Ordering food is one of the most useful skills when travelling in China. Let’s practise a simple restaurant conversation.
Useful Vocabulary
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 菜单 | càidān | Menu |
| 点菜 | diǎn cài | To order food |
| 米饭 | mǐfàn | Rice |
| 面条 | miàntiáo | Noodles |
| 饺子 | jiǎozi | Dumplings |
| 水 | shuǐ | Water |
| 辣 | là | Spicy |
| 买单 | mǎidān | To pay the bill |
A Restaurant Conversation
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 服务员：您好！几位？ | Fúwùyuán: Nín hǎo! Jǐ wèi? | Hello! How many people? |
| 客人：两位。请给我们菜单。 | Kèrén: Liǎng wèi. Qǐng gěi wǒmen càidān. | Two people. Please give us a menu. |
| 服务员：您想吃什么？ | Fúwùyuán: Nín xiǎng chī shénme? | What would you like to eat? |
| 客人：我要一份饺子和一碗面条。 | Kèrén: Wǒ yào yí fèn jiǎozi hé yì wǎn miàntiáo. | I’d like one portion of dumplings and one bowl of noodles. |
| 服务员：要辣吗？ | Fúwùyuán: Yào là ma? | Would you like it spicy? |
| 客人：不要辣，谢谢！ | Kèrén: Bú yào là, xièxie! | Not spicy, thank you! |
Your Turn
Imagine you are in a Chinese restaurant. Try ordering your favourite food using:
我要…… (Wǒ yào…) — I would like…
Practise practical Chinese with Beyond Mandarin before your next trip to China.