French at the Restaurant — Order, Ask and Pay Like a Local

You can survive a French restaurant with pointing and hopeful smiling. But doing it properly — getting a table, ordering, paying — takes about fifteen phrases, and they are the same ones every single time. Learn them once and dinner becomes the easiest French you will ever speak.

Getting a table

Walk in, make eye contact, and say bonjour (bonsoir after about six) before anything else. Skipping the greeting is the fastest route to frosty service. Then:

• Une table pour deux, s’il vous plaît — a table for two, please
• Vous avez une table en terrasse ? — do you have a table outside?
• J’ai réservé au nom de Martin — I booked under the name Martin

In cafés you usually seat yourself; in restaurants, wait to be placed. When in doubt, hover politely near the door — someone will rescue you.

Arriving and ordering: a real exchange

— Bonsoir, une table pour deux, s’il vous plaît.
— Bonsoir ! Vous avez réservé ?
— Non, on n’a pas réservé.
— Pas de souci, installez-vous ici. Voici la carte.
— Merci… S’il vous plaît ! Alors, je vais prendre le magret de canard. Et pour elle, la salade de chèvre chaud.
— Très bien. Et comme boisson ?
— Une carafe d’eau et un verre de vin rouge, s’il vous plaît.

Notice how you call the waiter: a clear s’il vous plaît, nothing else. And une carafe d’eau gets you free tap water.

Your ordering toolkit

Three structures cover almost every order. All are polite; use whichever comes out first.

• Je vais prendre le steak-frites — I’ll have the steak-frites; the most natural way to order
• Je voudrais une soupe à l’oignon — I’d like an onion soup; soft and always safe
• Pour moi, le plat du jour — for me, today’s special; perfect when ordering after someone else
• Comme dessert, une crème brûlée — for dessert, a crème brûlée
• La même chose pour moi — the same for me; the lazy classic
• C’est tout, merci — that’s all, thanks

Questions and dietary needs

Waiters explain dishes all day long — asking is normal, not needy.

• Qu’est-ce que vous me conseillez ? — what do you recommend?
• C’est quoi, exactement, la pissaladière ? — what exactly is the pissaladière?
• Je suis végétarien / végétarienne — I’m vegetarian
• C’est sans gluten ? — is it gluten-free?
• Je suis allergique aux arachides — I’m allergic to peanuts
• Sans oignons, c’est possible ? — without onions, is that possible?

L’addition and the tipping question

Nobody will bring the bill until you ask — the table is yours for the evening, and rushing you would be rude. When you are ready, catch the waiter’s eye and say l’addition, s’il vous plaît.

On the bill you will see service compris: service is included in the prices by law, so no maths and no twenty percent. Happy customers leave a small pourboire — a euro or two in coins — for great service. Optional, appreciated, never expected.

Paying: a real exchange

— L’addition, s’il vous plaît.
— Bien sûr, je vous apporte ça. Vous réglez comment ?
— Par carte, s’il vous plaît. Le service est compris ?
— Oui oui, c’est compris.
— Parfait. C’était délicieux, merci !
— Merci à vous, bonne soirée !

Note régler — the waiter’s verb for paying. Answer par carte (by card) or en espèces (in cash).

Three traps that mark you as a tourist

• Commander, never ordonner. J’ai commandé un café — I ordered a coffee. Ordonner means to give someone an order, like a general. Ordonner un café sounds like you’re threatening the espresso machine.
• Garçon ! is dead. Old films taught you this one, and today it lands as plain rude. Say s’il vous plaît or excusez-moi, and call the person le serveur / la serveuse.
• Une entrée is the starter. American menus hijacked the word; in France l’entrée is what enters first, and the main course is le plat (or le plat principal).

Sounding like a local: reservations, « je vais prendre » and the tipping math

Booking ahead matters — many restaurants in France, and virtually all good Parisian ones, expect it. To make a reservation, one sentence does everything: « Bonjour, je voudrais réserver une table pour deux personnes ce soir, s’il vous plaît. » A table in French is always for a number of personnes, and a reservation in French is un créneau you keep — arriving twenty minutes late without calling reads as impolite.

Here is the secret French classes rarely teach: French people rarely say « je voudrais » when actually ordering. At the table, the typical French order is « je vais prendre le poulet » (I’ll have the chicken) or simply « pour moi, le poulet ». Je voudrais is perfect politeness for requests — the bill, more bread — but for the order itself, je vais prendre is how you practice your French like a local. Add doneness for meat — saignant (rare), à point (medium rare), bien cuit — and the waiter stops switching to English. If a French menu term stumps you, ask: « c’est quoi, exactement ? » — restaurant staff explain daily and it beats guessing; knowing the menu options beats translating them.

On tipping: the service charge is included by law (« service compris »), so nobody expects an American percentage. French people leave a euro or two for good service — leave a tip if you enjoyed it, skip it without guilt if not. Brasseries print service compris on the receipt; the brusque Parisian waiter is mostly a myth that dissolves the moment you open with bonjour and order in everyday French. And two habits that don’t translate: takeout from a proper restaurant is rare (that is what boulangeries are for), and meals run in several courses at a pace no one apologises for. These common French phrases and french words are fluency of the practical kind — the conditional (« je voudrais ») for requests, the near future for orders, and everyday situations doing the teaching. It is the exact sweet spot where french courses and intensive french programs love to start, because thirty minutes of restaurant role-play teaches more usable French idioms and reflexes than a week of tables.

FAQ

What do French people say when ordering?

« Je vais prendre… », « pour moi… », or just the dish name with s’il vous plaît. Open with bonjour, close with merci — those two do more for the service you get than anything else.

How to politely order food in France?

Greet first, order with je vais prendre or je voudrais, keep vous throughout, and ask for the bill — « l’addition, s’il vous plaît » — rather than waiting for it: in France the bill never comes until you ask.

Do French people say “je voudrais” when ordering?

Less than textbooks suggest. It is correct and always polite, but at the table natives reach for « je vais prendre » — keep je voudrais for requests and reservations.

How do you order food in a French restaurant?

Wait to be seated, take the menu, order drinks first, then: « je vais prendre [l’entrée] et [le plat] ». Water is free if you ask for « une carafe d’eau ». The full scripts are in the exchanges above.

Do I really only leave one or two euros as a tip?

In everyday cafés and bistros, yes — service is already in the price. Round up or leave coins for good service — five euros after a special dinner is generous. For the table-manners side, see French dining etiquette.

Should I say tu or vous to the waiter?

Vous, always, whatever the waiter’s age — it keeps things professional and comfortable. The full rules are in tu vs vous.

What if I don’t understand the menu?

Ask — c’est quoi, ça ? works perfectly well. Then build the vocabulary with our French food vocabulary lesson and menus stop being mysteries.

Quick practice