Menus and ordering food

In France, la carte and un menu do not usually mean the same thing.

La carte lists dishes you can order individually, while un menu often combines several courses for a set price. Once you have made your choice, a few common phrases will take you through most of the meal.

For an example restaurant menu and how to work through its sections, see How to read a French restaurant menu. For conversations about portion size and sharing, see Conversations about food portions.

Reading a restaurant menu

Restaurant menus are usually organized by courses, with separate sections for starters, main dishes, desserts, and drinks:

Be careful with entrée. In France, une entrée is the first course or appetizer, not the main course.

Set menus and formules

Restaurants often offer combinations of courses for a fixed price:

A formule often gives you a limited choice for a fixed price. You might, for example, choose between entrée + plat and plat + dessert.

The plat du jour is a particular dish offered that day and is not necessarily a complete set menu.

Understanding choices and extra charges

Short phrases on the menu tell you what you can choose, what comes with a dish, and whether something costs extra:

For example, dessert au choix means that you can choose a dessert from the available options.

En supplément tells you that something costs extra.

Asking about a dish

If you do not understand a dish or want more information, you can ask:

Qu'est-ce que vous conseillez ? is useful when you want a recommendation rather than an explanation of a dish.

Ordering your meal

Two useful patterns for ordering are je voudrais... and je vais prendre...:

You do not need to use je voudrais every time you order. Je vais prendre..., je prends..., and pour moi, ce sera... are all common ways to make your choice.

Questions you may hear from the server

The server may ask questions as you choose your food and move through the meal:

If you are not ready, you can ask for more time:

Changing a dish

You can ask to change an accompaniment, leave something out, or have something served separately:

À la place de means "instead of," while à part means separately or on the side.

For allergies or dietary restrictions, explain the restriction clearly rather than relying only on a request to leave an ingredient out.

Asking for the bill and paying

When you have finished your meal, you can ask for the bill and say how you would like to pay:

L'addition is the usual word for the restaurant bill. Both payer and régler are used for paying, and you may hear régler l'addition when paying a restaurant bill.

From learning to practice

When you look at a French menu, try to work out the courses, choices, and extra charges before translating individual dishes. Then choose what you would order and say your order aloud using one of the patterns from this lesson.