A Bite of China, A Bite of Chinese

In 2012, a post was published on Guardian saying ” It’s not on British telly yet but the beautifully made series ‘A Bite of China’ puts our own food TV in the shade”. It might be an exaggeration but A Bite of China is back for a second season. So you can be the judge.

But before you go, let’s learn some useful Chinese food related words and phrases as well as sentence patterns so that you can better understand the TV show. Plus, you will definitely be envied by your friends if you can speak fluent Chinese to order food in a Chinese restaurant.

Choose what kind of Chinese food you would like to try

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Chinese	Pinyin	English
吃团圆饭	chī tuán yuán fàn	reunion dinner
做菜	zuò cài	cook
中餐	zhōnɡ cān	Chinese food
火锅	huǒ ɡuō	hot pot
快餐	kuài cān	fast food
年夜饭	nián yè fàn	new year dinner
西餐	xī cān	western food
东北菜	dōnɡ běi cài	china north cuisine
小饭馆	xiǎo fàn ɡuǎn	small restaurant
大饭店	dà fàn diàn	grand hotel
川菜	chuān cài	Sichuan cuisine
中西结合	zhōnɡ xī jié hé	combination of Chinese and western food style
家常菜	jiā chánɡ cài	home cooking
叫外卖	jiào wài mài	order takeout

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Learn how to order food in a Chinese restaurant

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Chinese	Pinyin	English
菜	cài	vegetable
菜单	cài dān	menu
点菜	diǎn cài	order
点什么菜	diǎn shén me cài	what would you like to order
买一送一	mǎi yí sònɡ yī	two for one
我点一个……	wǒ diǎn yí ɡè … …	I’d like to order a/an
特别	tè bié	specially/particular/especially
马上来	mǎ shànɡ lái	right now
上菜	shànɡ cài	serve up
再来一份	zài lái yí fèn	one more, please
服务员	fú wù yuán	waiter
结账/买单	jié zhànɡ / mǎi dān	checkout/pay
实惠	shí huì	affordable
特色菜	tè sè cài	specialty
尝尝	chánɡ chanɡ	taste
地道	dì dào	genuine
来（想要）	lái （ xiǎnɡ yào ）	would like to (want to)
给我一碗……	ɡěi wǒ yì wǎn	give me a bowl of
还有多久	hái yǒu duō jiǔ	how long will be…
快点上菜	kuài diǎn shànɡ cài	please serve our meals quickly
我不想吃面条	wǒ bù xiǎnɡ chī miàn tiáo	I don’t want to eat noodles
我要点菜	wǒ yào diǎn cài	I’d like to order my meal
一共多少钱？	yí ɡònɡ duō shǎo qián ？	how much altogether?
有什么果汁	yǒu shén me ɡuǒ zhī	which kind of fruit juice do you have

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Get to know the names of Chinese food

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Chinese	Pinyin	English
酒	jiǔ	beer/wine
橙汁	chénɡ zhī	orange juice
红酒	hónɡ jiǔ	red wine
可乐	kě lè	coke
啤酒	pí jiǔ	beer
白酒	bái jiǔ	white spirit
果汁	ɡuǒ zhī	fruit juice
米饭	mǐ fàn	rice
两瓶啤酒	liǎnɡ pínɡ pí jiǔ	two bottles of beer
饮料	yǐn liào	beverages
一块蛋糕/面包	yí kuài dàn ɡāo / miàn bāo	a piece of cake/bread
鱼	yú	fish
西红柿炒鸡蛋	xī hónɡ shì chǎo jī dàn	tomato omelette
炒青菜	chǎo qīnɡ cài	stir-fried vegetables
饺子	jiǎo zi	dumplings
酸辣汤	suān là tānɡ	hot and sour soup
米饭	mǐ fàn	rice
小笼包	xiǎo lónɡ bāo	dumplings
面条	miàn tiáo	noodles
素饺子	sù jiǎo zi	vegetarian dumplings
三鲜饺子	sān xiān jiǎo zi	dumpling stuffed
鱼香肉丝	yú xiānɡ ròu sī	shredded meat in chilli sauce
红烧肉	hónɡ shāo ròu	braised pork
水煮鱼	shuǐ zhǔ yú	boiled fish
宫保鸡丁	ɡōnɡ bǎo jī dīnɡ	kung pao chicken
点心	diǎn xin	dessert
红烧排骨	hónɡ shāo pái ɡǔ	spareribs with brown sauce
四川火锅	sì chuān huǒ ɡuō	Sichuan hot pot
辣椒酱	là jiāo jiànɡ	chili sauce
面条	miàn tiáo	noodle
羊肉	yánɡ ròu	mutton
汤	tānɡ	soup
主食	zhǔ shí	staple

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Words and phrases to express how you feel

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Chinese	Pinyin	English
吃饱了	chī bǎo le	I’m full now
还没吃完	hái méi chī wán	I still haven’t finished eating yet
好吃	hǎo chī	delicious
太咸了	tài xián le	too salty
真好吃	zhēn hǎo chī	it is delicious
物美价廉	wù měi jià lián	value for money
口味重	kǒu wèi zhònɡ	heavy flavor
色香味俱全	sè xiānɡ wèi jù quán	perfect combination of color, aroma, taste and appearance
爽口	shuǎnɡ kǒu	tasty
清淡	qīnɡ dàn	light
口味	kǒu wèi	taste
大吃一顿	dà chī yí dùn	have a big meal
饱	bǎo	full

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Common Chinese tableware

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Chinese	Pinyin	English
叉子	chā zi	fork
碗	wǎn	bowl
一次性餐具	yí cì xìnɡ cān jù	disposable tableware
筷子	kuài zi	chopsticks
勺子	sháo zi	spoon
一杯果汁/咖啡	yì bēi ɡuǒ zhī / kā fēi	a cup of fruit juice/coffee
一双筷子	yì shuānɡ kuài zi	a pair of chopsticks
一碗米饭/面条	yì wǎn mǐ fàn / miàn tiáo	a bowl of rice/noodles

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Finally, some extra words and phrases to help you communicate better

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Chinese	Pinyin	English
宾馆	bīn ɡuǎn	hotel
出租车司机	chū zū chē sī jī	taxi driver
商店	shānɡ diàn	shop
师傅	shī fu	master
司机	sī jī	driver
老板	lǎo bǎn	boss
下厨房	xià chú fánɡ	cook at home
欢迎光临	huān yínɡ ɡuānɡ lín	welcome
欢迎再来	huān yínɡ zài lái	welcome back
手艺好	shǒu yì hǎo	good workmanship
打扫房间	dǎ sǎo fánɡ jiān	clean up the room
饭店	fàn diàn	restaurant
服务员	fú wù yuán	waiter
客人	kè rén	guest
空中服务员	kōnɡ zhōnɡ fú wù yuán	Flight Attendant
钱	qián	money
师傅	shī fu	master

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With hard work and determination I’m sure you can master all of those words and when you do, don’t forget to show off your Chinese in your local Chinese restaurants. And bon appétit!