10 Spanish Restaurant Phrases for Dining Out in Mexico
Learn how to order food, drinks, and get the server’s attention using Mexican Spanish
For me, one of the most exciting parts of living in Mexico is being able to enjoy the amazing, fresh, and flavorful cuisine. But it’s not just about the food! Dining out is an opportunity to connect with the locals and culture. Being able to sprinkle in a little Spanish during your dining experience adds another level of fun, adventure, and enjoyment to the excellent food.
To spice up your next dining experience, I’ve picked 10 Spanish restaurant phrases that are easy to learn and fun to use.
1. ¡Disculpe! (Excuse me!)
Need to get your server’s attention in a busy restaurant? Just say ¡Disculpe! and raise your hand up to catch their eye.
- ¡Disculpe! Necesito un tenedor, por favor.
- Excuse me! I need a fork, please.
This is one of those versatile Spanish restaurant phrases that isn’t limited to dining out. It can be used ANYWHERE, anytime you need to get someone’s attention, such as:
• ¡Disculpe! ¿Dónde está el baño? (Excuse me. Where is the bathroom?)
2. Quiero (I want…)
I know it sounds direct to say ‘I want a coffee’ when placing an order, but this is normal and natural in Mexico. Just follow it up with por favor (please) and it sounds very polite.
- Quiero un café negro, por favor.
- I want a black coffee, please.
Note: You do not need to say YO quiero here. The YO is redundant. In fact, if you add the YO, it sounds like you are adding emphasis to the statement like YOOOOO quiero a coffee.
3. Para mí… (for me….)
- Para mí, una naranjada con hielo, por favor.
- For me, an orange-lemonade with ice, please (A naranjada is like lemonade but is made with orange juice)
Careful with the pronunciation here! You will want to say this like: pah-rah me. As English speakers, we tend to say ‘pera’ like paramedic or parachute. ‘Pera’ actually means ‘pear’ in Spanish.
4. Sin (without)
This isn’t just a Spanish restaurant phrase, but it is certainly helpful if you want to eliminate an ingredient that you can’t stand. Use sin to specify which ingredients you want removed from your restaurant order.
- Quiero 4 tacos de pastor SIN cilantro, por favor.
- I want 4 pastor tacos without cilantro please.
Have you been saying ‘no cebolla’? It’s time to break that bad habit (which is incorrect) and start saying SIN cebolla instead.
5. Con (with)
Sometimes you need to say which ingredients you would like have included in your restaurant order. If you’d like to ADD an extra ingredient to your order (like extra cheese please!). To do this, you can use the word CON (with) + the ingredients you want.
- Una crepa con chantillí, fresas, chocolate, y plátano.
- A crepe with whipping cream, strawberries, chocolate, and banana.
The way I learned ‘con’ and ‘sin’ was by looking at the sticks of butter in the grocery store. If you would like to have salted butter, be sure to look for the one that says ‘con sal’. Most of the butter in Mexico is unsalted ‘sin sal’.
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