Practice English Reading Exercises for A2 – Culinary Arts & Food Business 1
Reading 1
For each question, choose the correct answer.
The Teenager Who Sells the Best Chicken in Town
Fifteen-year-old Leo has always loved spending time in the kitchen. Last month, he found his grandmother’s old recipe for fried chicken. He decided to add something new to it: a special, hot chili powder. When his family tried the dish, they loved it. Because of this, Leo decided to open a small food stall at the town market.
Getting ready was hard work. Leo had to wake up at five o’clock in the morning to buy fresh chicken. On his first day at the market, the weather was terrible. It rained a lot, so only a few people visited his stall. He didn’t sell much chicken and felt a bit sad, but he didn’t stop trying.
The following Saturday, things changed. The sun was shining, and the market was busy. People could smell the spicy chicken from far away. A popular internet photographer tasted the food and quickly put a photo of it on his website. After that, a long line of hungry customers waited to buy Leo’s chicken.
Now, Leo’s pop-up stall is the most popular place at the market. He usually sells all his spicy chicken in just two hours! He is keeping all the money he makes in the bank. When he is older, he is going to pay for a course at a famous cooking college.
1 Why did Leo decide to open a food stall?
(A) He wanted to find his grandmother’s old recipe.
(B) His relatives really enjoyed eating his new meal.
(C) He needed to buy a special, hot chili powder.
2 How did Leo feel on his first day at the market?
(A) Terrible because he couldn’t buy fresh chicken.
(B) Sad because he had to wake up at five o’clock.
(C) Disappointed because he only had a few customers.
3 What made Leo’s stall suddenly popular?
(A) Someone shared a picture of his meal online.
(B) A long line of hungry customers tasted the food.
(C) The sun was shining on the spicy chicken.
4 What is Leo planning to do with his money?
(A) Keep it in the bank for just two hours.
(B) Give it to the most popular place at the market.
(C) Use it to study how to prepare food later.
5 What is the best title for the article?
(A) How to cook chicken with special, hot chili powder
(B) The teenager whose spicy food became a big success
(C) The best town market to sell your grandmother’s food
ANSWER KEY
1 B 2 C 3 A 4 C 5 B
Reading 2
For each question, choose the correct answer.
The Teenager Testing the Hottest Food
Fifteen-year-old Charlie has a very exciting hobby. In his free time, he makes internet videos about food. While his classmates prefer playing sports, Charlie spends his weekends visiting local street markets. He is famous online for eating spicy ramen. His friends think he is crazy because the noodles are so hot, but Charlie loves the burning feeling.
Charlie started making videos last year. He was at a night market with his dad, and he bought a bowl of the hottest noodles he could find. He filmed himself eating them and put the video on the internet. He only wanted his family to see it, but suddenly, thousands of people watched it and asked for more.
Making these videos is not always easy. Charlie spends hours walking around the city looking for new food stalls. Sometimes the food is quite expensive, or it doesn’t taste very good. However, Charlie always tells his viewers the truth. If a dish is bad, he says so. Because of this, his fans really trust his opinions.
Now, Charlie has a lot of followers. Sometimes, big restaurant owners invite him to eat their meals for free. But Charlie usually says no. He prefers paying for his own bowls of street food. Next year, he hopes to travel to South Korea to review the popular spicy dishes there.
1 What do Charlie’s friends think about the food he eats?
(A) They prefer playing sports with him.
(B) They believe he chooses very strange things to eat.
(C) They love the burning feeling of the noodles.
2 Why did Charlie put his first video on the internet?
(A) Because he planned to share it with his relatives.
(B) Because he wanted thousands of people to watch it.
(C) Because people asked for more bowls of noodles.
3 What is a problem Charlie sometimes has?
(A) He spends hours looking for his viewers around the city.
(B) He always tells his viewers the truth about the dishes.
(C) He pays a high price for meals that are not delicious.
4 What does Charlie prefer to do now?
(A) travel to South Korea to review dishes
(B) buy his own food from street markets
(C) eat meals for free from big restaurant owners
5 What is the best title for the article?
(A) How to cook spicy noodles at home
(B) The schoolboy who reviews hot food online
(C) A famous restaurant in South Korea
ANSWER KEY
1 B 2 A 3 C 4 B 5 B
Reading 3
For each question, choose the correct answer.
The Teenager Who Sells Spicy Tacos
Sixteen-year-old Mateo has always loved cooking. His favourite meals to make are Mexican dishes because he really enjoys spicy food. He often cooks dinners for his family, but last month, he decided to do something different. He wanted to earn some extra pocket money, so he started a small weekend business selling his favourite food.
Mateo planned his menu carefully. He decided to make traditional Mexican tacos and add hot jalapeño peppers to them. He knew some people do not like very spicy food, but he wanted his tacos to be special. On Friday afternoon, after school, he went to the local market to buy fresh tomatoes, meat, and lots of jalapeños.
On Saturday morning, Mateo set up a small food stand in his neighbourhood. At first, people just walked past without stopping. Mateo felt a bit worried. However, around lunchtime, his friends arrived to buy some tacos. Soon, other hungry people smelled the delicious food and started waiting in line to try it.
By the end of the day, Mateo had nothing left to sell. He was very tired, but he was also incredibly happy. He made enough money to buy better cooking equipment. Next month, he is going to ask his sister to help him so they can sell even more tacos together!
1 Why did Mateo begin his weekend business?
(A) To get some extra cash for himself.
(B) Because he often cooks dinners for his family.
(C) Because he really enjoys spicy food.
2 What did Mateo do on Friday?
(A) He shopped for the ingredients for his dishes.
(B) He planned his menu carefully.
(C) He decided to make traditional Mexican tacos.
3 How did Mateo feel when he first opened his food stand?
(A) Nervous because people just walked past.
(B) Happy because his friends arrived to buy some tacos.
(C) Hungry because he smelled the delicious food.
4 What happened at the end of Saturday?
(A) Mateo completely sold out of his meals.
(B) Mateo went to buy better cooking equipment.
(C) Mateo’s sister came to help him sell even more tacos.
5 What is the best title for the article?
(A) A teenager’s successful food business
(B) How to cook traditional Mexican tacos
(C) The best market for fresh jalapeños
ANSWER KEY
1 A 2 A 3 A 4 A 5 A