Level 1 · Unit 3 · Restaurants & Cafés · 7 min

Café Life

Order a hot or iced drink, understand the staff's 'for here or to go?' question, and ask for wifi or an outlet at a café.

따뜻한 vs 아이스 — hot or iced

Drop 따뜻한 (warm/hot) or 아이스 (the borrowed word 'ice') right in front of any drink name to specify temperature: 따뜻한 아메리카노, 아이스 아메리카노. Combine it with the 주세요 pattern you already know and you can order exactly what you want.

따뜻한 아메리카노 주세요 ttatteutan amerikano juseyo A hot Americano, please.
아이스 아메리카노 주세요 aiseu amerikano juseyo An iced Americano, please.

여기서 드세요? 가져가요? — a question you need to understand, not say

Right after you order, staff will almost always ask 여기서 드세요? 가져가요? — 'Are you eating/drinking here, or taking it to go?' You don't need to produce this sentence yourself, just recognize 여기서 (here) and 가져가다 (to take away). Answer simply: 여기서요 ('here') or 가져가요 ('to go') — both work as one-word answers, no extra grammar needed.

여기서 드세요? 가져가요? yeogiseo deuseyo? gajyeogayo? For here, or to go?

Recognize this — you don't need to say it yourself.

여기서요 yeogiseoyo Here (for here).

The simplest possible answer to the staff's question above.

콘센트/와이파이 — café culture in Korea

Studying or working at a café (카공, short for 카페+공부) is completely normal in Korea — cafés are built for it, with plenty of outlets and free wifi. Reuse the 어디예요? pattern from the last lesson to find an outlet, and the 뭐예요? pattern from earlier in this unit to ask for the wifi password.

콘센트가 어디예요? konsenteuga eodiyeyo? Where's the outlet?
와이파이 비밀번호가 뭐예요? waipai bimilbeonhoga mwoyeyo? What's the wifi password?

A complete café order, from stepping up to the counter to settling in to study

저기요
jeogiyo — Excuse me!
네, 주문하시겠어요?
ne, jumunhasigesseoyo? — Yes, would you like to order?
아이스 아메리카노 한 잔 주세요
aiseu amerikano han jan juseyo — One iced Americano, please.
여기서 드세요? 가져가요?
yeogiseo deuseyo? gajyeogayo? — For here, or to go?
여기서요
yeogiseoyo — Here.
네, 알겠어요
ne, algesseoyo — Okay, got it.
와이파이 비밀번호가 뭐예요?
waipai bimilbeonhoga mwoyeyo? — What's the wifi password?
일, 이, 삼, 사예요
il, i, sam, sayeyo — It's 1, 2, 3, 4.

Say it out loud

와이파이 비밀번호가 뭐예요? waipai bimilbeonhoga mwoyeyo? What's the wifi password?

Listen, then repeat aloud. Matching the rhythm matters more than perfection.

Check yourself