The time you travel around Russian-speaking states, you need to know how to order food in Russian. It is essential to say what you want and what you require. In an effort to say it, you need to have a common idea of Russian cuisine and its traditions, and be capable to speak basic phrases in Russian.
Your conversation with a waiter or any other person will be the same irrespective of the place: a cafe, a restaurant, a fast-food outlet, or a cafeteria, or while you order food for home delivery.
How to order food in a Restaurant
Traditionally Russians segregate their meals into a first, second, and third course. The first course is generally, soup. The second course or the hot course is mostly a meat or fish dish having a side dish (such as potatoes, rice, pasta, or vegetables). The third course is a dessert.
Plenty of restaurants and cafes provide a set breakfast (snacks and a drink) and lunch (business lunch) that is inclusive of the first and second courses, a drink, and occasionally a dessert as well. Breakfast is usually, served from 9 to 11 AM lunch – is from 12 to 2 PM
In any restaurant in Russia, you can sit at any table you like.
A waiter generally, starts the conversation:
- Что Вы будете заказывать? – [shto vy budete zakazyvat`] – “What would you like to order?”
You can start with:
- Я хочу… – [ya hochu] – “I would like…”
- Я буду… – [ya budu] – “I will take…”.
People generally begin with drinks, so a waiter may ask:
- Вы будете заказывать напитки? – [vy budete zakazyvat’ napitki] – “Anything to drink?”
You might reply:
- Да, я буду воду – [da, ya budu vodu] – “Yes, please. I will have a juice (coffee, water, tea, etc.)”
- Нет, спасибо – [net, spasibo] – “No, thank you”.
People also order snacks. Snacks could be both hot and cold. Most typical Russian snacks are cheese plates, salads, and fish.
If you are not certain what to order you may ask a waiter for advice:
- Что Вы посоветуете? – [chto vy posovetuyete] – “What would you recommend?”
As a general rule, several restaurants have menus in English too, therefore you would not have any problems with your order.
How to make payment in a restaurant
When you have finished your meal and it is time to pay, you need to ask the waiter for the bill. You simply say:
- Счёт, пожалуйста! – [schot, pozhaluysta] – “Can I have the bill, please?”
- Я хочу оплатить счёт – [ya hochu oplatit’ schot] – “I would like to pay the bill.”
You can pay by two methods: pay cash or through a credit card. Sadly, it is not always possible to pay by credit card. Apart from that, sometimes you might not do it because of technical problems with the terminal. Therefore, it would be better to find it out before you make an order:
- Скажите, у Вас можно платить карточкой? – [skazhite, u vas mozhno platit’ kartochkoy] – “Do you accept credit cards?”
In Russian restaurants the service is included in the bill, so you do not have to leave a tip, but you are always welcome to do it.
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