Comida y restaurante
Topic-driven lesson: food vocabulary, restaurant phrases, basic culinary grammar. Key verbs: pedir (to order), traer (to bring), tomar (to have / to drink). Useful template: para mí, … = 'for me, …' (when ordering).
Meals
el desayuno (breakfast) — desayunar (to have breakfast). la comida (lunch — the main meal in Spain, around 2 PM) — comer. la merienda (afternoon snack) — merendar. la cena (dinner — late, around 9 PM) — cenar. comida means both 'lunch' and 'food in general' — context decides.
Basic food vocabulary
Bread and grains: pan, arroz, pasta. Vegetables: tomate, cebolla, patata (or papa in Latin America), zanahoria, lechuga, ajo. Fruits: manzana, naranja, plátano, fresa, uva, limón. Meat/fish: carne (meat), pollo (chicken), pescado (fish), jamón (ham). Dairy: leche, queso, mantequilla, yogur. Drinks: agua, café, té, vino, cerveza, zumo (or jugo).
Taste and description
rico = tasty. delicioso = delicious. dulce = sweet. salado = salty. amargo = bitter. picante = spicy. soso = bland. fresco = fresh. caliente = hot. frío = cold. La sopa está rica = the soup is tasty. Está muy salado = it's very salty.
At the restaurant — phrases
Una mesa para dos, por favor (a table for two). La carta, por favor (the menu). ¿Qué me recomienda? (what do you recommend?). Para mí, una sopa (I'll have a soup). De primero…/de segundo… (for the first course…/second course…). De postre, … (for dessert…). La cuenta, por favor (the bill). ¿Está incluido el servicio? (is the tip included?).
Ordering — formal vs casual
In a café among friends: Una cerveza, por favor (just like that). With a server — softer: ¿Me trae una cerveza? (could you bring me a beer?). Most polite — conditional: ¿Me podría traer la cuenta? (could you bring the bill?). All three work.
Verbs at the table
tomar = to drink or eat (broadly): tomar café, tomar una sopa. probar = to try / taste. servir (e→i) = to serve. pedir (e→i) = to order or ask for: voy a pedir el pollo. invitar = to invite or to treat (te invito = it's on me). pagar = to pay.
