Informal Letter · Recommending a Local Restaurant
A complete IELTS General Training Writing Task 1 question with a model answer of 215 words, plus a breakdown of the sentence structures, cohesive devices and vocabulary that answer uses. Write your own version first, then compare.
Written by Manish Sharma · CELTA and DELTA qualified · 8 years teaching IELTS
Score my answer to this questionThe question
You have 20 minutes. Write at least 150 words.
Your cousin from another country is coming to visit you next month for the first time. They have asked you to recommend a local restaurant they should try while they are in your city. Write a letter to your cousin. In your letter: - Describe the restaurant you would recommend - Explain why you think they would enjoy it - Suggest a good time and day for them to visit Write at least 150 words. You do NOT need to write any addresses. Begin your letter as follows: Dear ...,
How to approach it
- 01Use an informal opening like 'Dear [Name]' and a warm closing such as 'Lots of love' or 'Take care'
- 02Use contractions and chatty language: 'cannot wait', 'absolutely love', 'you would'
- 03Bring the restaurant to life with sensory detail — atmosphere, owner, decor, music
- 04Personalise the recommendation by linking it to your cousin's interests
- 05Cover all three bullet points without making the letter feel like a checklist
- 06End with a friendly forward-looking line rather than a formal sign-off
Model answer
215 words in 7 paragraphs. Read it after you have written your own, not before: the point of a model answer is to show you what you missed, and you cannot miss anything you have not attempted.
Dear Priya,
I was so happy to get your message and I cannot wait to show you around when you arrive next month! You asked me to recommend a local restaurant, and I have just the place in mind: a cosy little spot called Asha's Kitchen, tucked away on a side street near the old harbour.
It is a small family-run restaurant that has been open for about thirty years, and it serves the most amazing fresh seafood and home-style coastal dishes. The owner, Mrs Asha, still cooks every evening herself, and the walls are covered with old photographs of fishing boats and family weddings. The whole place feels like stepping into someone's home rather than a restaurant.
I think you would absolutely love it, partly because the food is incredible, but also because Asha is the kind of host who sits down at your table and tells you stories. Knowing how much you enjoy meeting new people, I am sure the two of you will get along brilliantly.
If you can, try to go on a Friday or Saturday evening, when there is live music from around eight o'clock. Get there by seven, though, otherwise you may have to wait for a table!
Cannot wait to hear what you think.
Lots of love, Maya
What this answer actually does
Measured from the text above, and compared against the other 31 answers of the same type in this library. These are counts, not band scores: they describe what the writing does, which is the part you can copy.
9 fewer than the median answer for this task type
4 words at the shortest, 33 at the longest
2 more than the median answer for this task type
carry a subordinate or relative clause
Sentence rhythm
Sentences average 19.5 words and vary by 8.9 words either side of that, running from 4 words to 33. Variation is the point. Grammatical Range and Accuracy rewards a mix of simple and complex sentences, and an answer where every sentence is the same length reads as flat no matter how correct it is. 4 of the 11 sentences here carry a subordinate or relative clause.
The cohesive devices it uses
4 in total, spread across 3 different functions. Range matters more than count: an answer that opens every paragraph with a sequencer signals its structure but never signals a relationship between ideas, and Coherence and Cohesion is marked on both.
though
because
next
Vocabulary and repetition
Ignoring grammar words, 79 per cent of the content words in this answer are distinct, and 68 per cent appear exactly once. Lexical Resource is where repetition costs the most marks, and the usual cause is not a small vocabulary but reaching for the same noun every time the topic is named.
The longest run of words copied straight from the question is 5 words. Examiners discount wording lifted from the question, so a short run here is the right outcome: the answer restates the topic in its own words rather than borrowing the question's.
What you are marked on
All four criteria carry equal weight, and your Writing band is their average rounded to the nearest half band.
Task Achievement
Cover all three bullet points with warmth and detail
Coherence & Cohesion
Natural paragraphing and conversational flow
Lexical Resource
Informal register with vivid descriptive language
Grammatical Range & Accuracy
Accurate use of contractions, conditionals, and modals
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