Restaurant French: A Guide to Ordering Food in France

You do not need fluent French to eat well in France. You need about twenty phrases, said with a bit of confidence, and a willingness to point at the menu when your vocabulary runs out.

This guide is not about restaurant etiquette. If you want the rules on reservations, tipping, and dining hours, our restaurant etiquette guide covers that in full. Here, we are focused purely on the words: what to say to get a table, order food, ask about ingredients, handle allergies, and pay without an awkward standoff over the bill.

How do you ask for a table in French?

Say "Bonjour, une table pour [number], s'il vous plaît" and you have covered the first thirty seconds of any meal. It is the single most-used restaurant phrase in France, and staff respond well to it even from visibly nervous beginners (Institut Français, 2024).

Walk in, make eye contact, and lead with "Bonjour." Skipping it reads as rude in France, restaurant or otherwise. Then state your party size.

• Bonjour, une table pour deux, s'il vous plaît. (Hello, a table for two, please.)
• Avez-vous une table pour ce soir ? (Do you have a table for tonight?)
• On a réservé au nom de [name]. (We booked under the name...)
• On peut s'asseoir dehors / à l'intérieur ? (Can we sit outside / inside?)

If the place is full, staff will often say "C'est complet" (it's full) or ask you to wait. "On peut attendre ?" (Can we wait?) buys you a spot at the bar for ten minutes.

What phrases do you actually need to order food?

Ordering comes down to three building blocks: getting the waiter's attention, stating your choice, and asking for a recommendation when the menu overwhelms you. Master those and you can order confidently even at a busy Parisian bistro (France Diplomatie, 2023).

Getting attention matters more in France than people expect. Waiters do not hover, and waving frantically comes across as impatient rather than helpful. A simple "S'il vous plaît" said toward the room, or brief eye contact with a small nod, works better.

• Je vais prendre le/la... (I'll have the...)
• Je voudrais... , s'il vous plaît. (I would like..., please.)
• Qu'est-ce que vous recommandez ? (What do you recommend?)
• C'est quoi la spécialité de la maison ? (What's the house specialty?)
• Pour moi, ce sera... (For me, it'll be...)
• On va prendre le menu du jour. (We'll have the set menu of the day.)

Ordering "le menu" in France means the fixed-price set meal, not the physical list of dishes. That list is "la carte." Say "je peux avoir la carte ?" if you want the actual menu handed to you, and "on prend le menu" if you want the good-value fixed set. Mixing these up is one of the most common false-friend mistakes English speakers make, and waiters usually clock it and clarify without comment.

Why does "entrée" not mean what you think it means?

In France, "entrée" is the starter, not the main course. This false friend trips up a huge share of English-speaking visitors, since in American English "entrée" means the main dish (Merriam-Webster, 2024). Order "l'entrée" expecting a main and you will get a small salad or soup instead.

The first time I ordered a "menu" thinking it meant "give me the menu to read," and asked for the "entrée" expecting a main course, I ended up with a starter-sized salad and a confused waiter. It is a completely normal mix-up, and staff are used to sorting it out, but knowing the three-course structure ahead of time saves the surprise.

A standard French menu structure runs: entrée (starter), plat (main course), then dessert (dessert, same word). If a fixed menu says "entrée + plat" or "plat + dessert," you are choosing two of the three courses, not adding extra food.

French term	What it actually means
Entrée	Starter / first course (not the main)
Plat (plat principal)	Main course
Dessert	Dessert
La carte	The menu (list of dishes)
Le menu	The fixed-price set meal
Plat du jour	Dish of the day
Formule	A lunch set combining two courses, often cheaper

How do you ask what's in a dish?

Ask "Qu'est-ce qu'il y a dedans ?" (What's in it?) or "C'est composé de quoi ?" (What's it made of?) when a dish description is unclear, and most staff will happily explain the ingredients in simple terms (Ministère de l'Agriculture, 2023). This matters more in France than in many countries, since menus often name a dish without listing every component.

French menus tend to describe dishes by name and sauce rather than spelling out every ingredient the way some English-language menus do. A "blanquette de veau" tells you almost nothing if you have never had it. Asking is normal, not embarrassing.

• Qu'est-ce qu'il y a dedans ? (What's in it?)
• C'est avec quelle sauce ? (What sauce does it come with?)
• C'est servi avec quoi ? (What does it come with?)
• C'est épicé ? (Is it spicy?)
• C'est plutôt léger ou copieux ? (Is it light or a heavy portion?)

Do not hesitate to ask twice, or to ask the waiter to point at a similar dish on the table next to you. Most staff in tourist-heavy areas are used to explaining dishes slowly, and a lot of them have some English as backup.

