Let’s talk about food in Spanish: from common Spanish words to popular Spanish phrases. 🍪

No matter what your plans are, food will always be on the menu. From talking about Spanish food and cuisine to learning how to order food in Spanish and discussing your culinary preferences. Food is the universal language and you can always use this topic to start new conversations in Spanish. After all, they do say that “the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.” So, in this post, you’ll learn essential Spanish food vocabulary words and phrases, and how to order food in Spanish. Whether you are traveling to a Spanish-speaking country or want to chat with the people at your local Spanish restaurant, this food guide will come in handy.

Verbs for cooking in Spanish

When it comes to talking about food in Spanish, it’s equally important to know which verbs to use. Here’s a list of useful Spanish verbs for cooking and eating:

• comer (to eat): Tengo ganas de comer un sándwich de rosbif. (I feel like having a roast beef sandwich for lunch.)
• beber (to drink): Solo bebo café por la mañana. (Solo bebo café por la mañana.)
• cocinar (to cook): ¿Cómo vas a cocinar el pavo? (How are you going to cook the turkey?)
• preparar (to prepare): Mamá está preparando mi plato favorito. (Mom is cooking my favorite dish.)
• cortar (to cut, to slice): ¿Puedes cortar la fruta? (Can you slice the fruit?)
• picar (to chop): Pica el pimiento en trocitos. (Chop the pepper into small pieces.)
• pelar (to peel): Miguel used a knife to peel the orange. (Miguel usó un cuchillo para pelar la naranja.)
• pedir (to order): Voy a pedir tacos de pescado. (I’m going to order fish tacos.)

More Spanish cooking verbs:

• hervir (to boil): Se me olvidó hervir los huevos para el aperitivo. (I forgot to boil the eggs for the appetizer.)
• saltear (to sauté): El chef salteó la cebolla y añadió zanahorias. (The chef sautéed the onion and added carrots.)
• freir (to fry): Freí el tocino en su propia grasa. (I fried the bacon in its own fat.)
• revolver (to stir): Isabela revolvió su café con una cuchara. (Isabela stirred her coffee with a spoon.)
• asar (to roast / to grill): Vamos a asar unos pollos este sábado en el patio trasero. (We’re going to roast some chicken this Saturday in the backyard.)
• hornear (to bake): A mi hermana le encanta hornear. (My sister loves to bake.)
• caramelizar / acaramelar (to caramelize): Carameliza las cebollas antes de añadirlas a la pizza. (Caramelize the onions before you add them to the pizza.)
• vertir (to pour): ¿Puedes verter un poco de azúcar en mi café? (Can you pour some sugar in my coffee?)
• batir (to whip, to whisk): Bate la crema hasta que se formen picos suaves. (Whip the cream until soft peaks form.)
• medir (to measure): ¿Puedes medir cuánta harina necesitamos para hornear? (Can you measure how much flour we need for baking?)

Having a conversation about food in Spanish

Now you know how to talk about breakfast, lunch, and dinner foods, which are the most common fruit and vegetable names, so let’s move on to having a conversation about foods in Spanish:

• ¿Te gusta comer arroz? – Claro que si, mi favorito es el arroz integral. (Do you like to eat rice? – Of course, my favorite is brown rice.)
• ¿Qué comes en el desayuno normalmente? – Un huevo y una tortilla de maíz. (What do you usually eat for breakfast? – An egg and a corn tortilla.)
• ¿Qué desayunaste hoy? – Desayuné aguacate con queso y frijoles fritos. (What did you have for breakfast today? – I ate avocado with cheese and fried beans for breakfast.)
• ¿Qué comiste? / ¿Qué almorzaste? (What did you have for lunch?)
• Me gustaría comerme una hamburguesa de res doble con papas fritas. (I’d like to eat a double beef burger with fries.)
• ¿Qué prefieres, filete de pollo o filete de res? – Creo que comeré pollo mejor. (Which do you prefer, chicken fillet or beef fillet? – I think I’d better eat chicken.)
• ¿Cuál es tu comida favorita? (What is your favorite food?)
• ¿Eres vegetariano/a? ¿O vegano/a? (Are you vegetarian? Or vegan?)
• ¿Tienes alguna alergia alimentaria? – Soy alérgico/a a las nueces / a los mariscos. (Do you have any food allergies? – I am allergic to nuts / seafood.)
• Tengo alergia a.. (I am allergic to..)

TIP: When talking about your favorite food in Spanish, you will often use the verb gustar. The pronouns (me, te, le, nos, os, les) are placed before the verb gustar to point out who likes something. For example, Me gusta comer camarones (I like to eat shrimp.) Learn more about how to use me gusta in Spanish. By the way, what is your favorite food in Spanish? Let us know in the comments.

How to order food in Spanish?

Picture yourself traveling to a Spanish-speaking country, and after a long day of exploring, you’d like to rest and order some local food at the restaurant (el restaurante). Here are some useful phrases you can use to order food in Spanish:

• ¿Me trae la carta? (Can you bring me the menu?)
• ¿Tiene un menú vegano? (Do you have a vegan menu?)
• ¿Qué me recomiendas? (What do you recommend?)
• ¿Cúal es la especialidad de la casa? (What is the restaurant’s specialty?)
• ¿Me puede tomar la orden? (Can you take my order?)
• Para empezar me gustaría… (To start, I would like…)
• Quisiera / me gustaría un(a)… por favor. (I would like… please.)
• ¿Qué trae este platillo/plato? (What does this dish include?)
• Está riquísimo. (It’s delicious.)
• ¿Me/nos traes un/una…? (Will you bring me/us a…?)
• Aún no he decidido. (I haven’t decided yet.)
• Sobró mucho. ¿Me/nos podría poner esto para llevar? Por favor. (There’s a lot left over, could I get this to go? please?)
• ¿Me puede traer la cuenta? (Can you bring me the check, please?)

How to ask for the check in Spanish

Remember, practice makes it perfect! You can have a conversation with your friends about food in Spanish, or maybe with the waiter at the restaurant—wherever you are, you can always work on your Spanish skills, improve your vocabulary, and boost your confidence.

What’s your favorite Spanish food? 🌮 Drop your answer in the comments.