Ordering food in Khmer is simple once you know a few key phrases. Even using basic Khmer is appreciated by restaurant staff.
Conversation
| Khmer | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| សួស្តី! សូមមើលម៉ឺនុយបានទេ? | Suo-sdei! Som merl menu ban te? | Hello! May I see the menu? |
| បាន។ នេះម៉ឺនុយ។ | Ban. Nih menu. | Of course. Here's the menu. |
| ខ្ញុំសូមបាយឆាមួយចាន។ | Khnhom som bai cha muoy chan. | I'd like one plate of fried rice. |
| ចង់ផឹកអ្វី? | Chong phek avei? | What would you like to drink? |
| ខ្ញុំសូមទឹកមួយដប។ | Khnhom som tuk muoy dop. | I'd like one bottle of water. |
| អស់ប៉ុន្មាន? | Os pon-man? | How much is it? |
| អស់ ២៥,០០០ រៀល។ | Os m'phai-pram poun riel. | It's 25,000 riels. |
| អរគុណ។ | Aw-kun. | Thank you. |
| មិនអីទេ។ | Min ey te. | You're welcome. |
Essential Restaurant Vocabulary
| Khmer | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| ម៉ឺនុយ | menu | menu |
| បាយ | bai | rice / meal |
| បាយឆា | bai cha | fried rice |
| គុយទាវ | kuy teav | noodle soup |
| សាច់មាន់ | sach moan | chicken |
| សាច់គោ | sach ko | beef |
| សាច់ជ្រូក | sach chrouk | pork |
| ត្រី | trey | fish |
| បន្លែ | banlae | vegetables |
| ទឹក | tuk | water |
| កាហ្វេ | ka-fe | coffee |
| តែ | tae | tea |
| មួយចាន | muoy chan | one plate / one bowl |
| មួយដប | muoy dop | one bottle |
| ឆ្ងាញ់ | chnganh | delicious |
Difficult Words
| Khmer | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| សូម | som | please / I'd like |
| ចង់ | chong | want |
| ផឹក | phek | to drink |
| អស់ប៉ុន្មាន | os pon-man | how much is it? |
| ឆ្ងាញ់ | chnganh | delicious |
Grammar & Usage
1. Ordering Politely
Pattern:
ខ្ញុំសូម + item
Examples:
- ខ្ញុំសូមបាយឆាមួយចាន។
- Khnhom som bai cha muoy chan.
- I'd like one plate of fried rice.
- ខ្ញុំសូមកាហ្វេមួយកែវ។
- Khnhom som ka-fe muoy kaev.
- I'd like one cup of coffee.
2. Saying "I Want..."
Pattern:
ខ្ញុំចង់ + item
Examples:
- ខ្ញុំចង់ញ៉ាំគុយទាវ។
- Khnhom chong nham kuy teav.
- I want to eat noodle soup.
- ខ្ញុំចង់ផឹកទឹក។
- Khnhom chong phek tuk.
- I want to drink water.
Tip: សូម (som) is more polite than ចង់ (chong) when ordering.
3. Asking the Price
អស់ប៉ុន្មាន?
- Os pon-man?
- How much is it?
A more polite version is:
សរុបអស់ប៉ុន្មាន?
- Sorob os pon-man?
- How much is the total?
Pronunciation Practice
I'd like one fried rice.
ខ្ញុំសូមបាយឆាមួយចាន (khnhom som bai cha muoy chan)
How much is it?
អស់ប៉ុន្មាន (បង)? (os pon-man-(bong)?)
Cultural Tip
In Cambodia, it's polite to say សូម (som) ("please/I'd like") when ordering. After your meal, if you enjoyed the food, you can say:
- ម្ហូបឆ្ងាញ់ណាស់!
- Mhop chnganh nah!
- The food is very delicious!
The staff will appreciate the compliment.
Practice Challenge
Translate into Khmer:
"Hello. I'd like one fried rice, one coffee, and one bottle of water. How much is the total?"
