Order food in Chinese
I love travelling overseas because I enjoy the different types of food and culture. When you go to China or any other Chinese speaking countries, you will need to eat in a restaurant or small eateries. If you go to big cities like Beijing and Taipei, you will probably get by using English to order your Chinese food. However, if you visit Chinese villages or remote villages in China and Taiwan, English is absolutely a “no no”. As such, your only survival is to learn some basic Chinese to at least enable you to order food in Chinese and to understand the menu in Chinese.
In this post, we will teach you 20 commonly used Chinese words related to ordering food in Chinese. Hopefully, this will help you when you are in a Chinese restaurant or eateries in a Chinese speaking environment.
Chinese restaurant in Mandarin Chinese
How do you say restaurant in Mandarin Chinese? The commonly used Chinese words for restaurant are,
- 饭店 fàn diàn
- 餐厅 cān tīng
- 餐馆 cān guǎn
- 酒楼 jiǔ lóu
Popular Chinese Food menu
What is your favorite Chinese food? There are so many Chinese dishes available, it is really impossible to name them all. Surely, you have tried one of these popular Chinese dishes before. Nowadays, menu in Chinese restaurants are provided with pictures. This is really good news for tourists who do not speak Chinese or understand Chinese words. That being said, it is still better for you to learn some Chinese food names just in case you are dining in small eateries in a remote Chinese village. Moreover, knowing these Chinese food names will help you to order Chinese food easily.
- 炒饭 chǎo fàn fried rice
- 炒面 chǎo miàn fried noodles
- 麻婆豆腐 má pó dòu fu mapo tofu
- 糖醋里脊 táng cù lǐ jí sweet and sour pork
- 饺子 jiǎo zi dumplings
- 馄饨 / 抄手 / 云吞 hún tún/ chāo shǒu/ yún tūn wontons
- 春卷 chūn juǎn spring roll
- 北京烤鸭 běi jīng kǎo yā Peking Duck
- 火锅 huǒ guō hot pot
- 宫保鸡丁gōng bǎo jī dīng Kung Pao Chicken
How to say waiter or waitress in Chinese
In China, when you want the attention of a waiter or waitress, you can use by the following Chinese phrases
- 服务员 Fú wù yuán
- 侍应生 Shì yìng shēng
- 伙计 ( 广东) huǒ jì (guǎngdōng)
It is said that in China Hainan region, they normally address the waitresses as 美女 Měi nǚ [pretty girl], and the waiter as 帅哥 shuài gē [handsome man]. This is for use in normal eateries and not in those high class Chinese restaurants.
How to ask for seats in a Chinese restaurant
- 有空位吗？Yǒu kòng wèi ma? Any seats available?
- 可以坐这儿吗？Kěyǐ zuò zhè’er ma? Can we sit here?
- 有五人桌吗？Yǒu wǔ rén zhuō ma? Table for five?
- 给我靠窗户的桌子 Gěi wǒ kào chuāng hù de zhuō zi. Give me a table near the window.
- 这位子不好，可以换吗？ Zhè wèi zi bù hǎo, kěyǐ huàn ma? This seat is not good, may I change?
- 有没有单间？Yǒu méi yǒu dān jiān Do you have a private room?
How to order food in Mandarin Chinese
- 请拿菜单来。Qǐng ná cài dān lái. Please give me the menu.
- 有英语的菜单吗？Yǒu yīng yǔ de cài dān ma? Do you have an English menu?
- 这儿的拿手菜 / 招牌菜是什么？Zhè’er de ná shǒu cài / zhāo pái cài shì shén me? What is the house specialty / what is your signature dish?
- 来一个麻婆豆腐，一个铁板牛柳，两个白饭，再来一壶菊花茶 Lái yī gè má pó dòu fu, yī gè tiě bǎn niú liǔ, liǎng gè bái fàn, zài lái yī hú jú huā chá. Give me mapo tofu, iron plate beef, 2 bowls of white rice and a pot of Chrisentamm
- 够了/就要这些 Gòu le / jiù yào zhè xiē that will be all for now
- 先上茶水 xiān shàng chá shuǐ serve the drinks first
- 米饭和菜一起上 mǐ fàn huo cài yīqǐ shàng serve rice and dishes together
How to say in Chinese during a meal
- 帮我添加茶水 Bāng wǒ tiān jiā chá shuǐ please give me some more tea
- 给我湿纸巾 / 纸巾 gěi wǒ shī zhǐ jīn/ zhǐ jīn give me some wet tissue / paper napkin
- 多拿一双筷子 duō ná yī shuāng kuài zi pass me an extra chopsticks
- 我想加菜 wǒ xiǎng jiā cài I want to order more dishes
How to complain in Chinese about the order
- 我没点这个菜 wǒ méi diǎn zhè ge cài I did not order this
- 我点的菜还没上 wǒ diǎn de cài hái méi shàng my order has not come yet
- 茶水不热 chá shuǐ bù rè the tea is not hot
- 麻婆豆腐太辣 má pó dòu fu tài là the mapo tofu is too spicy
- 铁板牛柳煮得太老 tiě bǎn niú liǔ zhǔ dé tài lǎo the iron plate beef is overcooked
Pay bill
- 请结账 / 买单 qǐng jié zhàng/ mǎi dān bill please
- 在那儿付钱？zài nà’er fù qián? where should I pay?
- 我请客 wǒ qǐng kè it’s on me
- 我来付 wǒ lái fù I’ll settle it / I’ll pay
- 这是什么的钱? zhè shì shén me de qián? what is this amount for?
- 这儿算错了 zhè’er suàn cuòle there is a mistake here
- 我们各付各的吧 。 wǒ men gè fù gè de ba let’s go Dutch
- 我们分开付款 wǒ men fēn kāi fù kuǎn we would like to pay separately
- 请开张发票 qǐng kāi zhāng fā piào May I have a receipt, please
Chinese Restaurant near you
Do you have a Chinese restaurant near where you are? Practice what you have learned so far with the Chinese staffs in the restaurant. As you know, the more you practice, the faster you can speak the Chinese language. Don’t be shy! Don’t be afraid to get the pronunciation wrong. Practice makes perfect. 加油！
