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Italian phrase of the day: Ho mangiato troppo a pranzo

Graffiti with Italian flag

Ho mangiato troppo a pranzo
I ate too much at lunch
Literally: '(I) have eaten too-much at lunch'.

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My lunch usually consists of some chicken (pre-cooked and packed from the shop, or steamed or oven-roasted at home, no skin) and some cherry tomatoes (straight from the packet, unwashed, I probably have enough pesticides in me to kill all those friendly bacteria). Day in, day out. I could not care less about food variety, and that, together with a bowl of porridge at breakfast and some fruits for snacks, fills me up and keeps me going until dinner.

Today I went out with some colleagues for lunch to Abu Zaad, our favourite Syrian restaurant in the area. I had some Baba Ganuji (aubergine, fresh pepper, parsley, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil) as a starter (with pita bread), and a Chicken Shawerma (roasted thin slices of marinated chicken) for my main course (with rice).

I had forgotten how big the portions are there, and then we were not going to have dessert, but the bill arrived with two plates of baclava and I did not say no.

And then I spent the afternoon with cold sweats, drowsiness and a splitting headache, unable to concentrate. How do people eat lunch out regularly and then work in the afternoon?

A cena mangerò solo un'insalata
At dinner I will only eat a salad
Literally: 'At dinner (I) will-eat only a salad'.

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If you want to find out more

All the verbs that end in -are in the infinitive (the equivalent of 'to + verb') form (camminare, mangiare, studiare, lavare, dare) form the 'I will + verb' future by changing the ending in -erò (camminerò, mangerò, studierò, darò).

Posted by Luca in food and drink, italian, personal on Wednesday 13 February 2008. Comments Off

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