How to Say Order Coffee in Korean (아이스 아메리카노 한 잔 주세요)

What you'll learn

• Build an order with drink + number + 잔 + 주세요.
• Choose hot or iced, eat in or take out, and pay.
• Pronounce [따뜨탄] and [할께요] correctly.
• Understand what the staff ask back.

Before you start: you should read Hangul and know the words for one and two in native Korean (한, 두). The vocabulary pages for cafe, coffee and Americano give the single words. Time: about 12 minutes. Audio plays only when you press a button.

Key facts

• 아이스 아메리카노 한 잔 주세요 means "one iced Americano, please".
• 따뜻한 걸로 주세요 asks for the hot one, and 포장이요 asks for takeout.
• 카드로 할게요 means "I will pay by card".
• Drinks use the counter 잔, not 개.
• You order and pay at the counter.

How Do You Say Order Coffee in Korean?

The order has a simple shape. First the drink, then how many, then 주세요. Korean puts the number and the counter after the thing you order, so the sentence reads like "iced Americano, one cup, please".

Put the four parts together and you have 아이스 아메리카노 한 잔 주세요. To order two, change 한 to 두: 두 잔 주세요 (du jan juseyo). The words 한 and 두 are the native Korean numbers one and two, and they shorten before a counter.

Here is a quick set of useful cafe lines.

The word 아이스 (aiseu) is the borrowed "ice" and means iced. The hot version is 따뜻한 (ttatteutan, "warm") or 뜨거운 (tteugeoun, "hot"). Next, each phrase in detail.

What Are the Polite Ways to Order Coffee?

Every phrase here is polite, because you speak to a stranger. The guide to Korean speech levels explains why 주세요 and -ㄹ게요 are right at a counter.

Polite: 아이스 아메리카노 한 잔 주세요 (aiseu amerikano han jan juseyo)

This is the full order. Replace the drink to order something else: 라테 한 잔 주세요 (rate han jan juseyo) is "one latte, please".

Polite: 따뜻한 걸로 주세요 (ttatteutan geollo juseyo)

걸로 is the spoken short form of 것으로, "with the one". So 따뜻한 걸로 주세요 is literally "give me the warm one". Use it when the staff ask hot or iced. Play

Polite: 포장이요 (pojangiyo)

포장 means "packing" and 이요 is a short polite ending, so 포장이요 means "to go". It is the quick answer to 드시고 가세요, 포장이세요? ("for here or to go?"). Play

If you stay, say 여기서 먹고 갈게요 (yeogiseo meokgo galgeyo, "I will eat here").

Polite: 카드로 할게요 (kadeuro halgeyo)

카드로 할게요 means "I will do it by card". For cash, say 현금으로 할게요 (hyeongeumeuro halgeyo). Play

Polite: 얼음 적게 해 주세요 (eoreum jeokge hae juseyo)

If the drink has too much ice, ask for less. 해 주세요 turns an adverb into a request, as in the phrase "make it not spicy" on the page for not spicy please in Korean. Play

How Do You Pronounce 아이스 아메리카노 한 잔 주세요?

The long phrase is easier than it looks, because most words are borrowed or very regular. Say it in three groups: 아이스 아메리카노, 한 잔, 주세요.

• 아이스 아메리카노 has eight syllables: a-i-seu a-me-ri-ka-no. Keep the ㅡ in 스 unrounded, with your lips spread, and do not drop it as English "ice" would.
• 한 잔 is two syllables, han jan, and the ㅈ is a plain, soft ㅈ.
• 주세요 is ju-se-yo.

Sound Changes to Listen For

• 따뜻한 is [따뜨탄]. The final ㅅ of 뜻 sounds like ㄷ, and the ㅎ in the next syllable turns it into ㅌ. Revised Romanization shows the aspiration of such predicate forms, so it writes ttatteutan.
• 할게요 is [할께요]. After the ending -ㄹ, a ㄱ is tense (Standard Pronunciation Article 27). Revised Romanization writes halgeyo.
• 얼음 적게 is [어름 적께]. The ㄹ of 얼 moves to the next syllable before the vowel, so 얼음 is [어름]. A different rule (Article 23) makes the ㄱ of 게 tense after the final ㄱ of 적 (Article 23). Revised Romanization writes jeokge.
• 걸로 is [걸로]. There is no change; the double ㄹ is held as one long, clear l sound.

