Quick answer
La cuenta, por favor.
The bill, please. — In Spain the bill never comes until you ask, however long you sit there.
The words
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| la carta | the menu — not “el menú” |
| el menú del día | the set lunch |
| el camarero | the waiter (Spain) |
| el mesero | the waiter (Latin America) |
| la cuenta | the bill |
| la propina | the tip |
| el primer plato | the starter |
| el segundo plato | the main |
| el postre | the dessert |
| la bebida | the drink |
| el agua con gas | sparkling water |
| la caña | a small draught beer |
| el vino tinto | red wine — not “rojo” |
| pedir | to order |
| para llevar | to take away |
The phrases you will actually say
Una mesa para dos, por favor.A table for two, please.
¿Me trae la carta, por favor?Could you bring me the menu, please?
¿Qué me recomienda?What do you recommend? — the single best question to ask.
Para mí, la paella.I’ll have the paella — literally “for me”.
Está riquísimo.It’s delicious — say this and you will be looked after.
Worth knowing
Asking for el menú in Spain gets you the fixed-price lunch, not the list of dishes. The list is la carta — this one word marks you out as someone who has eaten in Spain before.
Practice
Practise your restaurant words
0/8 matched — tap a Spanish word, then its translation
Check yourself
You want to see the list of dishes. You ask for: