Ordering a coffee Part 2 (Advanced): Options such as type of milk, depending on dietary preferences or allergies.

💬 In Mexico, manejar "to drive / to handle" is the everyday way to ask what a shop stocks. Swap in other items: ¿Qué tamaños manejan? "What sizes do you have?"

💬 de plus a flavor stands in for "milk made of" once the milk has already been mentioned. Same pattern: de soya "soy".

💬 de repeats before each option instead of being said once. List any number this way: de avena, de coco y de soya.

💬 la de means "the one of" and stands in for la leche. Use el de for masculine nouns: el de vainilla "the vanilla one".

💬 Spanish phrases this as "it ran out on us": se acabó "it ran out", with nos "on us". Swap in me for yourself: se me acabó "I ran out".

🇲🇽 disculpe is the polite form staff use with customers. You'd also use it to get a server's attention.

💬 se preocupe is the polite form you'd say to a stranger. With a friend it becomes no te preocupes.

💬 de hecho means "in fact" or "actually" and is used to add or correct information. Don't confuse it with actualmente, which means "currently".

💬 alérgico ends in -a if a woman is speaking: soy alérgica. In Mexico, nueces usually means walnuts or pecans, so name others too: almendras "almonds", cacahuates "peanuts".

💬 trazas means "traces", as in leftover bits of an allergen. It's the word you'll see on Mexican packaging: puede contener trazas de "may contain traces of".

🇲🇽 Baristas may not think about shared equipment unless you ask. Raising traces directly like this is normal and taken seriously.

💬 mismo changes its ending to match its noun: la misma jarra but el mismo vaso "the same glass".

💬 todas is feminine because it refers back to las leches. For masculine things it would be para todos.

🇲🇽 si gusta is a very Mexican, courteous way staff offer something. You'll hear it constantly in shops and restaurants.

💬 se here stands for "for you" and la for "it", the pitcher. Normally the "for you" word would be le, but it changes to se whenever it lands right before la or lo.

💬 Spanish often uses the plain present tense for an offer where English says "I'll": se la lavo "I'll wash it for you". Same with se lo traigo "I'll bring it to you".

💬 The -ría ending works like English "would". Here se lo means "it to you", the polite way to say it to a stranger.

🇲🇽 Plant-based milks often cost extra in Mexican cafés, so asking before you order is normal and not seen as cheap.

💬 Use son with a price because pesos are plural. Use es only for one: es un peso.

💬 serían "it would be" is a softened way to state a total. It's common at registers in Mexico and doesn't imply any doubt about the price.

💬 va a plus a verb is the everyday way to talk about what someone will do. Swap the verb: ¿Va a llevar? "Are you taking it to go?"

🇲🇽 Smaller cafés may be cash-only or have a card minimum. Carrying some efectivo is wise.

💬 recién before a describing word means "just" or "freshly". Same pattern: recién hecho "freshly made".

💬 Starting with que turns a verb into a wish for someone, and the verb shifts to a special form: disfruta becomes disfrute. Same pattern: que le vaya bien "hope it goes well for you".

🇲🇽 Baristas and servers often say this as they hand over your drink or food. A simple gracias is the natural reply.

🇲🇽 Mexicans use this a lot when someone does them a small favour, like a barista swapping your milk. It's warmer than a bare gracias and suits strangers well.

🇲🇽 Shop staff in Mexico say this all the time as a warm goodbye. Answering with igualmente or gracias is plenty.

💬 Use igualmente to hand a good wish straight back, like "you too". It works after buen día "good day" or buen provecho "enjoy your meal".

🇲🇽 In Mexico, tarde runs from roughly lunchtime until dark. After sunset, switch to que tenga buena noche "have a good night".