Romanian food and restaurant phrases: ordering and paying

Eating out in Romanian needs surprisingly little grammar. A handful of food words, one polite phrase for ordering and one for paying will get you through a whole meal, and the same phrases work in a café, a bakery or at a market stall. Everything below uses the polite vă rog form, which is right with any waiter or shop assistant.

Food and drink

The words you will see on almost every menu. Romanian nouns are listed here without the article; on a menu you will often see them with it, as in ciorba zilei (the soup of the day).

• apă

  water

• pâine

  bread

• cafea

  coffee

• ceai

  tea

• bere

  beer

• vin

  wine

• ciorbă

  sour soup

• carne

  meat

• pui

  chicken

• pește

  fish

• salată

  salad

• desert

  dessert

Water usually comes in two kinds: apă plată (still) and apă minerală (sparkling). Ciorbă is a soup with a slightly sour taste, and you will find several kinds of it on most Romanian menus.

Meals of the day

Micul dejun is literally "the small lunch". In many families prânzul is the main cooked meal of the day, often starting with a soup.

Dishes worth knowing

A few dishes many visitors look for. Each has its own word, so it helps to recognise them on a menu.

• sarmale

  cabbage rolls stuffed with minced meat and rice

• mămăligă

  polenta, a cornmeal dish

• mici

  grilled minced-meat rolls

• papanași

  fried doughnuts with sour cream and jam

Getting a table and ordering

The key phrase is aș vrea, I would like. It is the polite form of vreau (I want), and with vă rog at the end it is right in any restaurant. Aș dori means the same and sounds a little more formal.

• O masă pentru doi, vă rog.

  A table for two, please.

• Meniul, vă rog.

  The menu, please.

• Ce ne recomandați?

  What do you recommend?

• Aș vrea o ciorbă, vă rog.

  I'd like a soup, please.

• Pentru mine, o cafea.

  A coffee for me.

When you order, the number goes before the dish, with the right gender: o bere (one beer), două beri (two beers), un ceai (one tea). The guide to Romanian numbers explains un, o and două.

Hungry, thirsty, I like it

Romanian does not say I am hungry; it says hunger is to me. The same small pronoun appears in îmi place, I like it.

• Mi-e foame.

  I'm hungry.

• Mi-e sete.

  I'm thirsty.

• Îmi place.

  I like it.

With a plural, place becomes plac: Îmi plac sarmalele (I like sarmale).

Dietary needs

• Sunt vegetarian.

  I'm vegetarian. (said by a man)

• Nu mănânc carne.

  I don't eat meat.

• Sunt alergic la nuci.

  I'm allergic to walnuts. (said by a man)

A woman says Sunt vegetariană and Sunt alergică la nuci. Nuci are walnuts; peanuts are arahide and hazelnuts alune de pădure. To check a dish, ask Are carne? (Does it have meat in it?) or Are lapte? (Does it have milk in it?).

As a guest

If you are invited to a Romanian home, expect to be offered more than once. Hosts often insist with Mai luați! (Have some more!), and a polite Mulțumesc, sunt sătul (Thank you, I'm full; a woman says sătulă) is a kind way to stop. Complimenting the cook with A fost foarte bun! (It was very good!) is always welcome.

Paying

• Nota, vă rog.

  The bill, please.

• Plătesc cu cardul.

  I'll pay by card.

• Putem plăti separat?

  Can we pay separately?

• Păstrați restul.

  Keep the change.

At the market

At a market stall, quantities take de: un kilogram de roșii (a kilo of tomatoes), o sticlă de vin (a bottle of wine), puțină brânză (a little cheese, with no de after puțin). To ask the price, use Cât costă?, one of the phrases in the essential phrases guide.

• un kilogram de mere

  a kilo of apples

• jumătate de kilogram

  half a kilo

Further reading

• dexonline (opens in a new tab), the free online dictionary of Romanian, useful for the names of dishes on a menu.
• Institutul Limbii Române (opens in a new tab), the Romanian Language Institute.