The summer heat is just getting unbearable, isn’t it? One great way to cool down is to sip a cold, thirst-quenching beverage. Of course, water is fine, but these sweltering days call for a refreshing taste, courtesy of your local café or milk tea stall.
But when you’re at a store really thirsty and ready to gulp down a drink, you can find yourself stuck at the càidān. You tell the fúwùyuán “I want this,” but he can’t understand you, unless you perform a sort of ritual (aka sign language). Okay – so he got your order but 10 minutes later, he arrives with something entirely different: flavor, size, sweetness, and everything!
This has happened to me a lot of times, and I end up either drinking that beverage or just canceling everything and walking away. So I thought of compiling a list of phrases (with characters and pinyin) which we can use when ordering a beverage to make things easier…
Do you have an English menu?
Nǐ yǒu yīngwén càidān ma? 你有英文菜单吗？
Listen for this: Méiyǒu 没有 (We don’t have [an English menu])
I want a…
Wǒ yào 我要…
– frappuccino – xīng bīng lè 星冰乐
– iced coffee – bīng kāfēi 冰咖啡
– milk tea – nǎichá 奶茶
– fruit tea – shuǐguǒ chá 水果茶
– smoothie – bīng shā 冰沙
Listen for this: Nǐ xiǎng yào shénme chǐcùn? 你想要什么尺寸？(What size do you want?)
– Tall (regular size) – zhōng bēi 中杯
– Grande (medium size) – dà bēi 大杯
– Venti (large) – chāodà bēi 超大杯
Flavors – Wèidào 味道
– Taro – yùtou 芋头
– Chocolate – qiǎokèlì 巧克力
– Mocha – mókǎ 摩卡
– Coffee – kāfēi 咖啡
– Yogurt – suānnǎi 酸奶
– Green tea – lǜchá 绿茶
– Black tea – hóngchá 红茶
– Passion fruit – bǎixiāng guǒ 百香果
– Lychee – lìzhī 荔枝
– Strawberry – cǎoméi 草莓
– Mango – mángguǒ 芒果
– Coconut – yēzi 椰子
Add-ons
Please add… Qǐng jiā 请加
– (little/more) ice – (shǎo/duō) bīng (少/多) 冰
– whipped cream – biāndǎ nǎiyóu 鞭打奶油
– coffee jelly – kāfēi guǒdòng 咖啡果冻
– black pearl – hēi zhēnzhū 黑珍珠
– coconut jelly – yēzi guǒdòng 椰子果冻
– pudding – bùdīng 布丁
– red bean – hóngdòu 红豆
Sugar level – Tián dù 甜度
– 100 percent sweetness – quán táng 全糖
– 70 percent (or any number except 100 and 50) – qi fēn táng 7分糖
– 50 percent – bàn táng 半糖
– I don’t want sugar – wú táng 无糖
Photos: StockSnap, MorningbirdPhoto, PublicDomainPictures, via Pixabay
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Email: andypenafuerte@beijing-kids.com
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