Food and eating out in Spanish
Food plays an important part in Spanish culture. Revise vocabulary to talk about foods, discuss restaurants and cooking, and order meals.
Vocabulary - meals and verbs to talk about food
Spanish people usually eat much later than other Europeans, with lunch normally being eaten between 14:00 and 16:00 and dinner between 21:00 and 23:00. People in Barcelona tend to eat dinner around an hour earlier than those in Madrid, while in tourist resorts dinner is usually served from 19:00 or 20:00.
Here is some useful vocabulary to talk about meals.
| el almuerzo | lunch |
| la bebida | drink |
| la cena | evening meal |
| la comida | meal/lunch |
| el desayuno | breakfast |
| la merienda | afternoon snack |
Here are some useful verbs to talk about food.
| almorzar | to have lunch |
| beber | to drink |
| cenar | to have dinner |
| comer | to eat |
| desayunar | to have breakfast |
| merendar | to have an afternoon snack |
| probar | to taste/try |
| tener hambre/sed | to be hungry/thirsty |
| tomar | to take/have |
- Question
Translate the following information about meal times into English.
La comida más grande del día es el almuerzo, que es normalmente entre las dos y las tres de la tarde. Hay un primer plato, por ejemplo una sopa, una ensalada o unas verduras, un segundo plato con carne o pescado y luego un postre.
The biggest meal of the day is lunch, which is normally between two and three in the afternoon. There is a starter, for example a soup, salad or vegetables, a main course with meat or fish and then a dessert.