Japanese · Beginner (A1) · Chapter 3 of 12
At the café
カフェでKafe de
Order drinks and cake in a Japanese café with を and お願いします, count things with ひとつ, ふたつ, and understand what the staff say.
In this chapter you'll learn to
- Order food and drink politely
- Say what you'll have with にします (ni shimasu)
- Count things with ひとつ, ふたつ, みっつ
- Understand the staff's polite phrases
Listen
Watanabe Kenta and his colleague Ishida Mei order at the counter of a café in Osaka. He pays for both of them. Listen to the whole dialogue first, then line by line.
Assistant
いらっしゃいませ。ご注文は？
Irasshaimase. Gochūmon wa?
Hello, welcome. What would you like?
Watanabe
ホットコーヒーをひとつお願いします。石田さんは？
Hotto kōhī o hitotsu onegai shimasu. Ishida-san wa?
One hot coffee, please. And you, Ms Ishida?
Ishida
私は紅茶にします。
Watashi wa kōcha ni shimasu.
I'll have tea.
Assistant
ホットですか、アイスですか？
Hotto desu ka, aisu desu ka?
Hot or iced?
Ishida
アイスをお願いします。
Aisu o onegai shimasu.
Iced, please.
Watanabe
ケーキもふたつお願いします。以上です。
Kēki mo futatsu onegai shimasu. Ijō desu.
And two pieces of cake, please. That's all.
Assistant
店内でお召し上がりですか？
Tennai de omeshiagari desu ka?
Will you be eating here?
Watanabe
はい、店内で。
Hai, tennai de.
Yes, to eat in.
Assistant
お会計は千八百円です。
Okaikei wa sen happyakuen desu.
That's 1,800 yen, please.
Ishida
渡辺さん、ありがとうございます。
Watanabe-san, arigatō gozaimasu.
Thank you, Mr Watanabe.
Understand
Ordering: を and お願いします
(o) marks the object, the thing an action is done to. It has its own letter, used almost only for this particle, but it's said simply o, and it comes right after the thing. The object comes before the verb, because in Japanese the verb always comes last. To order, say the thing + (o) + (onegai shimasu) or (kudasai): (kōhī o onegai shimasu), a coffee, please. Both are polite; (onegai shimasu) sounds a little softer.
When you choose, (ni shimasu) means “I'll have …”, literally “I decide on …”: (watashi wa kōcha ni shimasu), I'll have tea. To order two things, join them with (to), “and”: (kōhī to kēki o onegai shimasu). (to) only joins nouns, never whole sentences.
- コーヒーをお願いします。Kōhī o onegai shimasu.A coffee, please.
- 紅茶をください。Kōcha o kudasai.A tea, please.
- 私はケーキにします。Watashi wa kēki ni shimasu.I'll have cake.
- コーヒーとケーキをお願いします。Kōhī to kēki o onegai shimasu.A coffee and a piece of cake, please.
Counting things: ひとつ, ふたつ, みっつ
Japanese numbers usually need a counter, a small word after the number that depends on the kind of thing. The general counter below works for most objects, and for drinks and cakes when you order. It has its own numbers from 1 to 10; from 11 on, use the plain numbers. To ask “how many?”, say (ikutsu).
The number comes after the thing and its particle: (kōhī o futatsu onegai shimasu), two coffees, please, word for word “coffee, two, please”. Japanese has no plural ending, so (kōhī) is “coffee” or “coffees”.
| Number | Counting things |
|---|---|
| 1 | (hitotsu) |
| 2 | (futatsu) |
| 3 | (mittsu) |
| 4 | (yottsu) |
| 5 | (itsutsu) |
| 6 | (muttsu) |
| 7 | (nanatsu) |
| 8 | (yattsu) |
| 9 | (kokonotsu) |
| 10 | (tō) |
What the staff say
Café and shop staff use very polite fixed phrases. You only need to understand them, not say them. The (o) and (go) at the start of (okaikei) and (gochūmon) are polite prefixes. Answer simply: (tennai de), to eat in, or (mochikaeri de), to take away.
| The staff say | Meaning |
|---|---|
| (irasshaimase) | Hello, welcome. |
| (gochūmon wa?) | What would you like? |
| (hotto desu ka, aisu desu ka?) | Hot or iced? |
| (tennai de omeshiagari desu ka?) | Will you be eating here? |
| (shōshō omachi kudasai) | Just a moment, please. |
| (okaikei wa sen happyakuen desu) | That's 1,800 yen, please. |
More in the grammar: Katakana · The particles と, も, の, や, から and まで · The particles を, に, で and へ
New words
- ご注文は？Gochūmon wa?What would you like? (staff) · ごちゅうもんは; literally “your order?”
- ホットhottohot (drink) · (hotto kōhī), hot coffee
- コーヒーkōhīcoffee
- ひとつhitotsuone (thing)
- ～をお願いします… o onegai shimasu… please (when you ask for something) · ～をおねがいします
- 紅茶kōchatea (black tea) · こうちゃ; Japanese green tea is (ocha).
- アイスaisuiced (drink); ice cream · (aisu kōhī), iced coffee
- ケーキkēkicake
- ふたつfutatsutwo (things)
- 以上ですijō desuthat's all · いじょうです; at the end of your order
- 店内でtennai deto eat in, in the shop · てんないで
- お会計okaikeithe bill, paying · おかいけい; (okaikei o onegai shimasu), the bill, please
- 水mizuwater · みず; usually said politely: (omizu)
- 持ち帰りmochikaeritakeaway · もちかえり; (mochikaeri de), to take away
Practise
1.You want to say “I'll have tea.” Which sentence is right?
2.Put the words in order to order two coffees.
Tap the words below in the right order.Two coffees, please.
3.Match the Japanese with the English.
Pick a word on the left, then its meaning on the right.
4.The assistant asks (tennai de omeshiagari desu ka?). What does she want to know?
5.How do you say “three” when you count cakes?
6.Put the words in order to order a coffee and a piece of cake.
Tap the words below in the right order.A coffee and a piece of cake, please.
0 of 6 exercises done.
Say it out loud
ホットコーヒーをひとつお願いします。
Hotto kōhī o hitotsu onegai shimasu.
One hot coffee, please.
Listen, then say it out loud, as close to the recording as you can.
Check
Five questions on this chapter. Then mark it as finished to add its words to your review deck.
0 of 5 answered.