How to Order Food in Chinese: Essential Phrases for Beginners
Have you ever visited a Chinese restaurant and wondered how to order your favourite dishes in Chinese? 🍜 Whether you are travelling in China, visiting a local Chinese restaurant, or simply learning Mandarin, knowing how to order food is a practical and enjoyable way to use your Chinese.
The good news is that you don't need to speak perfect Chinese to order a meal! With a few essential phrases, you can order your favourite dishes, ask about prices, and communicate with restaurant staff more confidently.
In this guide, we'll explore the most useful Chinese phrases for ordering food, complete with pinyin, English translations, and examples you can practise straight away.
1. Getting Started: How to Ask for a Menu
When you enter a Chinese restaurant, one of the first things you might need is a menu.
Chinese | Pinyin | English |
你好！ | Nǐ hǎo! | Hello! |
请给我菜单。 | Qǐng gěi wǒ càidān. | Please give me a menu. |
请问，有英文菜单吗？ | Qǐngwèn, yǒu Yīngwén càidān ma? | Excuse me, do you have an English menu? |
这个是什么？ | Zhège shì shénme? | What is this? |
你推荐什么？ | Nǐ tuījiàn shénme? | What do you recommend? |
Learning tip: The word 请 (qǐng) means “please” and is useful in many everyday situations. Adding 请 to a request can make it sound more polite.
For example:
请给我一杯水。 (Qǐng gěi wǒ yì bēi shuǐ.) — Please give me a glass of water.
请给我菜单。 (Qǐng gěi wǒ càidān.) — Please give me a menu.
2. How to Order Food in Chinese
Once you've chosen your dishes, how do you tell the waiter what you'd like?
One of the easiest and most useful sentence patterns is:
我想要 + food or drink.
This means “I'd like...” or “I would like to have...”
Chinese | Pinyin | English |
我想要一碗面。 | Wǒ xiǎng yào yì wǎn miàn. | I'd like a bowl of noodles. |
我要一份饺子。 | Wǒ yào yí fèn jiǎozi. | I'd like a portion of dumplings. |
我想要一杯茶。 | Wǒ xiǎng yào yì bēi chá. | I'd like a cup of tea. |
我要一碗米饭。 | Wǒ yào yì wǎn mǐfàn. | I'd like a bowl of rice. |
我还要一个包子。 | Wǒ hái yào yí ge bāozi. | I'd also like a steamed bun. |
我想要 vs 我要: What's the difference?
Both expressions are commonly used when ordering food.
我想要 (wǒ xiǎng yào) — “I'd like...” A friendly way to express what you would like.
我要 (wǒ yào) — “I'll have...” or “I want...” Direct and commonly used when ordering.
You can use either expression in a restaurant. Your tone of voice and the situation also help make your request sound polite.
3. Learn the Most Useful Food Measure Words
In Chinese, you often need a measure word between a number and a noun. This is especially important when ordering food and drinks.
Here are four useful measure words to remember:
Measure word | Pinyin | Used for | Example |
个 | ge | General items | 一个包子 — one steamed bun |
碗 | wǎn | Bowls of food | 一碗面 — a bowl of noodles |
杯 | bēi | Cups or glasses | 一杯茶 — a cup of tea |
份 | fèn | Portions or servings | 一份饺子 — a portion of dumplings |
Notice the structure:
Number + measure word + food
For example:
两杯茶 (liǎng bēi chá) — two cups of tea
三碗米饭 (sān wǎn mǐfàn) — three bowls of rice
一份炒饭 (yí fèn chǎofàn) — one portion of fried rice
Beginner tip: When ordering two items, Chinese normally uses 两 (liǎng) before a measure word, rather than 二 (èr). For example, 两碗面 (liǎng wǎn miàn) means “two bowls of noodles”.
4. Asking About Prices
If you're eating in China, you may want to check the price before ordering.
Chinese | Pinyin | English |
这个多少钱？ | Zhège duōshao qián? | How much is this? |
一碗面多少钱？ | Yì wǎn miàn duōshao qián? | How much is a bowl of noodles? |
太贵了！ | Tài guì le! | It's too expensive! |
可以便宜一点吗？ | Kěyǐ piányi yìdiǎn ma? | Could it be a little cheaper? |
我要买单。 | Wǒ yào mǎidān. | I'd like to pay the bill. |
A particularly useful expression is 多少钱 (duōshao qián), which means “how much money?”
