A cat with cream, please
In a food shop in Spain, we wanted to buy a cake. We didn't know the word for cake, so we had a go with the French word le gâteau. But to the Spanish shop assistant, this sounded like we were asking for un gato - a cat!
Editor's note: To ask for a cake in Spanish, say Un pastel, por favor.
Sent by: Alan
Comments
In my early days as a student in Florence, a friend and I entered a café one morning for breakfast. My friend ordered un cappuccino e un cornuto. There was a stunned silence, and then the barista raised his hand and said, Sono io. Tanto lo sanno tutti! Instead of a croissant (cornetto), my friend had requested a cuckold (cornuto) with her cappuccino. The barman replied, 'That's me. Everybody knows anyway!'
When i started studing French, I thought the teacher was saying gato when she said le gâteau and I said that I'd like to have one to play with. She just smiled.
In a coffee bar in Italy, I wanted to ask for a croissant, cornetto, instead I asked for a cornuto, a cuckold. The handsome young man behind the counter with a sense of humor told me he would be happy to oblige.
This reminds me of a teashop in Arundel where I desperately tried to order a piece of chocolate cake. Eventually, they told me that this was a gateau. As a French speaker myself, trying to learn English, I felt particularly vexed!
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