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German Menu and Dining Guide 2

A German-English Food and Drink Glossary

With Phrasebook

Part of German for Beginners: Lesson 13

Menu > A-I | J-R | S-Z | Phrasebook | Stores & Shopping

Also see: English-German Food and Drink Glossary


J

Jägerschnitzel  escalope chasseur (a type of cutlet with mushrooms and peppers)

Jause  snack (Austria), afternoon tea

Joghurt  yogurt

Johannisbeeren  currants (red, blue, white)

Johannisbrot  carob (bean), St. John's bread


K

Kabeljau  cod
   MORE > See Das Fischlexikon for more seafood and fish terms found on a menu.

Kaffee  coffee
   Kaffee mit Sahne coffee with cream
   Kaffee mit Zucker coffee with sugar
   koffeinfreier Kaffee decaf

Kalb-  veal (in compound words)
Kalbfleisch  veal

Kaninchen  rabbit

Karotten  carrots

Kartoffel(n)  potato(es)
   Bratkartoffeln  fritters, roasted potatoes
   Kartoffelbrei, -püree  mashed potatoes
   Pommes frites  French fried potatoes
   Salzkartoffeln  (salt) boiled potatoes

Käse (der)  cheese

Käsesorten
Types of Cheese
Deutsch English
Blauschimmelkäse Blue cheese
Chesterkäse Cheshire
Emmenthaler Swiss cheese
Hüttenkäse cottage cheese
Schimmelkäse Gorgonzolla
Ziegenkäse goat cheese

Kasseler Rippchen   smoked pork ribs

Kellner   waiter
Kellnerin   waitress
   Herr Ober!   Waiter!

Fräulein! used to be an acceptable way to get the attention of your waitress. Today it is considered sexist, and Germans avoid using it. Unfortunately, there is no good replacement, so people generally resort to hand-waving instead. "Herr Ober!" isn't sexist, but it only works for males and is a bit old-fashioned.

Ketchup  catsup

Kiwi  kiwi

Klopse  meat balls (N. Germany)

Kneipe  bar, pub

Knoblauch  garlic

Knödel  dumpling(s)

Kokosnuss  coconut

Kompott  stewed fruit

Konditorei  pastry shop, cake shop

Korn  grain (not "corn")
   Vollkornbrot whole grain bread, whole wheat bread

Kotelett  cutlet, chop

Konfitür  jam

Krabben  shrimp, crab

Krapfen  doughnut(s), fritter(s)

Krebs  crawfish, crab

Kren  horseradish (Austria)

Kuchen  cake

Kümmel  caraway

Lesson 13 (Food and Drink) of German for Beginners
Our free online German course


L

Lachs  salmon

Laibchen  meat balls or dumplings (Austria)

Lamm  lamb

Languste  (spiny) lobster

Leber   liver
Leberkäse   lit., "liver-cheese," but this type of large sausage (usually served hot) is difficult to translate. Sometimes translated as "meatloaf," it is more like a loaf of smooth sausage. Bought at the local butcher, it has a soft, firm consistency and a salty, cold-cut taste.
Leberknödel   liver dumplings
Leberwurst   liverwurst

Lendensteak   sirloin steak

lieblich   sweet (wine)

Limonade (Limo)   soft drink, soda drink; lemonade

Linsen   lentils
   Linsensuppe   lentil soup

Löffel   spoon (also see Besteck)

Lorbeerblatt   bayleaf (seasoning)

Also see this article and glossary:
German For Travelers: The Basics


M

Mais   corn, maize

Mandeln   almonds

Marille(n)   apricot(s) (Austria)

Marmelade   jam, jelly, marmalade

The German word Marmelade, is less specific than English "marmalade" - which is usually only a citrus jam with rinds. The German word may refer to any jam, jelly or preserves, although there are more specific words, such as Konfitür.

Maronen  chestnuts

Maß  a liter (beer) stein, mug, tankard

Matjes  herring

Maultaschen  ravioli (Swabian version)

Meeresfrüchte   seafood
   MORE > Das Fischlexikon for more seafood and fish terms found on a menu

Meerrettich  horseradish

Mehlspeise  cake; dessert (Austria)

Melanzani  eggplant (Austria)

Melone  melon

Menü   special of the day, set menu

Do not confuse this word with Speisekarte, the printed menu. Das Menü is a set combination of items from the menu at a special price. There may be several offered each day.

