Unlock Basic Ordering in Vietnamese 101

Planning a holiday to Vietnam? Want to equip yourself with some basic ordering food and drinks with confidence? This blog post will walk you through the essentials you need to kick off your culinary adventures in Vietnam — a country we’re pretty sure has one of the best food scenes in the world. 🇻🇳🍜

First off, let’s dive into some essential food and drink vocabulary.

Some Must-Try Local Dishes 

Let’s get a little more specific with some dishes and drinks you should definitely try while you’re here:

A Quick Vietnamese Grammar Hack

Before diving into useful phrases for ordering food, you’ll need to know how Yes–No questions work in Vietnamese.

There are three common structures that are equivalent to:

1. Do you + VERB?

Example:

Anh có muốn uống cà phê không?
(Do you want to drink coffee?)

→ Có. Anh muốn uống cà phê.
(Yes. I want to drink coffee.)

→ Không. Anh không muốn uống cà phê.
(No. I don’t want to drink coffee.)

2. Are you + ADJECTIVE?

Example:

Anh có khỏe không?
(Are you well?)

→ Có. Anh khỏe.
(Yes. I’m well.)

→ Không. Anh không khỏe.
(No. I’m not well.)

3. Do you have + NOUN?

Example:

Em có bia không?
(Do you have beer?)

→ Có. Em có bia.
(Yes. I have beer.)

→ Không. Em không có bia.
(No. I don’t have beer.)

Essential Phrases for “Basic Ordering” in Vietnam

Now for the fun part! These are the phrases you’ll use all the time when eating out in Vietnam.

Getting the Waiter’s Attention

Vietnamese people usually call servers using kinship terms based on age, gender and generation.

• Em ơi! (for a younger server)
• Chị ơi! (for an older female server)
• Anh ơi! (for an older male server)
• Cô ơi! (for an older woman)
• Chú ơi! (for an older man)

Asking for the Menu

Cho tôi/anh/chị xem thực đơn.

(Cho + your pronoun + xem thực đơn)

→ “Can I see the menu?”

Asking Whether the Restaurant Has Something

Em có phở bò không?

(Server’s pronoun + có + dish + không?)

→ “Do you have beef pho?”

Ordering Food or Drinks

Cho tôi/anh/chị một phở bò.

(Cho + your pronoun + quantity + dish/drink)

→ “I’d like a bowl of beef pho.”

Asking for the Bill

Cho tôi/anh/chị tính tiền.

(Cho + your pronoun + tính tiền)

Literally, this means “Please calculate the money,” but it’s simply how Vietnamese people ask for the bill.

Asking “How Much Is It?”

Bao nhiêu tiền?

Literally: “How much money?”

When Paying

Anh/chị/em gửi.

(Your pronoun + gửi)

This is a very natural way to hand over money and say, “Here you are.”

And Don’t Forget…

Cảm ơn anh/chị/em.

→ “Thank you.”

A little Vietnamese goes a long way, and locals always appreciate the effort. 😊

Take a look at the video below about Basic Ordering in Vietnamese to see how these phrases come to life in a real conversation!

Interested in discovering Hanoi’s lesser-seen areas and unique culinary adventures? Join our Hanoi Food Tour to dive into the most authentic dishes and hear interesting stories about Hanoi’s food scene from our local guide.