Basic Spanish conversations – Eating out and Buying food

On our first part of the series basic Spanish conversations, we had great conversations about how to get somewhere at the airport, how to get to a certain part of the city and how to move around the city in a taxi.

On this week’s blog post we are going to talk about one of the essentials of life: FOOD. Yeah, we all need to eat. Some of us even get mad when we are hungry. So, imagine you’ve been traveling for hours, the last time you ate was four hours ago. You are starting to feel angry, you’re hating the world around you at the moment… you need to eat. However, there’s a little problem … you don’t know where to buy food. Well, here is our first conversation of this blog post:

1. Eating out.

1. Mesero: Buenas noches.
2. Tu: Buenas noches.

1. Mesero: Ya le busco asientos.
2. Tu: Gracias.

1. Mesero: Aquí se puede sentar y aquí está su carta.
2. Tu: Gracias.

1. Tu: Mesero.
2. Mesero: Señor, ¿qué desea ordenar?
3. Tu: Quiero un pescado a la plancha.

1. Mesero: ¿y de tomar?
2. Tu: Una limonada de coco.

1. Mesero: Aquí está su pedido, buen provecho.
2. Tu: Gracias.
3. Mesero: si tiene algún inconveniente me puede llamar.
4. Tu: Ok.

1. Tu: Mesero, este pescado está frio.
2. Mesero: Qué pena ya se lo cambio señor.
3. Tu: Ok.

1. Mesero: Aquí tiene señor, un pescado caliente.
2. Tu: ok.
3. Mesero: Que lo disfrute.
4. Tu: Ok, gracias.

1. Tu: Mesero, la cuenta por favor.
2. Mesero: Aquí esta.

1. Tu: gracias.
2. Mesero: Con gusto señor que vuelva.

1.2. You greet each other.

3.4. The waiter is going to look for your sits and you thank him.

5.6. He takes you to your table and gives you the menu and you thank him again.

7.8.9. You call him, he asks you for your order and you say you want fish.

1. \11. He asks you, “what do you want to drink?” and you answer a coconut lemonade.

12.13. He brings your food and wishes you enjoy it. You say “thanks”.

14.15. He says “if you have any inconveniences please call him”.

16.17.18. You call the guy because the fish it’s cold and he apologizes and changes fish.

19.20.21.22. He brings a hot fish and he says “he hopes you enjoy it”.

23.24. You ask for the bill and he brings it.

25.26. You thank him and he says “he would like you to come back.”

1. Asking for a mini market or a super market and buying food there:

There are these other situations very likely to happen to you. You need to buy food to put on the fridge, something you can prepare later and eat. So, there are some places that South Americans usually go and buy food there, those are mini markets or little stores, but there are also super markets.

1. Tu: Buenas noches
2. Persona: Buenas noches

1. Tu: Una pregunta, ¿usted sabe dónde puedo encontrar comida para preparar?
2. Persona: Pero, ¿qué busca un súper mercado, una tienda, un quiosco, un mini mercado…?

1. Tu: Busco un lugar pequeño. No necesito muchas cosas.
2. Persona: A bueno entonces puede ir a la tienda de Don pacho en la esquina.

You get to the Little Store

1. Tu: Buenas noches Don pacho
2. Don Pacho: Buenas noches, Dígame que le doy.

1. Tu: Me da por favor dos libras de arroz, una botella de aceite de oliva y una caja de cervezas.
2. Don Pacho: Aja… pero tengo un problema no hay ni aceite de oliva, ni cervezas se me acabaron. Pero las puede ir a comprar al mini mercado de allí a dos cuadras.

1. Tu: No, entonces no me venda nada que yo compro todo en el mini mercado.
2. Don pacho: Ok, buena noche entonces.

And then you go to the super market.

1. Tu: Hola sabe ¿dónde queda la sección de granos y la nevera?
2. Persona: Si mira, bajas las escaleras y ahí está la sección de granos y dos secciones más hacia el fondo están las neveras.

1. Tu: Ok, gracias
2. Persona: De nada.

And then you get Cashier.

1. Cajero: Buenas noches, ¿paga con tarjeta o con efectivo?
2. Tu: Buenas noches, Con efectivo.

1. Cajero: Son 23.900COP
2. Tu: Ok, aquí tiene.

1. Cajero: Que este muy bien y pase buena noche.
2. Tu: Muchas gracias, lo mismo.

Now, let’s summarize the conversations that we have here.

1.2.You greet the person and he/she greets you.

1. You ask that person if she knows where can you go to buy food to prepare.
2. She asks you what kind of store or market are you looking for. (Kioscos and Tiendas are the same).
3. You say “you’re looking for small place because you don’t need a lot of things”.
4. So, she recommends “a Tienda or Kiosco that is called Don Pacho”. (Don is used to call older men and Doña older women). That Tienda is on the corner.

You get to the Little Store

1. You meet Don Pacho owner of the store.
2. Don Pacho asks you “what do you want?”.
3. You ask for “rice, olive oil and some beers”.
4. Don Pacho just has the rice. And he recommends that you to go to the mini market.
5. So, you say “that you aren’t buying the rice from him either”.
6. He says, “Ok good night to you”.

And then you go to the super market.

1. You meet someone at the mini market and you ask for the grain section that you need and the fridge.
2. So, he explains to you that “you need to go downstairs and then you will see the grain section you’re looking for and the fridge that is in the back”.

15.16.You thank the guy and he answers “you’re welcome”.

And then you get Cashier.

Now you grabbed everything you need and you’re going to pay to the cashier

1. She greets you and asks you if you’re paying with a card or cash.
2. You say “you’re paying with cash”.
3. She says the price.
4. You answer “here you go”.

21.22. You say good night two each other.

That was it. on today’s post we talked more about basic conversations that we can possibly have, and the conversations that some of the ones that travel, don’t know how to express themselves in. If you have any conversation in which you may find difficult to express yourself, please tell us about it, we would be pleased to help you. Meanwhile, keep visiting www.spanishtomind.comto learn more about how to speak proper Spanish and have great Spanish conversations.