Hold the mustard

Question

If I were in the US, using US English at a counter, to tell the staff member not to give mustard, I'd say

-Give me a hot dog, but hold the mustard.

1. In UK English, how should I express the same meaning?

2. In UK/US English, if at a checkout I want to tell the staff member I don't need a bag, to be environmentally friendly, is it idiomatic English to say?:

-Keep the bag. (I model it on keep the change, but modellation is not always successful)

3. In banks, there are counters; in supermarkets, there are checkouts; but are the equivalents (where you pay) in restaurants also called counters?

Clive · Accepted Answer

If I were in the US, using US English at a counter, to tell the staff member not to give mustard, I'd say

-Give me a hot dog, but hold the mustard. British people are more likely to add 'please'.

1. In UK English, how should I express the same meaning?
As a Briton in Canada, I'd say eg I'd like a hot dog with no mustard, please.
I would never start with a peremptory 'Give me . . . '

2. In UK/US English, if at a checkout I want to tell the staff member I don't need a bag, to be environmentally friendly, is it idiomatic English to say?:

-Keep the bag. (I model it on keep the change, but modellation is not always successful)
I'd say 'I don't need a bag, thank you'.

3. In banks, there are counters; in supermarkets, there are checkouts; but are the equivalents (where you pay) in restaurants also called counters? I say 'the desk'.

Overall, my experience is that British people say 'please / thank you' a lot. And we notice it if other people don't.

Clive

KJinCali79 · Answer

1. "Give me a hot dog, but hold the mustard."
I'm in the U.S., but I would find this order to be very rude. If you want to be direct and informal it should be directed at yourself, for example, "I'll take a hot dog...." rather than "Give me..." otherwise you should ask more politely.

But yes, "hold the mustard" or "without mustard." As an aside, I never use "hold" in this situation as it sounds very East Coast (U.S.) to me, or old-fashioned, but it is used by older people and generally understood. It was more widely propagated in the 1970's with a Burger King ad campaign, but no one I know still says this, at least not in my region or age demographic.

2. "I do not need a bag, thanks". Or, "A bag isn't necessary."

3. In a restaurant a "counter" is the service/seating area usually nearest the kitchen in a diner setting, or at the bar. Therefore, I would not use "counter" to refer to the place where you pay, if it's an establishment where you don't pay at your table. I would simply call it "up front" (because it generally is by the front door), or "at the register" (meaning the cash register).

BarbaraPA · Answer

I'm glad both of the other posters pointed out that "Give me" is rude.

Hold the..., please
Or
No ...., please
would be equally likely to follow "I'd like a ..., please"

Clive · Answer

As an aside . . . . . . . .

In my experience, mustard is always something that the customer puts on (or chooses not to put on) his hot dog himself.

Clive

Dave_anon · Answer

All of those are good. I suppose I'd say, in the UK ...

- I won't have mustard, thanks

- I've got a bag, thanks
[... holds up bag to indicate that this is so]
or
- No, don't worry, I haven't got far to go

[To companion ...]
- Should we ask for the bill or do we pay at the counter?

Dave

Hold the mustard

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