Tasting the First Bite at a Restaurant

Key vocabulary

• ricoadj.

  tasty, delicious

  “Está muy rico.”— It's very tasty.

  Pattern muy rico — very tasty

  Compare sabroso — tasty

  rico / rica / ricos / ricas; must agree in gender and number with the noun it modifies.

  💡 Common in both Spain and Latin America to describe food that tastes good; it can also describe a person as cute, but in a different context.

• encantarv.

  to really like, to love (something)

  “Me encanta.”— I love it.

  Pattern me encanta — I really like it

  Compare gustar mucho — to like very much

  Commonly used with indirect object pronouns: me encanta / me encantan; the subject is the thing that is liked.

  💡 encantar is stronger than gustar, similar to 'love'; note that the subject is the thing liked, not the person.

• sopaf.

  soup

  “¿Te gusta la sopa?”— Do you like the soup?

  Pattern sopa de pollo — chicken soup

  Compare caldo — broth, stock

  Noun, plural sopas; often used with the articles la / las.

  💡 sopa usually refers to a thinner soup, while caldo is more like 'broth'; caldo is also common in Latin America.

• gustarv.

  to like, to please

  “¿Te gusta?”— Do you like it?

  Pattern me gusta — I like it

  Compare encantar — to really like

  Commonly me gusta / te gusta / le gusta; use gustan for plural things.

  💡 gustar literally means 'to please', so 'I like the soup' is Me gusta la sopa.

• buenoadj.

  good, nice

  “Está bien bueno.”— It's really good.

  Pattern bien bueno — really good

  Compare rico — tasty

  bueno / buena / buenos / buenas; before a masculine singular noun it often shortens to buen.

  💡 In colloquial Latin American Spanish, bien bueno is common for praising food; in Spain, está muy bueno is more common.