"We're not so happy like the Spanish," explains my waiter.

Everything served is fresh and prepared on the premises, our waiter explained.

"They said you reminded them of their parents," the waiter explained.

That morning, a waiter in the restaurant at my hotel had explained this to me without even the benefit of a common language.

"We have to say no, unfortunately, a lot of the time," a waiter explained to a customer last week.

The waiter could not explain and so I called the manager over and explained the situation to him.

The trick, our waiter explained, was to mix everything up.

At any rate, there is not a lot of time to think about it, because the waiter must now explain the menu formula.

"We don't really think of these as appetizers and main courses," our waiter explained.

"He's never said or done anything to me, you understand," the waiter explained.