You can use it in many situations, not just in restaurants.
For example:
这个多少钱？ — How much is this?
一杯咖啡多少钱？ — How much is a cup of coffee?
两张票多少钱？ — How much are two tickets?
5. Common Restaurant Words You Should Know
Learning a few food-related words will make ordering much easier.
Chinese | Pinyin | English |
菜单 | càidān | Menu |
米饭 | mǐfàn | Cooked rice |
面条 | miàntiáo | Noodles |
饺子 | jiǎozi | Dumplings |
包子 | bāozi | Steamed buns |
炒饭 | chǎofàn | Fried rice |
茶 | chá | Tea |
水 | shuǐ | Water |
辣 | là | Spicy |
不辣 | bú là | Not spicy |
好吃 | hǎochī | Delicious |
买单 | mǎidān | Pay the bill |
Want to compliment the food? Try saying:
这个很好吃！ (Zhège hěn hǎochī!)
This means “This is delicious!”
It's a simple phrase that can help you connect with people and enjoy the dining experience even more.
6. A Real-Life Chinese Restaurant Conversation
Now let's put everything together in a simple conversation between a customer and a waiter.
服务员 (Fúwùyuán): 你好！你想吃什么？
Nǐ hǎo! Nǐ xiǎng chī shénme?
Hello! What would you like to eat?
顾客 (Gùkè): 你好！我想要一碗牛肉面。
Nǐ hǎo! Wǒ xiǎng yào yì wǎn niúròu miàn.
Hello! I'd like a bowl of beef noodles.
服务员： 好的。你想喝什么？
Hǎo de. Nǐ xiǎng hē shénme?
Certainly. What would you like to drink?
顾客： 请给我一杯茶。
Qǐng gěi wǒ yì bēi chá.
A cup of tea, please.
服务员： 好的，还要别的吗？
Hǎo de, hái yào bié de ma?
Certainly. Would you like anything else?
顾客： 不用了，谢谢！
Bú yòng le, xièxie!
No, that's all, thank you!
服务员： 好的，请稍等。
Hǎo de, qǐng shāo děng.
All right, please wait a moment.
Congratulations! You can now understand and practise a basic Chinese restaurant conversation.
7. Three Useful Tips for Ordering Food in China
Tip 1: Practise saying your order aloud
Reading Chinese is helpful, but speaking aloud helps you become more comfortable with pronunciation and tones.
Try practising sentences such as:
我要一碗面。
我想要一杯茶。
请给我菜单。
Start slowly, then gradually increase your speaking speed.
Tip 2: Don't worry about making mistakes
You don't need perfect grammar to communicate. Many restaurant interactions use short, simple sentences. A friendly smile, a polite 请 (qǐng), and a clear order can go a long way.
Tip 3: Learn food vocabulary that interests you
If you love dumplings, learn how to order different kinds of 饺子 (jiǎozi). If you prefer noodles, practise ordering 牛肉面 (niúròu miàn) or 炒面 (chǎomiàn).
Learning vocabulary connected to your interests makes studying Chinese more enjoyable and memorable.
Conclusion: Start Ordering in Chinese Today!
Ordering food is one of the most practical ways to use Mandarin in real life. By learning a few sentence patterns, common measure words, and useful restaurant expressions, you can take your first steps towards communicating more confidently in Chinese.
Remember these three essential phrases:
我想要…… (Wǒ xiǎng yào...) — I'd like...
这个多少钱？ (Zhège duōshao qián?) — How much is this?
请给我…… (Qǐng gěi wǒ...) — Please give me...
Practise them today, and the next time you visit a Chinese restaurant, why not try ordering something in Mandarin?
At BenjiLearning, we believe that learning Chinese should be practical, engaging, and connected to real life. Through conversational practice and topic-based lessons, you can gradually build the confidence to use Mandarin beyond the classroom.
Ready to take the next step in your Chinese-learning journey? Explore our Chinese courses and start speaking Mandarin with confidence!
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