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IELTS Listening Practice Test 20: Part 1

Ordering food for a staff event. An office manager phones a catering company to order food and drinks for a staff training day.

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Audio

You hear the recording once, as in the real test.

Questions 1–10

Complete the table below.

Write NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.

Hartwell Design training day: catering order

TimeFood and drinkNumber of peopleNotes
9.30 amtea, coffee and pastries (example)40serve in reception
12.30 pm1 buffet2include 3 dishes for three people
3.15 pmtea, coffee and 440serve on the 5 if the weather is good

Complete the notes below.

Write ONE WORD AND/OR A NUMBER for each answer.

Booking details

Customer

Delivery and collection

Payment

Show the answers and explanations
  1. GreekTrap: they had the Italian buffet last year and want a change, and the Mexican one may be too spicy, so she chooses the Greek buffet.
  2. 44 / forty-fourTrap: she first says forty-five, but one director cannot come, so it is forty-four.
  3. veganVegetarian dishes are included as standard in every buffet. The three staff need vegan dishes.
  4. fruit / fresh fruit / sliced fruitTrap: she was going to ask for biscuits, but they always get left, so she asks for fresh fruit (a platter of sliced fruit).
  5. roof terrace / terrace / roof-terraceTrap: the morning food is served in reception, but in good weather the afternoon break will be on the roof terrace at the top of the building.
  6. MoorcroftThe surname is spelled letter by letter: M-O-O-R-C-R-O-F-T (double O).
  7. 17 / seventeenTrap: Kieran hears 'seventy', but Julia corrects him: seventeen, one seven.
  8. sideTrap: the main entrance at the front has steps, so the driver should use the side entrance, which has a ramp.
  9. FridayTrap: collection is normally the same evening (Thursday), but nobody will be there, so it will be on Friday morning.
  10. financeTrap: Julia, the office manager, normally deals with bills, but anything over five hundred pounds goes to the finance manager.
Show the transcript

Narrator: Part 1. You will hear an office manager phoning a catering company to order food for a staff training day.

Narrator: First, you have some time to look at questions 1 to 5.

Narrator: You will see that there is an example that has been done for you.

Narrator: Now listen carefully and answer questions 1 to 5.

Catering assistant (Kieran): Good morning, Greenleaf Catering, Kieran speaking. How can I help?

Office manager (Julia): Hi. I'd like to order some food for a staff training day we're holding next month. We used you for an event last year, and everyone was really happy with it.

Catering assistant (Kieran): Oh, that's good to hear. Can I ask roughly when the event is?

Office manager (Julia): It's a Thursday, about five weeks from now. I'll confirm the exact date by email.

Catering assistant (Kieran): That's plenty of notice. So what sort of thing were you thinking of?

Office manager (Julia): Well, we'll need food at three different times of day. Everyone arrives at half past nine, so first we'd like tea and coffee, and something to eat with it. Last time we had biscuits, but it's first thing in the morning, so I think pastries would be nicer.

Catering assistant (Kieran): Pastries, fine. And how many people would that be for?

Office manager (Julia): Forty. That's all our staff. And could you set it up in reception, please, so people can help themselves as they arrive?

Catering assistant (Kieran): Of course. And then lunch?

Office manager (Julia): Yes, at half past twelve. We'd like a buffet. Last year we had your Italian one, which was lovely, but people have asked for something a bit different this time.

Catering assistant (Kieran): Well, we do a Mexican buffet, which is very popular, although some people find it a little spicy. Or there's our Greek buffet, with grilled cheese, salads, flatbreads and so on.

Office manager (Julia): Hmm, I'm not sure spicy food would suit everyone. Let's go for the Greek one.

Catering assistant (Kieran): Lovely. And is lunch for forty as well?

Office manager (Julia): No, a few more. Our two directors are joining us for lunch, and we've invited three people from our partner company, so that's forty-five. Oh, hang on, one of the directors can't make it now. She's away that week. So it's forty-four.

Catering assistant (Kieran): Forty-four for lunch. Now, all our buffets include vegetarian dishes as standard, so you don't need to worry about that. Are there any other special requirements?

Office manager (Julia): Yes, three of our staff are vegan, so could you make sure there are some vegan dishes for them?

Catering assistant (Kieran): Certainly. I'll make a note of that. Would you like drinks with lunch?

Office manager (Julia): Just jugs of water and some orange juice, please. Nothing fizzy.

Catering assistant (Kieran): Fine. And then something in the afternoon?

Office manager (Julia): Yes, at a quarter past three. Tea and coffee again, for the forty staff. I was going to say biscuits, but they always get left. People are trying to eat more healthily, so could we have some fresh fruit instead?

Catering assistant (Kieran): No problem. We do a nice platter of sliced fruit. Is that in reception again?

Office manager (Julia): Actually, if the weather's good, we'd like it outside. There's a roof terrace at the top of our building, and it would be nice for people to get some fresh air after a long day in a meeting room.

Catering assistant (Kieran): That's fine, as long as there's a lift. Our trolleys are quite heavy.

Office manager (Julia): Yes, there's a lift, so that won't be a problem.

Narrator: Before you hear the rest of the conversation, you have some time to look at questions 6 to 10.

Narrator: Now listen and answer questions 6 to 10.

Catering assistant (Kieran): Right, let me just take a few details. Can I have your name?

Office manager (Julia): Julia Moorcroft. That's M-O-O-R-C-R-O-F-T.

Catering assistant (Kieran): Thank you. And the company?

Office manager (Julia): Hartwell Design. We're on Brookside Business Park, on the edge of town. Unit seventeen.

Catering assistant (Kieran): Sorry, did you say seventy?

Office manager (Julia): No, seventeen. One seven.

Catering assistant (Kieran): Got it. And is there somewhere our driver can park?

Office manager (Julia): Yes, there's a car park. But please tell the driver not to come to the main entrance at the front. There are steps up to it, so you'd never get a trolley in that way. The side entrance has a ramp, and it's right next to the car park, so that's the one to use.

Catering assistant (Kieran): The side entrance. Now, we'll bring all the plates, cups and cutlery, and normally we collect everything the same evening. Would six o'clock be all right?

Office manager (Julia): Er, the training finishes at five, but most of us are going out for a meal straight afterwards, so there won't be anyone here to let you in. Could you come the next morning instead?

Catering assistant (Kieran): Let me see. The event's on a Thursday, so that would be Friday. Yes, Friday morning's fine.

Office manager (Julia): Great.

Catering assistant (Kieran): And finally, payment. For an order of this size we ask for a deposit of ten per cent when you book, and the rest after the event. Shall I send the invoice to you?

Office manager (Julia): Normally, yes. I deal with all the office bills myself. But anything over five hundred pounds has to go to our finance manager, and I'm sure this will be more than that. I'll email you her details.

Catering assistant (Kieran): Perfect. I'll put everything in an email to you today, so you can check it.

Office manager (Julia): Thanks very much, Kieran.

Narrator: That is the end of Part 1. You now have half a minute to check your answers to Part 1.

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