If I would want to order a beer, I would normally say "I want a beer". But if I want to order two of them, do I say "two beers" or "two glasses of beer"? On the one hand, "two beers" feels more natural, and if the beer comes in glass bottles that would make sense, as it would be about two separate things. However, I also feel that "two glasses of beer" may be more grammatically correct?
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1When you order you don't generally ask for "glasses of beer". The waitstaff generally ask for clarification and it can get complicated. Draft or bottle? For example. Also, you often say the brand: Two Dos Equis, for example, which is in a bottle.– LambieCommented Sep 29, 2021 at 19:10
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@lambie: Cheers!– A rural readerCommented Sep 29, 2021 at 19:13
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@Lambie Oh yes, that’s true :) I am currently taking a course in English, and I wanted to know what the most grammatically correct thing was. You might also say that you’d like “a coffee”, right? But the grammatically correct thing would be “a cup of coffee”, wouldn’t it? Please do correct me if I’m wrong :)– MelvinCommented Sep 29, 2021 at 19:20
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You are wrong about "a coffee" and "two beers" being ungrammatical. If you consult a good dictionary, you should find that coffee and beer can be countable or uncountable.– JuhaszCommented Sep 29, 2021 at 19:55
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Lynne Murphy, in The Prodigal Tongue, talks about how a coffee is idiomatic in British English but not American. But a beer is used on both sides.– Colin FineCommented Sep 29, 2021 at 20:58
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1 Answer
"Two beers" is fine. In general, you can use the names of foods or drinks as countable nouns to mean "one serving": for instance, "I'll have a tea and two ice creams" = "I'll have a cup of tea and two bowls of ice cream." This may sound slightly informal, but it's not "ungrammatical": native English speakers use constructions like this all the time.
(This construction doesn't work with some foods: at least in my opinion, it sounds more unnatural to ask for "a rice" or "a bread" when you mean a bowl of rice or a loaf of bread." I can't think of a good rule that explains this. But again, to your question, "two beers" is fine and very common.)
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“A rice” or “a noodles” would be idiomatic in ordering takeout. The terms are often brief and to the point, in order to save time in speaking and writing. Same thing for “a smoked” (chicken), “a chopped” (salad), or “an iced” (coffee).– user205876Commented Sep 30, 2021 at 1:51