IdiomFood & Drink
German
GermanDa haben wir den Salat
Meaning: Now we've got a fine mess.
Literally: There we have the salad
Example: “Der Ofen ist aus und die Gäste kommen: da haben wir den Salat.” — The oven is off and the guests are arriving: this is a fine kettle of fish.
English equivalent: A fine kettle of fish
Origin: A salad is a jumble of ingredients tossed together, and since the mid-19th century Salat has been German slang for a mess or a muddle, as in Kabelsalat (a tangle of cables). The exclamation "now we've got the salad" is in print from 1849, said when something has gone wrong as predicted.
Equivalents in other languages
Swedish: Nu är det kokta fläsket stekt Literally: Now the boiled pork is fried
Afrikaans: Nou is die gort gaar Literally: Now the barley porridge is cooked
English: fine kettle of fish
More German idioms
- Eulen nach Athen tragen To do something utterly pointless.
- Hummeln im Hintern haben To be unable to sit still.
- Das ist nicht das Gelbe vom Ei It's not ideal; not quite good enough.
- Alles in Butter Everything is fine and under control.
- Aus dem Häuschen sein To be beside yourself with excitement.
- Jemandem auf den Keks gehen To get on someone's nerves.
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