CELPIP® Writing Task 1 sample: A Quieter Celebration Dinner

Level 7 sample answer

159 words

Dear Antoine,

I am writing about my table booking for six people at your restaurant in Ottawa. We are celebrating the completion of a group hiking challenge. I have now seen that a live band will play that evening, and I am concerned about the noise.

We chose your restaurant because we wanted to talk quietly over dinner. Also, two guests will travel 90 km to join us, so changing the date would be difficult. Everyone have agreed to spend no more than $45 each at the restaurant. Adding the $60 room fee would make our budget more difficult to manage.

Could you let us use the quieter dining room without the extra fee? If this is not possible, could we eat before the band starts while keeping our original date? Please let me know what you can offers before Friday, as I need to confirm the arrangements with the group.

Thank you for your help.

Best regards,

Hiba

Why this answer is at level 7

This level 7 answer covers the concern, travel constraints, budget and possible solutions in a clear sequence. Basic wording, noticeable grammar errors and an earlier-dinner proposal that does not specify finishing before the music starts hold it below the more precise higher-level answers.

• Also, two guests will travel 90 km to join us, so changing the date would be difficult. — Content/Coherence: The travel distance supports keeping the original date, making this detail relevant to the request. The connection is clear but introduced simply with “Also”; the higher-level answers integrate travel and budget constraints more smoothly into the negotiation.
• Adding the $60 room fee would make our budget more difficult to manage. — Vocabulary: The wording communicates financial pressure but leaves its effect vague. The higher-level answers explain the additional share per person and its effect on meal spending, making the budget argument more concrete.
• Everyone have agreed to spend no more than $45 each at the restaurant. — Readability: The spending limit is easy to understand, but “Everyone have” contains a subject–verb agreement error. The later “can offers” adds another noticeable grammar problem. The higher-level answers maintain grammatical control throughout their requests.
• If this is not possible, could we eat before the band starts while keeping our original date? — Task Fulfillment: This offers a relevant fallback while preserving the booking date. However, eating before the band starts does not clearly establish that dinner would finish before the noise begins. The higher-level answers explicitly require finishing before the performance.

Level 9 sample answer

192 words

Dear Antoine,

I would like to discuss the arrangements for my table of six at your Ottawa restaurant. We booked dinner to celebrate completing a group hiking challenge, but the announcement of live music has raised a concern. We chose the restaurant specifically so we could talk comfortably.

The gathering matters because it gives our group a chance to enjoy the achievement together. Two guests are travelling 90 km, so I would prefer to keep the original date. However, everyone agreed to a maximum restaurant bill of $45 each. A $60 fee for the quieter room would add $10 per person, leaving less room for our meals.

Would you consider waiving the room fee if we keep our booking for six? Alternatively, could you offer an earlier seating that would allow us to finish before the band begins? Either arrangement could help us enjoy the evening without stretching the agreed budget.

Please let me know before Friday, when I need to confirm our plans. If an earlier dinner is possible, please include the available times so I can check with the two travelling guests.

Thank you for your help.

Best regards,

Hiba

Why this answer is at level 9

This level 9 answer develops the budget argument, offers workable alternatives and requests useful scheduling details in consistently clear language. Some repetition and the absence of an explicit request for the band's start time leave it less economical and operationally precise than the level 11 answer.

• The gathering matters because it gives our group a chance to enjoy the achievement together. — Content/Coherence: This explains the occasion's importance, but partly repeats the opening explanation about celebrating the hiking challenge. The top answer uses that space more efficiently to develop the practical constraints and conditions for accepting an alternative.
• A $60 fee for the quieter room would add $10 per person, leaving less room for our meals. — Vocabulary: The specific calculation strengthens the budget explanation compared with the level 7 answer. “Leaving less room for our meals” is understandable but less precise than the top answer's wording about a reduced meal allowance.
• Alternatively, could you offer an earlier seating that would allow us to finish before the band begins? — Readability: The transition clearly introduces the fallback, and the relative clause explains exactly what that seating must achieve. This is more controlled than the level 7 proposal. The top answer extends that clarity by stating the information needed before accepting.
• If an earlier dinner is possible, please include the available times so I can check with the two travelling guests. — Task Fulfillment: The request anticipates the travelling guests' scheduling needs and gives the manager a useful response to provide. The top answer adds an explicit requirement to confirm the band's start time, which helps establish whether dinner can actually finish beforehand.

Level 11 sample answer

190 words

Dear Antoine,

The announcement of a live band has prompted me to review our dinner reservation for six at your Ottawa restaurant. We are celebrating the completion of a group hiking challenge, and the opportunity for relaxed conversation was central to choosing your venue.

With two guests travelling 90 km, changing the date would complicate an occasion we have already coordinated. Equally, the quieter dining room's $60 fee would add $10 to each person's share before any food is ordered. Since everyone agreed to spend no more than $45 each at the restaurant, that charge would reduce our meal allowance considerably.

Could the room fee be waived for our group, provided we select meals that keep the total within our agreed limit? If that is not feasible, an earlier seating, allowing us to finish before the music begins, might offer a practical compromise. We would need confirmation of the band's start time before committing to that option.

Please outline what you can accommodate before Friday's confirmation deadline, so I can consult the group and give the travelling guests a definite plan.

Thank you for considering these arrangements.

Best regards,

Hiba

Why this answer is at level 11

This level 11 answer combines a focused explanation of the group's constraints with precise budget language and carefully qualified alternatives. Its controlled sentences, courteous negotiation and explicit request for the band's start time make the proposed arrangements clear and actionable.

• With two guests travelling 90 km, changing the date would complicate an occasion we have already coordinated. — Content/Coherence: The travel detail directly explains why retaining the date matters. Referring to an already coordinated occasion gives the preference a practical basis and connects the group's circumstances smoothly to the proposed arrangements.
• that charge would reduce our meal allowance considerably. — Vocabulary: “Meal allowance” precisely identifies what the room fee would reduce within the agreed spending limit. This develops the financial consequence more clearly than the level 7 reference to budget difficulty and more precisely than the level 9 phrase about less room for meals.
• If that is not feasible, an earlier seating, allowing us to finish before the music begins, might offer a practical compromise. — Readability: The conditional opening links the fallback to the fee-waiver request. The inserted phrase specifies the timing requirement, while “might” keeps the proposal appropriately tentative. The sentence handles several related ideas without obscuring the suggested solution.
• We would need confirmation of the band's start time before committing to that option. — Task Fulfillment: This identifies the information needed to judge whether an earlier seating would meet the group's need for quiet conversation. Together with the request for a reply before Friday's deadline, it gives the manager clear next steps.