Messer  knife (also see Besteck)

Metzgerei  butcher shop

Milch  milk

Milchcafé  milk coffee, café au lait

Mineralwasser  mineral water, soda water
   mit/ohne Kohlensäure   carbonated/non-carbonated
   stilles Wasser   non-carbonated water

Mittagessen  lunch

Mohrrüben  carrots

Most  hard cider, new wine

Muscheln  mussels

Muskatnuß  nutmeg


N

Nachspeise   dessert
Nachtisch   dessert

Nieren   kidneys

Nockerl   dumplings (Austria/Bavaria)
   Salzburger Nockerl   a sweet, light, dumpling soufflé

Nudeln   noodles

Nutella®  Nutella® - A dark, creamy chocolate-almond paste popular in Germany for making sandwiches or spreading on crackers. Sold in tubes and jars like peanut butter.


O

Ober  waiter, head waiter
   Herr Ober!  Waiter!

Obst  fruit

Obstsalat  fruit salad

Ochsenschwanzsuppe  oxtail soup

Öl  oil


P

Pampelmuse  grapefruit
   Often called "Grapefruit" in German

paniert adj.  breaded (Wiener Schnitzel, etc.)

Paprika   paprika; chili (in Switz.)

Parmaschinken   prosciutto (ham)
   Parmaschinken mit Melone   prosciutto with melon

Peperoni   hot chili pepper

Do not order a Peperoni-Pizza in Germany unless you really want a pizza with a hot chili pepper topping! If you want something closer to the US pepperoni pizza, order a Salami-Pizza.

Petersilie  parsley

Pfand  deposit for bottles or glasses (in a beer garden or at a stand)

Pfannkuchen  pancakes
   Berliner Pfannkuchen  type of doughnut

Pfeffer  pepper

Pfirsiche  peaches

Pflaumen  plums

Pils  pilsner (beer)

Pilze  mushrooms
   Champignons  (button) mushrooms
   Pfifferlinge  chanterelle mushrooms
   Schwammerl(n)  mushroom(s) (Austria)
   Steinpilze(n)  mushroom(s)

Pizza  pizza (Ger. pron. PITS-ah)

Plätzchen  cookies, biscuits (Brit.)

Pommes frites  french fries, chips

Portion(en)  portion(s), serving(s)

Preis(e)  price(s)

Preiselbeeren  cranberries

Pute  turkey (hen)
Puter  (tom) turkey
Putenschnitzel  breaded turkey breast (Wiener Schnitzel made with turkey rather than veal or pork)

German for Beginners
Lesson 13 - Food and Drink
Our free online German course


R

Radieschen  radish(s)

Radler/Radlermass  beer and lemonade or soda pop

Rechnung  bill, check

Reh/Hirsch  venison

Reis  rice

Rhabarber  rhubarb

Rind-  beef (in compounds)
Rindfleisch  beef

roh adj.  raw

Romagna-Salat  caesar salad

Rosinen  raisins

Rotbarsch  red sea bass

rote Grütze   red fruit pudding
   See recipe for rote Grütze!

Rühreier  scrambled eggs

Rum  rum


NEXT > S-Z

MORE > English-German Food and Drink Glossary

Menu > A-I | J-R | S-Z | Phrasebook | Stores & Shopping

MORE > Das Fischlexikon (seafood and fish terms found on a menu)
MORE > German Photo Exercise: Table Setting

Got a new word? Email me to add new vocabulary or ask a question.


Related Pages

German Photo Exercise: Table Setting
A simple photo quiz on "der gedeckte Tisch." Can you name the items on the table? Part of Lesson 13.

English-German Food and Drink Glossary
An annotated dictionary of food, drink, and cooking vocabulary.

German for Beginners: Lesson 13
A related German lesson for beginners on food and drink.

German Recipes - Kochrezepte
A collection of recipes in German and English.

Stores & Shopping Glossary
An English-German glossary of businesses, stores, and shopping expressions.

German for Beginners
Our free online German course.

Travel Glossary
An annotated English-German glossary related to all forms of travel and travel situations.

German For Travelers: The Basics
An introduction to essential travel vocabulary.

Daily German
What's today's German word of the day (Wort des Tages)?

Glossaries
A list of all the English-German glossaries on this site.

Online Dictionaries
Links for online and print dictionaries and glossaries for German.

Online Translation
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