Order anything by pointing in Danish
I would like, this one, how much, the bill: survive any counter or menu. Play the ten Danish words against the clock, with a note on how locals really use each one after every answer. All ten are written out below.
All 11 Danish phrases in this lesson
- Jeg vil gerne have...yai vil GER-neh HA
- I would like...
- Den herden HAIR
- This one
- Hvad koster det?va KOS-tah day
- How much is it?
- Regningen, takRYE-ning-en TAHK
- The bill, please
- Med kortmeth KORT
- By card
- Kontantkon-TANT
- In cash
- Vandvan
- Water
- KaffeKAH-feh
- Coffee
- Teteh
- Tea
- Ølurl
- Beer
- Uden...OO-then
- Without...
The polite order: "jeg vil gerne have en kaffe". Many Danes skip it entirely and just say the item plus tak, "en kaffe, tak", which is just as polite here.
Point and say it. At bakery counters this plus a finger on the glass completes the entire transaction.
The hv is just a v sound. Mostly academic since every price is on a screen and every payment is by card or MobilePay, but useful at flea markets.
In casual cafes you often pay at the counter when ordering. In restaurants, catch an eye and say this. Service is included by law, tipping is genuinely optional.
Denmark is nearly cashless. Card or MobilePay covers everything from hot dog stands to flea markets. Some places no longer accept cash at all.
Increasingly rare. If you arrive with a pocket of cash you may struggle to spend it; the card question "kort?" barely gets asked anymore because the answer is always yes.
Danish tap water is excellent and drinking it is the norm. In restaurants, "postevand" (tap water) is free or nearly free; bottled water is "danskvand" if sparkling.
Filter coffee is the national default and often comes with free refills at the office and at home. "En kaffe, tak" gets you a black filter coffee unless you ask for something else.
The ø sounds like the u in "fur". "En øl, tak" orders one; "en fadøl" (en FATH-url) is a draft beer, and Carlsberg and Tuborg are the defaults unless the bar says otherwise.
The power word: uden is (no ice), uden sukker (no sugar), uden løg (no onion, LOY). Is also means ice cream, so context decides.