German Bakery Vocabulary: How to Order (Beim Bäcker)

Standing at a busy German Bäckerei counter is one of the fastest ways to use real spoken German. This guide gives you the core German bakery vocabulary and full sentences so you can order bread, rolls and coffee without freezing.

Near the top of this page you can watch the short video “Visit a Vienna Bakery: Learn Pastry Names #shorts”. Turn on the free dual-subtitles Chrome extension to see every pastry name in German and English at once and tap any word to save it.

Your own list grows as you add bakery terms, which reappear repeatedly from A1 (around 600 active words) up to B1 (around 2,500 words). The already substantial vocabulary of 10'632 words is constantly expanding in the free resource.

Core bakery words you need first

Start with the nouns you will hear and say at the counter. Gender matters because you need the correct article when you point or ask for “one of those”.

• die Bäckerei — the bakery
• der Bäcker / die Bäckerin — the baker (m/f)
• das Brötchen — the bread roll (South: die Semmel)
• das Brot — the loaf / bread
• das Vollkornbrot — the wholemeal loaf
• die Brezel — the pretzel
• das Croissant — the croissant
• der Kuchen — the cake
• die Theke — the counter
• frisch — fresh

How to order bread and rolls

Germans usually order by number plus the item. Keep the phrase short and clear. You can point while you speak; staff expect it.

• Guten Morgen! — Good morning!
• Einmal ein Vollkornbrot, bitte. — One wholemeal loaf, please.
• Zwei Brötchen, bitte. — Two rolls, please.
• Drei Semmeln und eine Brezel, bitte. — Three rolls and one pretzel, please. (Austria/Bavaria)
• Haben Sie noch Roggenbrot? — Do you still have rye bread?
• Was empfehlen Sie? — What do you recommend?
• Zum Mitnehmen. — To take away.
• Zum Hieressen. — To eat here.

Pastries, sweets and coffee

You can treat yourself to a pastry after work or before a meeting by learning a few names and the simple order for a drink. Hearing them short with dual subtitles in the Vienna bakery helps the pronunciation stick. Many bakeries also serve coffee, which you can familiarize yourself with by frequenting them.

• der Apfelstrudel — the apple strudel
• die Franzbrötchen — the cinnamon pastry (North Germany)
• der Berliner / die Krapfen — the jam doughnut
• Ein Stück Kuchen, bitte. — A piece of cake, please.
• Einen Kaffee, bitte. — A coffee, please.
• Einen Milchkaffee / einen Cappuccino, bitte. — A milky coffee / a cappuccino, please.
• Mit Milch und Zucker? — With milk and sugar?
• Nein, schwarz, bitte. — No, black, please.

Paying and leaving politely

You'll want two or three set phrases for your bag, and cards are accepted almost everywhere, though cash is often used for small purchases. Small amounts are usually paid in cash, despite cards being widely accepted. Get into the habit of repeating these phrases until they become second nature.

• Das macht … Euro. — That comes to … euros.
• Kann ich mit Karte zahlen? — Can I pay by card?
• Stimmt so. — Keep the change.
• Eine Tüte, bitte. — A bag, please.
• Vielen Dank, schönen Tag noch! — Many thanks, have a nice day!
• Auf Wiedersehen! — Goodbye!