After-work drinks: Ordering drinks and recommending something to try

💬 provi is the polite way of saying "try" to someone. To a friend it would be prova un Hugo.

🇮🇹 The Hugo comes from northern Italy and is a popular lighter alternative to a Spritz. You'll find it on most aperitivo menus in the north.

💬 Describing words change their ending to match the drink. For a feminine word like birra "beer", you'd say è fresca e leggera.

💬 Cosa and è squeeze together into Cos'è, and you say it as one word. It's a handy way to ask about anything on a menu: Cos'è uno Spritz?

💬 Italian puts the main thing first and links the flavour with di: "syrup of elderflower". Same pattern: succo di arancia "orange juice".

🇮🇹 Italians use allora constantly as a filler, like "so" or "well then". It's often how people start an order or begin a sentence while they think.

💬 delle is di + le merged, and it means "some" here. For a masculine word it becomes dei: dei salatini "some salty snacks".

🇮🇹 Snacks like crisps or olives usually come free with an aperitivo drink. Saying yes normally won't add anything to your bill.

💬 Italian often uses the present tense for things happening right now or just about to happen. pago can mean "I pay" or "do I pay", depending only on your tone of voice.

💬 Italian says "they are eight euros" with sono, because the amount is plural. For one euro it's è un euro.

🇮🇹 In many bars you sit, drink, and pay at the counter or at the end. Nobody expects you to pay upfront unless you're standing at the bar in a busy place.

💬 Ecco means "here is" when handing something over or pointing it out. a lei makes it polite; to a friend you'd say Ecco a te.

🇮🇹 Replying Grazie a lei to someone who thanks you is a warm, polite way to thank them back. It's very common between staff and customers.

🇮🇹 Buona serata is what you say when leaving in the evening. Buonasera is for arriving and greeting someone.