Top 50 phrases to get by Germany (Advanced): Dining out

🇩🇪 Ordering Wasser gets you bottled water that appears on the bill. Free tap water isn't a given. If you want it, ask for Leitungswasser "tap water", and expect the occasional refusal.

💬 German w sounds like an English v, and ei sounds like English "eye": (vine). Same in Wasser (VASS-er).

💬 The word is built from nach "after" and Tisch "table", so it means what comes after the meal. Because the last part is Tisch, it takes der.

💬 The spelling matches English, but Germans say it differently, with the stress at the end: (veh-GAHN).

💬 ein becomes einen when a der word is the thing you want or ask for. For example, der Kaffee becomes einen Kaffee, bitte.

🇩🇪 In beer gardens and busy pubs, people often share long tables with strangers. Asking this before sitting down next to someone is normal and polite.

💬 In German the menu is die Speisekarte. das Menü means a set meal of several courses.

💬 Sie here is formal "you," so the verb is empfehlen, not empfiehlst. The same switch shows up in Können Sie…? and Haben Sie…?.

🇩🇪 This is a normal, natural question to ask a server. In Germany you'll often get a direct personal recommendation rather than a long sales pitch.

💬 The plural adds dots to the vowel as well as an ending: die Nuss "the nut" becomes Nüsse. To make the ü sound, round your lips as for "oo" and say "ee".

💬 German uses gegen "against" where English says "to" for allergies. Swap in the allergen: allergisch gegen Milch "allergic to milk".

💬 Ich hätte gern plus any item is the standard way to order. For example: Ich hätte gern einen Kaffee. It sounds softer than Ich will "I want", which can come across as demanding.

💬 German has no word for "of" here: ein Glas Rotwein is literally "a glass red wine". The same goes for eine Tasse Kaffee "a cup of coffee".

🇩🇪 Sparkling water is the German default, so you'll hear this question a lot. Answer ohne or still "still" if you don't want bubbles.

💬 If a sentence starts with something other than "I", the verb still comes second, so ich moves after it: nehme ich. For example: Als Hauptgericht nehme ich den Fisch "As a main I'll have the fish".

💬 When ordering, you can leave out the verb entirely. Für mich plus the dish is enough: Für mich die Suppe, bitte.

🇩🇪 Look each person in the eye as you clink glasses. Skipping eye contact is considered rude, jokingly said to bring seven years of bad luck.

🇩🇪 Said before anyone starts eating, even among colleagues in a canteen. People usually wait for it before taking the first bite.

🇩🇪 Use Entschuldigung to get a stranger's attention, squeeze past, or lightly apologize. For a more serious apology, Es tut mir leid fits better.

💬 Noch in front of an item means "another" or "more". It works for anything: Noch einen Kaffee, bitte or Noch etwas Brot "some more bread".

🇩🇪 Public toilets in stations and motorway stops often cost 50 cents to a euro, so keep coins handy. Signs often just say WC.

🇩🇪 Waiters won't bring the bill until you ask. They'll often ask Zusammen oder getrennt? "Together or separately?", and splitting is completely normal.

🇩🇪 Waiters routinely ask this when the bill comes, and splitting it so each person pays for what they had is completely normal, even on dates.

🇩🇪 Many cafés, bakeries and small shops are still cash-only. Ask before ordering, or look for a Nur Bargeld "cash only" sign.

💬 After mit, the article changes: die Karte becomes mit Karte. The same thing happens in mit dem Bus and mit meiner Familie.

🇩🇪 Useful because card payment is common but not guaranteed everywhere in Germany, especially in smaller places. Asking before ordering can save awkwardness.

🇩🇪 Say this as you hand over the money, naming a total that includes your tip, and the waiter gives change from that amount. If you don't need any change back, Stimmt so "keep the change" does the same job.

🇩🇪 To tip, round up when you hand over the money: say Stimmt so or name the total you want to pay, like Zwanzig, bitte "Twenty, please". Leaving coins on the table is less usual.