“A cup of coffee” – € 7.00
“A cup of coffee, please“ – € 4.25
“Hello, a cup of coffee, please“ – € 1.40

By Margo Lestz

At this café in Nice, France, minding your manners can significantly reduce the price of your coffee.

Of course, this was meant as a humorous way to remind customers to be polite, but it’s a great illustration of the French attitude toward good manners.

In France the “courtesy words and phrases” are very important and NOT optional.  Fortunately, they’re easy to master, but if you can’t manage them in French, at least say them in English.  More than likely, the French will understand you and think that you’re a polite person who doesn’t speak French – which is, of course, much better than being thought of as a rude person who doesn’t speak French. So if you want to…