How to Order Food in Restaurants in China

In the West you can order any Chinese food with only 10 words of Chinese (the numbers 0 to 9) as everything on a Chinese takeaway menu is numbered! However, most takeaway staff in the West speak English (and Cantonese, not Mandarin), so efforts to be cross-cultural tend to fall flat. In China, by contrast, ordering food can be a real cultural experience, and there are no English speaking staff to help often or even English menus, and certainly no numbers. This page is designed to give you some tips and useful phrases for ordering food in China.
If on the other hand you would like to be more independent and engage with Chinese culture directly when ordering food, be prepared to be patient and use every means of communication available.
Reading Menus
· Menu: 菜单, cài dān, /tseye-dan/
When arriving in a restaurant, after sitting down at the table, and the customary pot of tea has been served, the next thing that will arrive is the menu (菜单 caidan /tseye-dan/).
Learning Restaurant Chinese Video
have produced a video with several useful phrases, tips and cultural notes.
Menus with Pictures
Chinese Menu with Pictures
· One portion: 一份, Yí Fèn, /ee fnn/
If the menu has pictures you are in luck as this offers an easy way to order. Just point to what you want and say yi fen (一份 /ee fnn/ 'one portion'). In northern China 'one portion' is pronounced yi fenr (一份儿 /ee frrh/). (See numbers in the phrasebook for if you want more than one portion.) You could also do the same if you see someone else eating something you would like by pointing at their food. However, although people will usually excuse you for being foreign, this is a little impolite and bizarre.
English/Chinglish Menus
English/Chinglish Menu without Picture
Some Chinese menus, particularly in big restaurants or those that have a Western theme, have English menus. This is the ideal situation, but beware — sometimes the English is incorrect factually, quite apart from the Chinglish and spelling mistakes. In English menu restaurants the staff will still often not be able to speak English, so you will still have to point at the menu and say yi fen as above.
Menus without Pictures
If you have a phrase book with you or an ability to remember Chinese characters then you could point to the Chinese for the food you want as above. Below is a list of some commonly ordered and favorite Chinese foods among Westerners.
Dish
Chinese
Pinyin
Pronunciation
Rice
米饭
mǐ fàn
mee-fan
Egg fried rice—a simple cheap dish that can be found all over China
蛋炒饭
dàn chǎo fàn
dan-chaoww-fan
Wheat noodles—another Chinese staple, more popular in the north
面条
miàn tiáo
myen-tyaoww
Sizzling beef—served on a very hot plate with peppers/onions
铁板牛肉
tiě bǎn niú ròu
tyeah-ban nyoh-roh
Kungpao chicken or diced chicken and cashews
宫保鸡丁/宫爆鸡丁
gōng bǎo jī dīng/ gōng bào jī dīng
gong-baoww-jee-ding
Sweet and Sour Pork Ribs
酸甜排骨
suān tián pái gǔ
Swann-tyen peye-goo
Deep-fried pumpkin sticks
黄沙南瓜条
huáng shā nán guā tiáo
hwung-shah nan-gwaa-tyaoww
Fried eggplant
红烧茄子
hóng shāo qié zi
hong-shaoww chyeah-dzrr
Fried eggplant, potato and peppers
地三鲜
dìsān xiān
dee-san-sshyen
Fried shredded potato
土豆丝
tǔ dòu sī
too-doh-srr
Fried Chinese cabbage
炒大白菜
chǎo dà bái cài
chaoww daa-beye-tseye
Steamed buns with condensed milk dip
炼乳馒头
liàn rǔ mán tou
lyen-roo man-toh
Caramelized banana/apple
拔丝香蕉/苹果
bá sī xiāng jiāo/píng guǒ
baa-srr sshyang-jyaoww/ping-gwor
Ordering Verbally
· Do you have...?: 有没有, you mei you, Yǒu Méi Yǒu, /yoh may yoh/
You could use the list above or any other food names that you have learnt in Mandarin. A useful phrase is you mei you (有没有 /yoh-may-yoh/ 'Do you have...?'). If the restaurant has it the reply will be you (yes), if not then mei you (no).
Common phrases
Phrase
Chinese
Pinyin
Pronunciation
I don't want chilies.
我不要辣。
Wǒ bú yào là.
Wor boo-yaoww laa.
I don't want MSG.
我不要味精。
Wǒ bú yào wèijìng.
Wor boo-yaoww way-jing.
I don't want it too salty.
我不要太咸。
Wǒ bú yào tài xián.
Wor boo-yaoww teye sshyen.
How Many Dishes to Order — Avoid 4 and 7
Try Different Dishes.
Typically one more dish is ordered than there are people eating, but this often leaves food spare. The Chinese custom is always to order too much to show generosity and hospitality. A dish per person is usually enough. (There is a Chinese superstition about the number 4, as it sounds like the word for death in Chinese, so four dishes are seldom ordered. Likewise in the Canton area seven dishes are seldom ordered as it is a custom there to eat seven dishes the day after a funeral. Largely such customs are ignored now apart from on special occasions, and Westerners would certainly not be expected to follow them.)
What to order — Try Different Dishes
Try to order a range of different dishes if there are a number of people eating, including different types of meats and vegetables. Soup/broth (汤 tang /tung/) is an almost customary starter in China. Sweet desserts are not a tradition in China, but the caramelized banana/apple or steamed buns with condensed milk dip are available at many restaurants.
Dumplings
Ordering Dumplings
Chinese dumplings (饺子jiǎozi /jyaoww-dzrr/) are a favorite with Westerners and some restaurants specialize in just dumplings. About 20 or 30 is usually enough for a meal, 40 if you're really hungry. Dumplings are ordered in (traditionally bamboo) trays called long of 10 or 20 dumplings. So you can say yī lóng (一笼 /ee-long/ 'one tray') followed by your choice of filling to order. Popular fillings include pork (猪肉zhūròu /joo-roh/), beef (牛肉niúròu /nyoh-roh/), cabbage (白菜báicài /beye-tseye/) and garlic chives/leek (韭菜jiǔcài /jyoh-tseye/).
Phrase
Chinese
Pinyin
Pronunciation
Chinese dumplings
饺子
jiǎo zi
jyaoww-dzrr
One tray
一笼
yī lóng
ee-long
Pork stuffing
猪肉馅
zhū ròu xiàn
joo-roh sshyen
Beef stuffing
牛肉馅
niú ròu xiàn
nyoh-roh sshyen
Cabbage stuffing
白菜馅
bái cài xiàn
beye-tseye sshyen
Garlic chives/leek stuffing
韭菜馅
jiǔ cài xiàn
jyoh-tseye sshyen
Ordering Steak
Large cities in China have steak res