I'm an English teacher working with an advanced student. They asked me to teach them how to ask for help or support when things aren't going they way they should. I decided to teach him that it is often best to use indirect speech when asking for help, and these two sentences arose in my planning:
I’m afraid my food isn’t heated thoroughly, could you please bring it back to the kitchen
My food is cold, please take it back to the kitchen.
I naturally switch between "bring back" and "take back" in the polite, and less polite versions. If I play and switch them around, each sentence sounds more or less polite, accordingly. Is this just me thinking too hard, or is there some basis for this?