Food & Drinks

1. La carta, por favor

   The menu, please

   Usage

   Ask for the menu at a restaurant

   Grammar Note

   In Spain "carta" is standard. In Latin America "menú" is equally common

2. Quiero un café con leche

   I want a café con leche (coffee with milk)

   Usage

   Order a classic Spanish coffee drink at a café

   Grammar Note

   "Quiero" is first person of querer (to want). More direct than "quisiera" but widely used

3. La cuenta, por favor

   The bill, please

   Usage

   Ask for the bill at a restaurant or café

   Grammar Note

   "Cuenta" means bill/check. Add "juntos" (together) to pay as a group

4. ¡Está delicioso!

   It's delicious!

   Usage

   Express that food is delicious. A wonderful compliment to the cook

   Grammar Note

   "Estar" expresses temporary state. For food taste, use estar not ser (which is for essence)

5. ¿Tienen mesa para dos?

   Do you have a table for two?

   Usage

   Ask for a table at a restaurant when you don't have a reservation

   Grammar Note

   "Tienen" is third person plural of tener. In Spanish, ustedes uses the third person plural form

6. Soy vegetariano/a

   I am vegetarian

   Usage

   Inform restaurant staff of your vegetarian diet before ordering

   Grammar Note

   Use "ser" for personal identity/diet. Masculine: vegetariano, feminine: vegetariana

7. Soy alérgico/a a los frutos secos

   I am allergic to nuts

   Usage

   Important phrase to convey food allergies before eating

   Grammar Note

   "Alérgico/a a" means allergic to. Follow with the allergen using the preposition "a"

8. ¿Tienen menú del día?

   Do you have a set lunch menu?

   Usage

   Ask for the affordable fixed-price lunch menu common in Spanish restaurants

   Grammar Note

   "Menú del día" is a Spanish lunchtime institution: starter, main, dessert, and drink included

9. ¿Cuál es la especialidad de la casa?

   What is the house specialty?

   Usage

   Ask for the restaurant's signature dish at a local eatery or bar

   Grammar Note

   "¿Cuál es?" selects from options while "¿Qué es?" asks about nature. Use cuál for specifics

10. ¿Tienen platos sin gluten?

    Do you have gluten-free dishes?

    Usage

    A practical phrase for those with gluten intolerance or coeliac disease

    Grammar Note

    "Sin" means without. Apply: sin lactosa (lactose-free), sin azúcar (sugar-free)

11. el arroz

    Rice

    Usage

    One word for both raw and cooked rice; in an eatery it reads as cooked rice

12. el pan

    Bread

    Usage

    Order it as a side or use it to check what a dish is made of

13. los fideos

    Noodles

    Usage

    Works for Asian noodles too; Italian-style pasta is "la pasta"

14. picante

    Spicy

    Usage

    Use it to check or refuse chilli heat; salty is a different word, "salado"

15. dulce

    Sweet

    Usage

    The taste; as a noun it can also mean a sweet, so point at the dish while showing it

16. crudo

    Raw

    Usage

    Not cooked; show it when checking whether something is safe to eat

17. el queso

    Cheese

    Usage

    For ordering or for checking ingredients

18. la miel

    Honey

    Usage

    For asking for honey or checking whether a dish contains it

19. el tofu

    Tofu

    Usage

    Spanish uses "tofu" as is; handy when looking for vegetarian dishes

20. la sopa

    Soup

    Usage

    Point at it when ordering to specify a soup

21. el yogur

    Yogurt

    Usage

    Spain spells it "yogur"; Latin America often writes "yogurt" or "yoghurt"

Browse all TravelPhrases languages