Spanish for Restaurants
How to Order Food in Spanish
Once you have a menu, focus on one choice and one useful question. This lesson covers asking for a recommendation, choosing soup or salad, and checking what comes with a dish.
Useful Spanish phrases
Read each phrase with its English meaning. Then cover the translation and picture when you would use it.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| ¿Qué recomienda? | What do you recommend? |
| Quisiera la sopa, por favor. | I would like the soup, please. |
| Para mí, la ensalada. | The salad for me. |
| Sin cebolla, por favor. | Without onion, please. |
| ¿Viene con arroz? | Does it come with rice? |
| Está delicioso. | It is delicious. |
Like learning through everyday situations? See how HeyHola brings them into practice.
Order in manageable chunks
The soup request is a complete polite order. The salad phrase is a shorter way to identify another diner’s choice in this context. In the sample, Ana and Carlos each order something. Notice who is speaking so you do not accidentally combine their two meals into a single request.
Ask before assuming
The recommendation question invites advice; it does not specify what you will receive. The rice question checks an accompaniment, while the onion phrase requests an omission. Practice identifying which phrase chooses a dish and which one asks about it. A server’s response may introduce words beyond this short list.
Try a short conversation
An illustrative practice scene using the phrases above. Pauses leave room for replies that may vary in a real conversation.
- Ana
- Quisiera la sopa, por favor.I would like the soup, please.
- Carlos, another diner
- Para mí, la ensalada.The salad for me.
- Ana, requesting a change
- Sin cebolla, por favor.Without onion, please.
A common mistake to avoid
A request to leave out onion does not confirm that a dish meets an allergy requirement. If ingredients affect your safety, obtain clear confirmation and appropriate assistance rather than relying on this short ordering script.
A note for real life
Menus, portion sizes, and what comes with a dish differ by restaurant. Quisiera is the polite ordering form used in this app lesson; it is not the only natural way to order.
PICO’S PRACTICE TIP
Your turn
Choose soup for Ana and salad for Carlos. Practice the two orders, then ask whether a dish comes with rice. End by selecting the phrase that comments positively on the food.
Phrase source: HeyHola’s authored app lessons.