Order Food In German Like a Native: Real German Conversation Examples

German food is amazing, so going to the restaurant there is something you definitely should do!

But how do you order food in German?

Spring German teacher Brunhild will guide you through the process!

1. Ein Getränk bestellen (To order a drink)

Usually, the first question der Kellner (the waiter) will ask you, is:

That way, they can already prepare your drinks while you decide on food.

Chunks are word combinations often used by native speakers, which you can learn as a whole to sound like a local faster. Download our free essential German Chunking kit for more useful chunks!

✔️ Cheat Sheet with 53 Essential German Chunks: chunks and words you’ll hear and use in every German conversation

✔️ Tips on how to speak German WITHOUT thinking about grammar

✔️ A German Chunking Tutorial showing you the 1 technique that’ll help you make 100% of the German from our videos roll off the tongue in just 5 minutes a day (you’re probably only using 50% of our lessons’ potential right now…)

Yes! Send me my FREE German Chunking Kit

2. Essen bestellen (To order food)

To order anything, you have to study die Speisekarte (the menu). We already talked about ordering:

• ein Getränk (a drink), zum Beispiel ein Bier (a beer). But what food can we order? We can order
• eine Vorspeise (starters), zum Beispiel einen Salat (a salad)
• eine Hauptspeise (a main dish), zum Beispiel ein Schnitzel mit Pommes (a schnitzel with fries) and
• eine Nachspeise (a dessert), zum Beispiel einen Apfelstrudel (an apple strudel).

Many restaurants in Germany have “Ein Tagesgericht” (”A meal of the day”) which is on a separate Speisekarte (menu). Often in paper form or written on a blackboard somewhere, because it changes every day.

Das Tagesgericht (the meal of the day) is often served around lunchtime and is comparatively cheap, because there is a huge batch of it which doesn’t require extra preparation.

Now, how do you place an order? Let’s say you would like to order a pumpkin soup.

Here are three excellent ways how to do that:

The following example illustrates what it could look like in a very fancy restaurant.

Disclaimer!

The lady said “Herr Ober” (Mr waiter), which is a somewhat obsolete term for the waiter, which, if at all, only is used in very upscale restaurants.

It’s better if you don’t address the waiter by any designation and call them by just saying “Excuse me!”- “Entschuldigung!” (Excuse me!)

For more ways to catch someone’s attention, you might also enjoy this video about asking for help in Germany:

3. Die Nachspeise (The dessert)

When it’s time to clear the table, the waiter is likely to ask you something like:

If you weren’t satisfied with the food, you could say something like:

• Nein, es war zu wenig gewürzt. (No, it wasn’t seasoned enough.) or
• Nein, das Fleisch war zu zäh. (No, the meat was too chewy.)
  • However, in a case like this, we recommend that you give the waiter this feedback right away. In Germany, cooks are proud and prone not take you seriously if you eat the food and complain afterwards. If it wasn’t great, but not terrible enough to complain, either, you could say:
• Es war in Ordnung. (It was fine.) Which indicates that there’s room for improvement.

The waiter may also ask you if you would like a dessert:

In a real German conversation, this could go like:

4. Um die Rechnung bitten und bezahlen (Asking for the bill and paying)

When it’s time to leave, you can ask for the bill by saying:

Any of these work just fine.

Now, in a fancy restaurant, the waiter would usually just place a folder with the bill on the desk, so that you could then put the money. You wouldn’t talk about money out loud like in the following scene, but in order to learn, Iet’s watch them have an extensive discussion.

Yes, tipping the waiter is a must in Germany. But of course, you don’t have to tip as much as this guy. Around ten percent is a good tip.

5. Quiz on how to order food in German – or anything in a restaurant

How do you ask for a large Beer?

• a) Ich hätte gerne ein Glas Wasser.
• b) Ein großes Pils, bitte.

Okay, this one was too easy. It’s b). Instead of “Pils”, you could also be less specific and say “Ein großes Bier, bitte.” (A large beer, please.)

What does the waitress mean, when she says “Kommt sofort”?

• a) Go away.
• b) Coming right up.

Thankfully, it’s b). Kommt sofort (Coming right up) means: coming right up!

How can you let the waiter know, that you would like to pay?

• a) Ich möchte gern zahlen.
• b) Die Rechnung, bitte.

Both a) and b) are excellent ways to ask for the bill!

What does the waiter want to know, when he asks “Hat es Ihnen geschmeckt?

• a) He wants to know if he can bring you anything else.
• b) He wants to know if you liked the food.

Hat es Ihnen geschmeckt? (Did you enjoy the food?) literally means “Did it taste good to you?”, so b) is correct.