Food and Cooking Vocabulary in Italian (A1): Eat, Order, Cook!
Hungry for Italian? In this beginner-friendly guide, you’ll learn the most useful food and cooking words, simple grammar you’ll actually use, and polite phrases to order like a local. We’ll practice as we go with quick exercises, so by the end you can talk about what you like, what you cook, and how to order it—con gusto!
First bites: hunger, meals, and polite words
A few super-useful basics to start:
- Ho fame = I’m hungry (literally: I have hunger)
- Ho sete = I’m thirsty (I have thirst)
- Per favore = Please
- Grazie = Thank you
Meal words you’ll hear every day:
- la colazione = breakfast
- il pranzo = lunch
- la cena = dinner
Io fame.
Io sono fame. → Ho fame. Use the verb **avere** (to have) with *fame* and *sete*.Food you’ll actually use
Here are high-frequency words you’ll meet at home, markets, and menus. Notice the article (il/la/l’).
Quick check: do you recognize these?
Answer a few questions to lock them in.
Cooking at home: must-know verbs
A few verbs go a long way in the kitchen:
- cucinare = to cook
- mangiare = to eat
- tagliare = to cut
- bollire = to boil
- mescolare = to mix
Let’s focus on the regular -are verb cucinare in the present.
| Pronoun | Conjugation |
|---|---|
| io | cucino |
| tu | cucini |
| lui/lei | cucina |
| noi | cuciniamo |
| voi | cucinate |
| loro | cucinano |
Start with time word "Stasera" (this evening).
Noi la pasta a pranzo.
Likes and dislikes: mi piace
To say you like food, use mi piace (singular) or mi piacciono (plural).
- Mi piace la pizza. = I like pizza.
- Mi piacciono i pomodori. = I like tomatoes.
Mi la pizza.
Ordering like a local
When ordering, two polite phrases are golden:
- Vorrei… = I would like… (very polite)
- Per me… / Prendo… = For me… / I’ll have…
Add a “per favore” at the end, and you’re set.
Example orders:
- Vorrei una pizza margherita, per favore.
- Per me un’acqua naturale.
- Prendo un caffè.
Fun fact: panino = “little bread,” i.e., a small bread roll with filling—a sandwich!
Cultural bites: how Italians eat
- Meals often follow courses: antipasto (starter), primo (first course—pasta/risotto), secondo (main—meat/fish), contorno (side—vegetables), dolce (dessert).
- Colazione is light: many people take un caffè or un cappuccino with un cornetto (croissant). Cappuccino is usually a morning drink.
- In restaurants, you may see coperto on the bill: a cover charge for table service, bread, etc.
Keep it simple at A1: order one item politely. If you want more, just add: E… (and…)
- Vorrei una pasta al pomodoro, e un’insalata, per favore.
Wrap-up practice
You now know meal words, core foods, the verbs cucinare and mangiare, how to say what you like with mi piace, and how to order politely with Vorrei…. One last quick practice:
Vorrei mela, per favore.
Remember elision: un’ + insalata.
Bravissimo/a! Keep these words on your tongue—and in your notebook. Next time you’re cooking or at a café, try one sentence in Italian. Little bites, every day.