Frasa
SituationsGet the app (opens the App Store in a new tab)

Catalan phrases for complaining politely about your order in Catalonia

Catch the waiter’s eye with “Perdoni, si us plau” and say what’s wrong without blame: “Fa quaranta minuts que esperem el menjar” or “El filet està massa fet. El pot tornar a la cuina?”. Staff usually apologise: “Ho sento molt, ho arreglo ara mateix”. A calm “Crec que…” keeps it friendly.

Try it · about two minutes

Your main course arrives late and cooked the wrong way, and you raise it without making a scene.

Sound on: the waiter speaks Catalan. You choose what to say back, and Frasa tells you why it works.

How does the conversation usually go?

  1. You’ve waited a long time for your main course, and now the steak has arrived overcooked. The waiter is passing your table.

    You

    Perdoni, si us plau.

    Excuse me, please.

  2. Waiter

    En què el puc ajudar?

    How can I help you?

    You

    Fa quaranta minuts que esperem el menjar.

    We’ve waited forty minutes for our food.

  3. Waiter

    Ho sento molt, ho arreglo ara mateix.

    I’m very sorry, I’ll fix it right away.

    You

    No s'amoïni.

    Don’t worry.

  4. Waiter

    Trigarà uns vint minuts.

    It will take about twenty minutes.

    You

    D'acord, esperarem.

    All right, we’ll wait.

  5. Waiter

    Vol alguna cosa més?

    Would you like anything else?

    You

    Gràcies, està molt bo.

    Thanks, it’s very good.

Which Catalan phrases do you need?

  • Perdoni, si us plau.

    Excuse me, please.

  • Perdoni que el molesti.

    Sorry to bother you.

  • En què el puc ajudar?

    How can I help you?

  • Fa quaranta minuts que esperem el menjar.

    We’ve waited forty minutes for our food.

  • El filet està massa fet. El pot tornar a la cuina?

    The steak is overcooked. Can you take it back?

  • La sopa és freda. La pot escalfar, si us plau?

    The soup is cold. Could you heat it, please?

  • Això no és el que he demanat.

    This is not what I ordered.

  • Ho sento molt, ho arreglo ara mateix.

    I’m very sorry, I’ll fix it right away.

  • No s'amoïni.

    Don’t worry.

  • Crec que hi ha un error al compte.

    I think there’s a mistake on the bill.

What is worth knowing in Catalonia?

How to complain without a scene

  1. 1

    Catch the waiter’s eye and say perdoni. A small raised hand is normal.

    Excuse me, please.
  2. 2

    Say what is wrong, not who is to blame.

    The steak is overcooked. Can you take it back?
  3. 3

    Ask for what you want: reheat it, remake it or replace it.

    The soup is cold. Could you heat it, please?

Start with “Crec que…”

“Crec que…” (I think…) keeps a complaint friendly and leaves the waiter room to fix it without losing face.

Crec que hi ha un error al compte.

I think there’s a mistake on the bill.

Accepting an apology

When staff apologise, “No s'amoïni” (don’t worry) is a warm, formal reply. It lets everyone move on.

No s'amoïni.

Don’t worry.

Questions about this situation

Which Catalan phrases matter most here?
“Perdoni, si us plau.” (Excuse me, please); “Perdoni que el molesti.” (Sorry to bother you); “En què el puc ajudar?” (How can I help you). The full list is above.
Can I hear how they sound?
Yes: press the speaker next to a phrase to hear it, recorded for the Frasa app.
How can I practise this conversation?
Press “Start the conversation” above to play it through and choose your replies, with a note on why some fit better in Catalonia. Frasa, an iPhone app, lets you save these phrases and rehearse them out loud.

Related situations in Catalan

All situations in Catalan

Practise these phrases in Frasa

Frasa is an iPhone app for the conversations in front of you. Save phrases like these, rehearse them out loud, and they come back until they stick.

AI-generated. May be inaccurate.