.

Keys: E hide English · ← → previous / next day · point at a word to see its meaning

  1. A

    Guck mal, das soll ein halbes Hähnchen sein? Das ist doch ein Käsebrötchen!

    Look, that's supposed to be half a chicken? It's a cheese roll!

  2. B

    Entschuldigung, da muss was verwechselt worden sein. Wir hatten zweimal Halve Hahn bestellt.

    Excuse me, there must have been a mix-up. We ordered two Halve Hahn.

  3. C

    Nein, das hat schon seine Richtigkeit. Halve Hahn ist bei uns ein Roggenbrötchen mit Käse.

    No, that's quite right. Round here, a Halve Hahn is a rye roll with cheese.

  4. A

    Aber Halve Hahn heißt doch halber Hahn! Wo ist denn da das Hähnchen?

    But Halve Hahn means half a cockerel! So where's the chicken?

  5. C

    Ein Gast soll sich den Namen als Scherz ausgedacht haben. Das dürfte aber eine Legende sein.

    A guest is said to have made the name up as a joke. But that's probably just a legend.

  6. B

    Und wir sind voll drauf reingefallen! Was bestellt man hier, wenn man richtig Hunger hat?

    And we fell for it completely! What do you order here when you're really hungry?

  7. C

    Wenn ich Ihnen eine Empfehlung geben darf: Himmel un Ääd. Da ist wenigstens Wurst dabei, versprochen.

    If I may make a recommendation: Himmel un Ääd, black pudding with mash and apple. At least that one comes with meat, I promise.

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