Restaurant reservations Part 2 (Advanced): Specifying any dietary restrictions or special requests.

💬 bei Ihnen means "at your place" in the sense of "at your business", not your home. Asking Geht das bei Ihnen? "Is that possible with you?" works for any restaurant or shop.

💬 The ending -bar works like English "-able": machen "to do" becomes machbar. The same goes for essbar "edible" and trinkbar "drinkable".

💬 After ob "whether", the verb ist moves to the very end. The same thing happens with wenn "if": wenn das machbar ist.

🇩🇪 When a staff member starts with grundsätzlich, a "but" usually follows. Expect conditions or limits after it.

💬 Gericht means a dish on a menu, but the same word also means "court of law". Context makes it clear.

💬 denn in a question isn't "then" in the time sense. It just makes the question sound engaged and natural, and it's very common in spoken German.

💬 -ste means "-est": klein "small" becomes kleinste "smallest". Likewise, groß becomes größte "biggest".

💬 German says reagieren auf "react to", literally "react on". Remember the verb and auf together as a pair.

💬 schon usually means "already", but here, placed before a noun, it means "even". So schon Spuren is "even traces".

💬 bei ihr here means "for her" or "in her case". This is handy for health talk: bei mir "in my case".

💬 The h in ehrlich is silent; it just lengthens the vowel: (AIR-likh).

💬 After muss, the main verb sein goes to the end. Compare ich muss morgen arbeiten "I have to work tomorrow".

🇩🇪 Germans value this kind of directness. A restaurant that admits it can't guarantee safety is being helpful, not rude.

💬 selbst at the end means "ourselves" and stays the same for everyone: ich mache das selbst "I do it myself".

💬 die Küche becomes der Küche after in when it means location. Watch the pronunciation too: Küche (KÜ-khe) vs. Kuchen "cake" (KOO-khen).

💬 This is ich verstehe with the ich dropped, a common shortcut in speech. It means "I understand" or "got it".

💬 After mit, eigen takes the ending -em before a das word like Geschirr. Geschirr covers plates, cups, and cookware together.

💬 hinbekommen "to manage" splits apart, with hin going to the end. Similarly: ich bekomme das hin "I can manage it".

💬 After wenn, the verb wissen moves to the end. Compare wenn wir Zeit haben "if we have time".

🇩🇪 This is a cue to always mention allergies when booking, not on arrival. German kitchens plan ahead and may struggle with surprises.

💬 gleich here means "right away", not "same". Ich komme gleich means "I'll be right there".

💬 After bei, Ihre becomes Ihrer. Same swap: bei meiner Freundin "at my friend's".

💬 German uses isst vegan "eats vegan" just like English, with no adjective ending needed. Swap in: isst vegetarisch "eats vegetarian".

💬 gar before kein strengthens it to "at all". It also works with gar nicht "not at all".

💬 Karte here means "menu", short for Speisekarte. Ask Die Karte, bitte to get one.

🇩🇪 Vegan menus are increasingly common in German cities but still rare in rural or traditional restaurants. Asking ahead is wise.

🇩🇪 This is what the person taking your booking says once they've heard your allergy or request. Hearing it means it's on the reservation, so you don't need to repeat it.

💬 bis plus any day or time makes a quick goodbye: bis morgen "see you tomorrow", bis Freitag "see you Friday".

🇩🇪 A friendly, natural way to close a booking call. prima is warm but not slangy, so it suits both you and the restaurant staff.

💬 The noch here doesn't mean "still". It adds a sense of "for the rest of the evening". Swap the time of day: Noch einen schönen Tag! "Have a nice day!"