How to ask what's in a dish in Italian
Cosa c'è in questo piatto?
“What's in this dish?”
When: Before ordering something unfamiliar
The moment
You are at a lunch spot in Milan and the dish everyone is ordering has a name you don't recognise. There is one thing you cannot eat, and one you would rather leave out.
A1 · Unit 2 · Café & food
The lines
Asking what a dish contains
Point at the line on the menu and ask "Cosa c'è in questo piatto?" — "what is in this dish?". With friends Italians shorten it to "Cosa c'è dentro?".
Cosa c'è in questo piatto?
“What's in this dish?”
When to use it: Before ordering something unfamiliar
What you’ll hear back: Ci sono uova, guanciale e pecorino. (There are eggs, guanciale and pecorino.)
Saying what you can't eat
"Non posso mangiare il glutine" means "I can't eat gluten". Swap in il pesce, la carne or i latticini and the rest of the sentence never changes.
Non posso mangiare il glutine
“I can't eat gluten”
When to use it: The moment the waiter takes your order
What you’ll hear back: Nessun problema, lo dico in cucina. (No problem, I'll tell the kitchen.)
Words for this scene
| Italian | Say it | English |
|---|---|---|
| sono allergico a | SOH-noh al-LEHR-jee-koh ah | I'm allergic to |
Sono allergico alla frutta secca. I'm allergic to nuts. Tip: Women say allergica; say it before you order, not after. | ||
| si può fare senza cipolla? | see pwoh FAH-reh SEN-tsah chee-POHL-lah | can it be made without onion? |
Mi piace l'insalata, si può fare senza cipolla? I like the salad — can it be made without onion? Tip: Swap in any ingredient, but ask before the plate leaves the kitchen. | ||
| che cos'è? | keh koh-ZEH | what is it? |
Scusi, la gricia che cos'è? Excuse me, what is gricia? Tip: Your lifeline when the waiter reels off the dishes from memory. | ||
Your objective
Ask what’s in the dish, say one thing you can’t eat, and ask for it without that.
- what’s in it
- what you can’t eat
- asking for it without
Lines that get it done
- Cosa c'è in questo piatto?
- Non posso mangiare il glutine
- si può fare senza cipolla? · can it be made without onion?
In the live scene the objective stays on screen, and the Replay afterwards says whether you got it done.
Check yourself
1. You want to know what is in a dish before ordering it. What do you ask?
- Com'è questo piatto?
- Chi c'è in questo piatto?
- Cosa c'è in questo piatto?
- Dov'è questo piatto?
Show the answer
Cosa c'è in questo piatto?
"Cosa c'è in..." is how Italians ask what a dish contains.
2. You cannot eat gluten. What do you tell the waiter?
- Non posso mangiare il glutine
- Non mi piace il glutine
- Non ho il glutine
- Non voglio mangiare, grazie
Show the answer
Non posso mangiare il glutine
"Non posso mangiare" signals a real restriction; "non mi piace" only means you dislike it.
3. The salad comes with onion and you want it left out. What do you say?
- Mi porta la cipolla?
- Si può fare con cipolla?
- Dov'è la cipolla?
- Si può fare senza cipolla?
Show the answer
Si può fare senza cipolla?
"Si può fare senza...?" is the polite way to have an ingredient left out.