Eating well in China when you can't read the menu
You don't need much Chinese to order. You need about six sentences, a finger, and a way to read what's on the table. Here is the short version, in the order it actually happens.
Getting a table
Staff will usually ask 几位 (jǐ wèi) — how many of you. Hold up fingers, or say the number and 位 (wèi). Two people: 两位 (liǎng wèi). Nobody waits to be seated in most places; if the room is full, you may be handed a paper number and pointed at a bench.
The menu, or the code stuck to the table
A lot of restaurants now take the order through a QR code on the table. You scan it in WeChat or Alipay, the menu opens in a mini-program, you tap dishes and the kitchen gets them. These menus are usually Chinese-only, but they're nearly always full of photographs, which does most of the work for you. Some of them require a Chinese payment method to submit the order — if that's not set up, ask the staff: 可以在这儿点吗？(Kěyǐ zài zhèr diǎn ma?) — can I order here, with a person.
Where there's a paper menu, pointing is completely ordinary. Point and say 我要这个.
The phrases
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 菜单，谢谢 | Càidān, xièxie | Menu, please |
| 我要这个 | Wǒ yào zhège | I'll have this one |
| 两个 / 三个 | Liǎng ge / sān ge | Two / three of them |
| 这个是什么肉？ | Zhège shì shénme ròu? | What meat is this? |
| 这个辣吗？ | Zhège là ma? | Is this spicy? |
| 不要辣 | Búyào là | No chilli |
| 不要香菜 | Búyào xiāngcài | No coriander |
| 我不吃肉 | Wǒ bù chī ròu | I don't eat meat |
| 米饭 | Mǐfàn | Rice |
| 热水 | Rè shuǐ | Hot water |
| 再来一瓶啤酒 | Zài lái yì píng píjiǔ | Another beer, please |
| 打包 | Dǎbāo | Box this up to take away |
| 买单 | Mǎidān | The bill, please |
Saying what you can't eat
An allergy is worth having on screen rather than in your mouth — say it once, then hold the phone out so the waiter can read the characters.
| Chinese | Pinyin | English |
|---|---|---|
| 我对花生过敏 | Wǒ duì huāshēng guòmǐn | I'm allergic to peanuts |
| 这个有没有花生？ | Zhège yǒu méiyǒu huāshēng? | Does this have peanuts in it? |
| 我不能吃海鲜 | Wǒ bù néng chī hǎixiān | I can't eat seafood |
Swap the food in: 鸡蛋 (jīdàn, egg), 牛奶 (niúnǎi, milk), 麸质 (fūzhì, gluten). For anything serious, show the written sentence every time rather than relying on it being remembered from the last visit.
Paying
Say 买单 (mǎidān) or make a scribble gesture in the air. Payment is usually a QR code: either you scan theirs, or they scan the payment code in your app. If you were invited out, expect the person who invited you to pay — offering to split isn't rude, but it isn't the default here the way it is in a lot of places.
What Laonei does here
Laonei is a translator built for exactly this: you speak, it says your sentence out loud in Chinese, and the reply comes back on the same screen big enough for the waiter to read from a metre away. Its camera mode reads a menu photo item by item and keeps the original Chinese next to each line, so you can point at the characters on the phone and at the menu. Try it at liuxuesheng.help/talk.
FAQ
How do I order food in China if I can't read Chinese? Point at a photo or a line on the menu and say 我要这个 (wǒ yào zhège). For anything you need to specify — no chilli, no coriander, what meat it is — show the sentence on your phone instead of saying it. Staff read screens all day and will usually just nod and put it in.
What do I say if I have a food allergy in China? Show the written sentence, don't only say it: 我对花生过敏 (wǒ duì huāshēng guòmǐn) for peanuts, with the food swapped as needed. Then ask 这个有没有花生？about the specific dish. Kitchens vary in how they handle it, so show it at every meal rather than once.
Do I need WeChat Pay to order from a QR code menu in a restaurant? Often yes — many table QR menus place the order and take payment in one step inside a mini-program. If yours isn't set up, ask 可以在这儿点吗？(kěyǐ zài zhèr diǎn ma?) and order with a member of staff instead. Most restaurants still keep a paper menu behind the counter.