Talking about food in German using 'essen'

Talking about food in German

Essen is a great word to learn to talk about food in German.

Essen means 'to eat'. Das Essen means ‘food’. It also means ‘meal’.

And you get the words for lunch - das Mittagessen, and dinner - das Abendessen.

Essen is the verb ‘to eat’

Ich esse Salat - I eat salad.

And if you want to say you like to eat something, you add gern.

Ich esse gern Salat - I like to eat salad.

If you don’t like to eat something add nicht gern.

Ich esse nicht gern Fisch - I don’t like to eat fish.

And what about to drink? That’s trinken.

Ich trinke Saft - I drink juice.

Ich trinke gern Saft - I like to drink juice.

Zum Frühstück trinke ich gern Orangensaft - For breakfast I like to drink orange juice.

Guten Appetit!

To talk about food and drink, use the verbs essen (to eat) and trinken (to drink):

Ich esse Pizza - I eat pizza.
Ich trinke Wasser - I drink water.

Ich esse Pizza

Look at the tables below. Can you see any food and drinks you like?

Food

German	English
der Salat	salad
der Kuchen	cake
der Toast	toast
der Apfel	apple
die Pommes	chips
die Pizza	pizza
die Schokolade	chocolate
die Nudeln	pasta
die Marmelade	jam
das Brot	bread
das Obst	fruit
das Gemüse	vegetables
das Hähnchen	chicken
das Curry	curry
das Fleisch	meat

Drinks

German	English
das Cola	cola
das Wasser	water
der Orangensaft	orange juice
die Limonade	lemonade
der Kaffee	coffee
die Milch	milk
der Tee	tea

Giving opinions on food and drink

To say you like something, add the adverb gern after the verb. Add nicht if you don’t like something.

Ich esse gern Salat - I like eating salad.
Ich trinke nicht gern Wasser - I don’t like drinking water.

Ich esse gern Salat

You can add more detail to your opinions by using denn (because) with adjectives.

Ich esse gern Kuchen, denn es ist lecker! - I like eating cake because it is tasty.
Ich esse gern Curry, denn es ist scharf! - I like eating curry because it is spicy.

Ich esse gern Kuchen, denn es ist lecker!

To ask someone about what food and drink they like, you can ask:

Was isst du gern? - What do you like to eat?
Was trinkst du gern? - What do you like to drink?
Was isst du nicht gern? - What don’t you like to eat?
Was trinkst du nicht gern? - What don’t you like to drink?

Talking about plural foods

When talking about a plural food or drink, change es ist (it is) to sie sind which means they are. Plural means more than one of something.

Ich esse nicht gern Pommes, denn sie sind salzig - I don’t like eating chips because they are salty.
Ich esse gern Kekse, denn sie sind süß - I like eating biscuits because they are sweet.
Ich esse gern Erdbeeren, denn sie sind köstlich - I like eating strawberries because they are delicious.

Can you write your own opinion sentences using the adjectives below?

German	English
denn	because
sehr	very
nicht	not
köstlich	delicious
lecker	tasty
gesund	healthy
ekelhaft	disgusting
erfrischend	refreshing
süß	sweet
scharf	spicy
salzig	salty

Ich esse gern Erdbeeren, denn sie sind köstlich

Dietary requirements

Some people have special dietary requirements, meaning they can only eat certain foods. If you have any special dietary requirements, you may need the following phrases:

Ich esse kein Fleisch, denn ich bin Vegetarier - I don’t eat meat because I am vegetarian.
Ich trinke Sojamilch, denn ich bin Veganer - I drink soya milk because I am vegan.
Ich esse keine Nüsse, denn ich habe eine Allergie - I don’t eat nuts because I have an allergy.
Ich bin allergisch gegen Gluten - I am allergic to gluten.
Ich habe Zöliakie - I have coeliac disease.

To talk about a female vegetarian or vegan, add -in to the end of Vegetarier and Veganer.

Sie ist Vegetarierin - She is vegeterian.
Sie ist Veganerin - She is vegan.

German	English
das Halal-Fleisch	halal meat
die Milchprodukte	dairy
die Eier	eggs
die Nüsse	nuts
die Erdnüsse	peanuts
das Gluten	gluten
der Weizen	wheat
die Zöliakie	coeliac disease

Talking about what you eat for different meals

Meals are an important part of talking about eating food. In German, the verb always has to be the second idea in a sentence. When talking or writing about meal times, place the verb straight after the meal phrase, like zum Frühstück (for breakfast) or zum Mittagessen (for lunch).

Zum Frühstück esse ich Toast und Marmelade - For breakfast I eat toast and jam.
Zum Mittagessen esse ich Pizza und ich trinke Wasser - For lunch I eat pizza and I drink water.
Zum Abendessen esse ich gern Hähnchen und Gemüse, denn es ist lecker - For dinner I like eating chicken and vegetables because it is tasty.

German	English
das Frühstück	breakfast
das Mittagessen	lunch
das Abendessen	evening meal/dinner

Quiz

Watch the video and test your understanding in this short quiz!

What should we eat?

CHRISTINA: Momentmal.

ANNA: Was ist los?

CHRISTINA: Ich habe ein SMS bekommen. 'Ich bin ein bisschen spät dran. Ich komme erst um neunzehn Uhr nach Hause. Kannst du das Abendessen machen?' Das war meine Mutter. Sie kommt spät nach Hause. Ich muss das Abendessen machen. Was soll ich machen?

ANNA: Was isst du gern?

CHRISTINA: Ich mag italienisches Essen. Ich mag Steak und Pommes. Ich hasse Curry. Das ist zu scharf.

ANNA: Und deine Mutter? Was isst sie gern?

CHRISTINA: Sie isst kein Fleisch, denn sie ist Vegetarierin.

ANNA: Was isst sie eigentlich?

CHRISTINA: Sie mag Käse und Gemüse essen.

ANNA: Und du? Isst du gern Käse und Gemüse?

CHRISTINA: Ich esse gern Tomaten, Karotten aber Salat mag ich nicht.

ANNA: Also, du könntest Nudeln mit Tomatensoße oder Pizza machen. Was würdest du lieber essen?

CHRISTINA: Ich mag Pizza aber meine Mutter und ich lieben Nudeln.

ANNA: Also, zum Abendessen gibt es Nudeln mit Tomatensoße. Vielleicht noch ein bisschen Käse dazu. Lecker! Guten Appetit!

CHRISTINA: Super! Danke Dir! Tschüss

Translation

CHRISTINA: Hang on a moment

ANNA: What is it?

CHRISTINA: I have a text. 'I am a bit late. I won’t be home until 19:00. Can you make dinner?' That was my mother. She is coming home late. I have to prepare dinner. What should I make?

ANNA: What do you like?

CHRISTINA: I like Italian food. I like steak and chips. I hate curry. It’s too spicy.

ANNA: And your mother? What does she like?

CHRISTINA: She doesn’t eat meat, she is vegetarian.

ANNA: What does she actually eat?

CHRISTINA: She likes to eat salad and cheese.

ANNA: And you? Do you like cheese and salad?

CHRISTINA: I like eating tomatoes and carrots but I don’t like salad

ANNA: So. You could make pasta with tomato sauce, or pizza. What would you prefer?

CHRISTINA: I like pizza but my mother and I love pasta.

ANNA: So for dinner it’s pasta with tomato sauce, perhaps a bit of cheese. Delicious! Bon Appetit!

CHRISTINA:Great! Thank you, bye.

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