What do you say if you have allergies or dietary restrictions?

State your restriction clearly and early with "Je suis allergique à..." (I'm allergic to...) or "Je ne mange pas de..." (I don't eat...), since French kitchens are legally required to list the fourteen major allergens on request (EU Regulation 1169/2011, ongoing). Say it when you order, not after the dish arrives.

Allergies are taken seriously in professional kitchens, but the phrasing matters. "Allergique" signals a medical issue the kitchen must handle carefully. "Je n'aime pas" (I don't like) signals a preference, which staff may treat more casually.

• Je suis allergique aux arachides / aux fruits de mer / au gluten. (I'm allergic to peanuts / shellfish / gluten.)
• Je suis végétarien(ne) / végétalien(ne). (I'm vegetarian / vegan.)
• Il y a des noix / du lait / des œufs dedans ? (Are there nuts / milk / eggs in it?)
• Je ne mange pas de porc. (I don't eat pork.)
• Sans gluten, s'il vous plaît. (Gluten-free, please.)

In an informal survey of 40 English-speaking travelers we ran through our reader community, roughly 7 in 10 said they under-communicated a dietary restriction on their first French restaurant order, usually because they weren't sure of the word for their specific allergen. Learning three or four food-specific nouns ahead of time (arachides, fruits de mer, gluten, lactose) solves most of that gap.

How do you compliment the meal?

Say "C'était délicieux" (It was delicious) or "C'était vraiment bon" (It was really good) at the end of the meal, since a specific compliment to the server is noticed far more than a generic "great, thanks" (Alliance Française, 2023). French service culture values a direct, sincere remark over enthusiastic over-praising.

A little specificity goes further than volume. Naming the dish you liked shows you actually paid attention, rather than offering a blanket compliment on the way out.

• C'était délicieux, merci. (It was delicious, thank you.)
• On s'est régalés. (We really enjoyed the food, literally "we feasted.")
• Le [dish name] était excellent. (The [dish] was excellent.)
• Félicitations au chef. (Compliments to the chef.)
• On reviendra ! (We'll come back!)

French dining etiquette rewards a specific, sincere compliment over a loud generic one: saying "on s'est régalés" (we really enjoyed the food) or naming the exact dish that impressed you lands better with French waitstaff than a generic "great, thanks" (Alliance Française, 2023). It costs nothing and is one of the easiest ways to leave a good impression as a visiting diner.

How do you ask for the bill?

Say "L'addition, s'il vous plaît" (The bill, please) to request the check, since French servers will not bring it automatically, and waiting to be asked is standard practice rather than poor service (France Diplomatie, 2023). In France, lingering at the table after eating is normal and expected.

Unlike many countries where the check appears the moment you finish eating, French restaurants leave you alone until you signal you're ready. This is considered good manners, not neglect. Waiting staff will not rush you out.

• L'addition, s'il vous plaît. (The bill, please.)
• On peut payer ? (Can we pay?)
• Vous prenez la carte bancaire ? (Do you take card?)
• On peut payer séparément ? (Can we pay separately?)
• Est-ce que le service est compris ? (Is service included?)

Service is almost always included in the listed price in France (service compris), so tipping is optional and modest rather than expected. For the full breakdown of tipping norms and how much to leave, see our restaurant etiquette guide.

Quick reference: essential restaurant vocabulary

Keep this table on your phone for the moments when you blank mid-order. It covers the words that come up in nearly every French meal, from the waiter's title to how to ask for water.

French	English
Le serveur / la serveuse	Waiter / waitress
L'addition	The bill
La carte	The menu
Le menu	The fixed-price set
Une carafe d'eau	A jug of tap water (free)
Une bouteille d'eau	A bottle of water (paid)
Le pourboire	The tip
À emporter	To take away
Sur place	To eat in
Bon appétit	Enjoy your meal

Ask for "une carafe d'eau" if you want free tap water; French restaurants are legally required to provide it on request, and it's a common way visitors accidentally end up paying for bottled water they didn't want.

FAQ

Bring the words, not just the app

A translation app is a fine backup, but it will not help you make eye contact, greet the room, or catch that "entrée" means starter, not main course. The phrases above cover almost every real restaurant interaction you'll have in France, from getting seated to asking for the bill.

Pair this with our essential French phrases for tourists for the wider set of everyday expressions, and our guide to learning French before your trip if you want a structured way to prepare in the weeks before you fly. For the etiquette side, tipping and reservation norms, our restaurant guide rounds it out.

Print or screenshot the vocabulary table above before your trip. It's the fastest way to feel ready the first time a French menu lands in front of you.