When travelling to a Spanish-speaking country, one of the essential skills you need is how to order drinks in Spanish. Whether you’re in a bustling café in Madrid or a cosy bar in Mexico City, knowing the right phrases can enhance your experience and help you connect with locals. This guide is designed for beginner learners of Spanish, providing you with the essential vocabulary and phrases to confidently order your favourite beverages.
Common drinks in Spanish
Let’s start with some of the most popular drinks you might want to order:
- un café – coffee
- un café con leche – coffee with milk
- un cortado – it’s stronger than a café con leche.
- un té – tea
- un té con limón – tea with lemon
- un zumo – juice (Spain)
- un jugo – juice (Latin America)
- una limonada – lemonade
- un agua con gas – sparkling water
- un agua mineral – still mineral water
These phrases will get you started with the basics of drinks in Spanish. In the audio lesson, we cover more drinks, so don’t forget to listen to it!
How to order drinks in Spanish
Now that you know the names of some common drinks, let’s move on to ordering them. Here are some useful phrases that you may hear and that you can use when ordering drinks.
How to ask what others want to drink in Spanish
When you’re in a group or unsure what others want, you can use these questions:
- ¿Qué van a tomar? – What are you all going to drink?
- ¿Qué quiere tomar? – What do you want to drink? (formal)
- ¿Qué quieres tomar? – What do you want to drink? (informal)
These phrases are incredibly handy for making sure everyone gets their preferred drink.
How to say your order in Spanish
Now that you have been asked, you can use the following phrases to say what you want to drink:
- quiero… – I want…
- para mí… – For me…
- para mi amigo… – For my friend…
Por ejemplo, here are some full sentences:
- Quiero un té con leche y para mi marido, un café solo, por favor. I want tea with milk and for my husband, a black coffee, please.
- Para mis hijos, un zumo de piña. Para mi madre, un agua sin gas y yo quiero un café, por favor. For my children, pineapple juice. For my mother, spring water, and I want coffee, please.
Learning how to order drinks in Spanish is a fun and practical way to enhance your language skills. Not only will you be able to enjoy your favourite beverages, but you’ll also be able to interact more naturally with native speakers. By mastering these basics, you’ll feel more at home in any Spanish-speaking environment. So next time you find yourself in a café or bar, you’ll be ready to confidently order drinks in Spanish.
After ordering drinks, we’ll need food! So don’t forget to check out the next episode, where we teach you how to order your favourite food in Spanish. ¡Delicioso!
Happy Coffee Breaking!