The page on Korean tensification covers these tense sounds. Next, when to use each line.

When Should You Use These Phrases, and When Should You Not?

Use the full order at a counter, and the short answers once the staff ask. Korean cafes are quick, so short answers sound natural.

Situations Where It Fits

• Counter orders. The staff say 주문하시겠어요? and you give the drink.
• Follow-up questions. Answer 따뜻한 걸로 or 포장이요 in two words.
• Kiosk problems. Many cafes use ordering kiosks; if you get stuck, the same phrases work with the staff at the counter.
• Ordering for a group. Count the cups: 세 잔 (se jan), "three cups".

Situations to Avoid

• Table service in a restaurant. If a waiter comes to your table, use 여기요 first. The page on ordering food in Korean covers that.
• Casual 아아 with a clerk. The slang is fine among friends, but at a counter say the full 아이스 아메리카노.
• A rushed command. Skip 주세요 and the order sounds blunt.

What Does Order Coffee Sound Like in a Real Conversation?

A cafe order is quick and follows a pattern: greeting, drink, questions, payment. Listen for the polite endings in each line.

What to notice: the staff use the respectful -시- in 주문하시겠어요 and 포장이세요. The customer answers in short polite phrases. The staff's either-or question 드시고 가세요, 포장이세요? usually rises on the first choice; the last choice may rise or fall.

What to notice: 잔이랑 is pronounced [자니랑], because the ㄴ moves forward. The word 이랑 means "and" and attaches to the first drink. 괜찮아요 is [괜차나요].

What to notice: 아아 is slang for 아이스 아메리카노 and is used among friends. 너는? is a short question and rises. Switch to the full polite order when you speak to the clerk.

What Should You Know about the Culture behind Ordering Coffee?

Korean cafes work on a counter system: you order and pay first, then wait for your drink. This is different from restaurants where a waiter comes to the table.

• Order first, pay first. Most cafes ask for payment at the time of ordering.
• You wait for a signal. Staff call your name or number, or a buzzer (진동벨, jindongbel) shakes when your drink is ready.
• You often carry your own tray. At many cafes you collect the drink and take it to a table.
• Iced coffee is popular all year. Many people order an iced Americano even in cold months, so do not be surprised by the question 아이스예요?
• Slang shortens names. 아아 means iced Americano, and 뜨아 (tteua) means the hot version.
• Self-service is common. Water, napkins and straws are often at a side counter.

Cards and phone payment are accepted almost everywhere, so you will use 카드로 할게요 far more often than a cash phrase.

What Mistakes Do Learners Make with Order Coffee in Korean?

Most mistakes are about counters and about missing the polite request.

The first mistake is the most common among beginners. Remember that each thing has its counter: 잔 for drinks, 명 for people, and 개 for general objects.

Is It the Same as Cafe?

The words cafe, coffee and Americano each have their own page, and this page covers the action of ordering.

• Cafe in Korean: 카페 (kape), the place. The page on cafe in Korean covers it.
• Coffee in Korean: 커피 (keopi), the drink. See coffee in Korean.
• Order a coffee in Korean: the same pattern, with 커피 한 잔 주세요 (keopi han jan juseyo) as a very simple version.
• Americano in Korean: 아메리카노 (amerikano). See Americano in Korean.
• Cafe phrases in Korean: all the lines on this page, plus water please in Korean.

Related Phrases to Learn Next

Cafe visits need a few more phrases, so learn these next:

• To go please in Korean: more ways to ask for takeout.
• Do you take cards in Korean: checking how to pay.
• Water please in Korean: asking for water.

This guide belongs to the Korean dialogues collection. What this page does not cover: full cafe menus and sizes, which differ by chain, and the grammar of counters, which has its own lesson. Say the drink, the number and 주세요, and you can order coffee in Korean at any counter.

Practice: Say It Aloud

Play the slow clip of the full order and repeat it three times, then 따뜻한 걸로 주세요 and 포장이요. Play Then order for each situation. Answers follow.

1. You want one hot latte.
2. You want two iced Americanos.
3. The clerk asks 드시고 가세요, 포장이세요? and you want to take it away.
4. You want to pay by card.

Answers

1. 따뜻한 라테 한 잔 주세요.
2. 아이스 아메리카노 두 잔 주세요.
3. 포장이요.
4. 카드로 할게요.

The phrase flashcards drill these lines with audio.

Frequently Asked Questions

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