Reading Spanish Menus and Identifying Dishes and Prices
Reading Spanish Menus and Identifying Dishes and Prices
In this lesson, you will learn how to read a simple Spanish menu and identify three things quickly: the menu section, the dish or drink, and its price.
You already know common food, drink, quantity, con, and sin vocabulary. Here, the goal is reading and extracting information rather than ordering a meal. Ordering comes in the next lesson.
Recognizing common menu headings
Simple Spanish menus often organize food and drinks into sections.
- — starters / appetizers
- — main dishes
- — desserts
- — drinks
The heading helps you predict what kind of item appears below it.
Recognizing useful menu words
- — the menu
- — the dish
- — the price
- — the drink
These words help you understand the structure of a simple restaurant menu.
Reading a simple starter section
| — Starters | Precio — Price |
|---|---|
| — tomato salad | 6 € — 6 euros |
| — tomato soup | 7 € — 7 euros |
| — bread with cheese | 5 € — 5 euros |
Read across each row. The dish and its price belong together.
Reading a main-dish section
| — Main dishes | Precio — Price |
|---|---|
| — rice with chicken | 12 € — 12 euros |
| — pasta with cheese | 10 € — 10 euros |
| — fish with salad | 15 € — 15 euros |
You already know con — with, so phrases such as — rice with chicken give you useful information about the dish.
Reading a drinks section
| — Drinks | Precio — Price |
|---|---|
| — water | 2 € — 2 euros |
| — coffee | 3 € — 3 euros |
| — tea | 3 € — 3 euros |
| — orange juice | 4 € — 4 euros |
When you need a drink, scan the — Drinks section instead of reading the entire menu.
Reading a dessert section
| — Desserts | Precio — Price |
|---|---|
| — strawberries | 5 € — 5 euros |
| — apple | 3 € — 3 euros |
The section heading tells you that these items are desserts in this menu.
Finding the price of a specific dish
If a question asks for the price of one item, scan for the item name first, then read across to the price.
For example:
— rice with chicken
12 € — 12 euros
The dish — rice with chicken costs 12 euros.
Finding the dish from a price
You can also start with the price and identify the item on the same row.
For example:
10 € — 10 euros
— pasta with cheese
The item priced at 10 euros is — pasta with cheese.
Using familiar food words as reading clues
Menu dishes often contain words you already know.
- — rice with chicken
- — pasta with cheese
- — fish with salad
- — bread with cheese
- — orange juice
Recognizing one or two familiar words can help you identify the main ingredients of a dish.
Reading de inside a dish name
You already know de as a relationship word. On menus, de often links the food or drink to its main ingredient or type.
- — tomato soup
- — tomato salad
- — orange juice
Do not translate de mechanically. Read the whole food phrase as one menu item.
Reading con inside a dish name
Con tells you what is included with the main food.
- — rice with chicken
- — pasta with cheese
- — fish with salad
This can help you distinguish similar dishes quickly.
Reading sin inside a menu description
Sin tells you that an ingredient is not included.
- — salad without onion
- — pasta without cheese
- — coffee without milk
When two menu items look similar, con and sin may be the most important words to notice.
Comparing two similar dishes
Compare:
- — salad with onion
- — salad without onion
The base dish is the same. The words con and sin change what is included.
Reading prices with the euro symbol
The symbol € means euros.
- 5 € — 5 euros
- 8 € — 8 euros
- 12 € — 12 euros
- 20 € — 20 euros
You already know the number range needed for these simple prices.
Reading decimal prices
Menus may also show a price with euros and cents.
- 2,50 € — 2 euros and 50 cents
- 4,50 € — 4 euros and 50 cents
- 8,50 € — 8 euros and 50 cents
- 12,50 € — 12 euros and 50 cents
In many Spanish-language contexts, a comma is commonly used as the decimal separator. For this lesson, focus on recognizing the complete written price.
Reading a complete simple menu
| Sección — Section | Plato o bebida — Dish or drink | Precio — Price |
|---|---|---|
| — Starters | — tomato soup | 6 € — 6 euros |
| — Starters | — salad with tomato | 7 € — 7 euros |
| — Main dishes | — rice with chicken | 12 € — 12 euros |
| — Main dishes | — pasta without cheese | 9 € — 9 euros |
| — Drinks | — water | 2 € — 2 euros |
| — Drinks | — coffee with milk | 3,50 € — 3 euros and 50 cents |
| — Desserts | — strawberries | 5 € — 5 euros |
A useful reading strategy is to identify the section first, then the item, and finally the price.
Scanning for a food requirement
If you want to avoid an ingredient, scan menu descriptions for sin.
For example:
— pasta without cheese
This is easier to identify quickly if you search specifically for sin — without.
Scanning for an included ingredient
If you are looking for a dish with a particular ingredient, scan for con or de.
For example:
- — rice with chicken
- — tomato soup
The familiar ingredient words help you narrow down your options.
Comparing prices
Read these two items:
- — tomato salad: 6 € — 6 euros
- — rice with chicken: 12 € — 12 euros
The — rice with chicken is more expensive because its listed price is 12 euros rather than 6 euros.
Finding a dish within a simple budget
If you have 10 euros for one dish, scan the listed prices and identify items at 10 euros or less.
From the complete menu above:
- — tomato soup: 6 € — 6 euros
- — salad with tomato: 7 € — 7 euros
- — pasta without cheese: 9 € — 9 euros
The — rice with chicken at 12 euros is above that simple budget.
A practical menu-reading method
When reading a simple Spanish menu, use this sequence:
- Find the relevant section.
- Scan for familiar food or drink words.
- Notice con, sin, or de when they describe ingredients.
- Read across the same row to find the price.
- Compare prices only after you have identified the correct dishes.
From reading a menu to ordering a meal
You can now read a simple Spanish menu, identify common sections, recognize dishes and ingredients, and match each item to its price. The next lesson teaches you how to order a meal, ask about ingredients, and request the bill in Spanish.