Congrats, you've taken a leap and are willing to try and speak another language: Korean or Hangul (한글).
Remember, you didn't grow up with it, so chances are, your pronunciation is going to be all over the place. You might get laughed at and people might not understand you. I get it, it's tough—I have had those experiences multiple times over.
Then why try? If you are willing to try, to walk into a restaurant and speak Korean, you're making a difference—to the locals you encounter and to your self confidence. It also brings you a meal, so there's that.
In this post, we are going to cover FOUR BASIC KOREAN PHRASES/SENTENCES. You'll be able to use them when you walk into a restaurant to greet a server, order food and drink, thank the server, get the check, and say farewell. In four sentences? YES!
Let's begin.
1.
Excuse me (to call waiter/waitress) = Yo/gi/yo
One word, three syllables: yoh-gee-yo. This will get their attention and they will seat you.
2.
Please give me _____. (Can I have X.) = _______* ju/se/yo
Juseyo ((joo-say-oh) means 'please give', 'can I have', 'give it to me'. It is a popular phrase in Korean. You can use it to ask for a multitude of things.
Examples of things to ask for in a restaurant are starred below:
*mehnyu (a menu), mool (water), maekju (mehk-joo: beer), soju, kyeh san suh (check).
For example:
Can I have the menu? = Mehnyu juseyo? (intonation goes up when asking a question)
Can I have some water? = Mool juseyo?
Ordering food from the menu
Pick something from the menu and ask for it.
Let's say you want mixed rice: Bib/bim/bap (비빔밥) jusayo.
What about fried rice? Bok/keum/bap (볶음밥) juseyo.
I'll have the fried chicken = Chicken (치킨) juseyo.
Want raw fish? Hoe (회 - hweh) juseyo.
Here are popular Korean dishes to try. Use them to practice ordering:
Bul/go/gi 불고기 (marinated meat/beef barbecue)
Sam/gyeop/sal 삼겹살 (pork strips with lettuce leaf wraps)
Jap/chae 잡채 (stir-fried glass noodles)
Sun/du/bu-jji/gae 순두부찌개 (soft tofu stew with vegetables)
Sam/gye/tang 삼계탕 (chicken soup)
Pa/jeon 파전(scallion pancake, usually found beneath hiking trails)
What do you want to order? Say the name and follow it with 'juseyo'. Go!
What about asking for the check? You've got it: kyeh san suh juseyo.
3.
Thank you = Kam/sa/ham/ni/da
Five syllables: kam-sah-hahm-knee-dah. Throw this around like confetti.
4.
Goodbye (said when you're leaving the restaurant) = Ann/yong/hi kyeh se/yo
When you leave and the server stays, you say 'kyeh' (it's underlined above). This will happen in a restaurant setting.
If they happen to leave and you're staying, replace the 'kyeh' with 'kah'—seldom happens.
Right, think you can do it? Let's practice first.
Practice test
a. When you walk into a restaurant and the server is busy, what do you say?
b. You need a menu, so you say...
c. You'd like some water. Ask!
d. You want to order noodles (gooksu).
e. The noodles arrive at the table. You respond with...
f. You need the check.
g. You're leaving and the server stays behind. You say...
Answers
a. Yogiyo (calling attention)
b. Mehnyu juseyo
c. Mool juseyo
d. Gooksu juseyo
e. Kamsahamnida (thank you)
f. Kyeh san suh juseyo
g. Annyonghi kyeh seyo
I'm so proud; tears are welling up in my eyes. Just kidding, but you did it. Now... go and give it a shot in real life. (And if the menu is in Korean and you don't know the Korean alphabet, that's priority 1. Learn on the free app Duolingo!)
In the comments, let me know what else you'd like to know. I'm not an expert, just a foreigner trying to learn to make the most of my time in South Korea.
Much love,