
Restaurant reservations: Setting preferences for seating, such as indoor, outdoor, or specific views.
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Key Phrases
订今晚的晚餐
dìng jīn wǎn de wǎn cān
Make a dinner reservation for tonight
您想几点到?六点半,四个人
nín xiǎng jǐ diǎn dào liù diǎn bàn sì gè rén
What time would you like to arrive? Six thirty, for four people
如果可以的话,坐室外,安静一点的位置,最好靠窗,看看夜景或江景
rú guǒ kě yǐ de huà zuò shì wài ān jìng yì diǎn de wèi zhì zuì hǎo kào chuāng kàn kàn yè jǐng huò jiāng jǐng
If possible, outdoors in a quieter spot, preferably by the window with a night or river view
Skills You'll Learn
How to make a restaurant reservation in polite Chinese
如何用礼貌的中文预订餐厅晚餐
rú hé yòng lǐ mào de zhōng wén yù dìng cān tīng wǎn cān
How to say arrival time and number of people for a booking
如何表达到达时间和用餐人数
rú hé biǎo dá dào dá shí jiān hé yòng cān rén shù
How to express seating preferences such as indoor/outdoor, quiet seating, window seats, and scenic views
如何提出座位偏好,如室内或室外、安静一点、靠窗以及景观座位
rú hé tí chū zuò wèi piān hǎo rú shì nèi huò shì wài ān jìng yì diǎn kào chuāng yǐ jí jǐng guān zuò wèi
Lesson Roleplay
Imagine you are calling a restaurant in China to make a dinner reservation for tonight. You discuss the time, the number of people, whether you want indoor or outdoor seating, and ask for a quiet table with a nice night view.
你好,我想订今晚的晚餐。
nǐ hǎo wǒ xiǎng dìng jīn wǎn de wǎn cān
Hello, I’d like to make a dinner reservation for tonight.
好的,您想几点到?
hǎo de nín xiǎng jǐ diǎn dào
Sure, what time would you like to arrive?
六点半,四个人。
liù diǎn bàn sì gè rén
At 6:30, for four people.
没问题,您想坐室内还是室外?
méi wèn tí nín xiǎng zuò shì nèi hái shì shì wài
No problem. Would you like to sit indoors or outdoors?
如果可以的话,我想坐室外。
rú guǒ kě yǐ de huà wǒ xiǎng zuò shì wài
If possible, I’d like to sit outdoors.
Lesson Vocabulary & Phrases
订
dìng
To reserve / book
晚餐
wǎn cān
Dinner
订晚餐
dìng wǎn cān
Make a dinner reservation
💬 [订] is the verb 'book/reserve,' and Chinese often just puts the thing being booked right after it: [订晚餐], [订位子], [订一桌]. No extra word like 'for' or 'a' is needed.
See breakdown →今晚
jīn wǎn
Tonight
的
de
Of / -'s
💬 [的] often turns a time phrase into something like 'for...' or 'the...one': [今晚] → [今晚的]. You can reuse this with other times too, like [明天的预约] 'tomorrow's reservation'.
See breakdown →今晚的
jīn wǎn de
For tonight
💬 [今晚的] is a time phrase plus [的], which lets it describe a noun that may be understood from context. In reservation talk, [今晚的] can mean 'tonight's one' or 'for tonight' without repeating the full noun.
See breakdown →您
nín
You (polite)
💬 [您] is the polite version of [你]. You'll hear it a lot from staff speaking to customers, and you can use it back for extra politeness.
See breakdown →想
xiǎng
Want to / would like to
几点
jǐ diǎn
What time
💬 [几点] asks 'what time' for a clock time: [您想几点到?] You can swap in other verbs after it, like [几点开始?] or [几点关门?]
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