German for Waiters: Restaurant Vocabulary & Phrases
Waiting tables, working a bar or a hotel front desk in the DACH region means constant German with guests. These are the phrases you’ll use from your first shift.
Key phrases on the job
How much German do you need before the first shift?
We graded every word in this job's topics against the CEFR levels: 818 words in total, but only 106 of them sit at A1 or A2. That smaller number is the one that matters: it is what you need before your first shift, and the rest is what you pick up over the following year.
Which of these words do people actually say?
We indexed the subtitles of 192 real German videos — 4,575 lines of unscripted speech — and checked this job's beginner vocabulary against them. 53 of the 106 A1–A2 words turned up in what people really said. The most common ones, with the line they were said in:
“Ihre Melange Mit Wasser wie” watch it said →
“das Geld Ich werde das herausfinden” watch it said →
“ich hätte gern einen Kaffee bitte” watch it said →
“Musik Essen Getränke – das” watch it said →
“Herr Becker ich möchte einen Homeoffice Tag pro Woche beantragen” watch it said →
“Die Menschen sollen sich schützen und viel trinken” watch it said →
“Ein Gericht entschied heute zugunsten der Familie” watch it said →
“Frisch und modern Das macht” watch it said →
The phrases, word by word
Some of the words above you will meet anyway, just by watching German video. Others are job-specific and never came up once in 192 videos — those are the ones worth drilling deliberately, because nothing will teach them to you by accident.
Was darf es sein?
What can I get you?
heard: sein (29)|never heard: darf
Möchten Sie schon bestellen?
Would you like to order?
heard: Möchten (9) · bestellen (2)
Kommt sofort.
Coming right up.
heard: sofort (10)|never heard: Kommt
Zusammen oder getrennt?
Together or separately? (the bill)
heard: Zusammen (12)|never heard: getrennt
Zahlen bitte?
The bill, please?
heard: Zahlen (5)
Guten Appetit!
Enjoy your meal!
heard: Appetit (1)|never heard: Guten
Hat es Ihnen geschmeckt?
Did you enjoy it?
never heard: geschmeckt
Tut mir leid, das ist gerade aus.
Sorry, that’s currently sold out.
heard: aus (76) · gerade (5)|never heard: Tut · leid
The lessons that teach it
These are the lessons from the free A1 course that drill this language directly — each is about three minutes, with a video and its own exercises.
Vocabulary you need
Build the core words for this job — each list is free to browse and download (CSV or Anki):
Themed decks: At the Restaurant German flashcards · At the Hotel German flashcards. More: German job vocabulary you actually use at work.
Learn it faster — free
Test yourself with a quick quiz on these words, then watch real German videos with dual subtitles so the phrases stick in context — tap any word to learn it.
Frequently asked questions
What German level do I need to work in a restaurant in Germany?
A2–B1 is usually enough for service roles — you mainly need confident, fast everyday phrases with guests, not perfect grammar.
How do I practise restaurant German?
Drill the Food & Drink list, then watch German food/vlog videos with dual subtitles and shadow the speakers to build speaking speed.