Spanish vocabulary about food

If there’s one thing that brings the world together, it’s food—but nothing is more frustrating (or makes you hungrier) than being in a restaurant in Spain or Latin America and not understanding a word on the menu. Let’s fix that right now with essential Spanish food vocabulary you’ll use everywhere, from the supermarket to a five-star restaurant.

Main dishes

Before we go into detail, here’s the Spanish food vocabulary you’ll see on 90% of menus:

Entrantes / Aperitivos: Starters. What you order to nibble on while waiting for your main course.

Plato principal: Main course. The most important dish of the meal.

Acompañamientos / Guarniciones: Side dishes (chips, salad, rice).

Postre: Dessert. A sweet dish at the end of the meal.

Bebidas: Drinks. This includes everything from water and soft drinks to wine and beer.

Meat: from farm to plate

This is where many learners get confused, especially in Spanish. Let’s break it down by types:

Fruits & Vegetables (your best friends)

To keep your diet balanced, here’s some of the most common Spanish vocabulary you’ll come across:

Verduras / Vegetales: Both mean “vegetables” in Spanish. Verduras is more common in Spain.

Verduras de hoja verde: Leafy greens (like spinach or lettuce).

Frutos rojos: Berries (fresas = strawberries, arándanos = blueberries).

Ajo y cebolla: Garlic and onion—the base of many Spanish dishes.

Citrus & tropical fruits

Nuts

Before diving in, here are a couple of useful facts about nuts in Spanish:

Nut or legume? Even though we group them together, cacahuete (peanut) is technically a legume—it grows underground! In Spanish, you may also hear maní in Latin America.

Watch the vocabulary: Unlike English, not all nut names follow a clear pattern in Spanish, so it’s worth learning them individually.

Example phrases

I love eating almonds as a healthy snack between meals.

Me encanta comer almendras como aperitivo saludable entre comidas.

Be careful! This cake contains hazelnuts.

¡Cuidado! Este pastel contiene avellanas.

Extra tip: In Spain, if you want a coffee with almond milk, ask for “un café con leche de almendras”.

Fish

A useful note before we start:
In Spanish, pez means a live fish swimming in the water, while pescado usually means fish as food. So on a menu, you’ll almost always see pescado, not pez.

In Spain, you’ll see lots of pescado on menus, especially near the coast. Two very common options are bacalao (cod) and merluza (hake).

Legumbres (legumes & pulses)

Example phrases

I’m making a lentil soup for dinner.

Voy a hacer una sopa de lentejas para cenar.

Hummus is made from chickpeas.

El hummus está hecho de garbanzos.

Useful tip: In Spain, you’ll often hear alubias or judías for beans. In Latin America, frijoles is very common.

How would you like it cooked? (cooking methods)

This is essential if you don’t want any surprises with the texture or flavour of your meal:

A la parrilla: Grilled.

Frito / frita: Fried, like patatas fritas (chips or fries).

Asado / asada: Roasted, usually in the oven.

Al vapor: Steamed.

Picante: Spicy. Be careful if the waiter warns you!

Useful food phrases in Spanish to sound more natural

If you want to sound more natural while eating out in Spain or Latin America, try using some of these:

“¡Está riquísimo!” (It’s delicious!).

“Soy muy goloso/a.” (I have a sweet tooth.)

“¿Nos trae la cuenta, por favor?” (Can we have the bill, please?)

In Spain, you’ll usually hear “la cuenta”, while in some Latin American countries people may say “la cuenta” or “la factura”. Both are correct.

“El filete está poco hecho.” (The steak is rare.)

Extra: If you want it very rare, say “muy poco hecho”. If you prefer it well done, say “muy hecho”. In the middle, you can say “al punto”.

Practice exercises: Spanish food vocabulary