Eating in Spain · GidePass Lens
Menú del día in Spain: what is included and how to order
A board outside a restaurant says “menú del día”. Is that the whole menu, a single dish or a complete lunch? Here is how to read the offer and check the total before ordering.
GidePass ·
Menú del día means a fixed-price daily set meal. You usually choose a first course and a main course, followed by dessert or coffee. The restaurant’s current offer determines the exact choices and inclusions.
First, distinguish the set meal from the full menu
La carta is the restaurant’s list of individually priced dishes. A menú del día is a particular set-meal offer. Do not assume that a dish on the main menu is included in the set meal: ask for the daily choices. If you only want one dish, ask whether it can be ordered separately and what it costs.
How to choose primero and segundo
Primeros are the choices for your first course; segundos are the choices for your main course. Pick one from each list unless the offer says otherwise. You are not ordering every dish printed on the board. Read the full name, including any sauce or preparation, then confirm substitutions before placing your order.
Does “postre o café” include both?
The word “o” means “or”. If the offer says postre o café, check whether you need to choose dessert or coffee. If you would like both, ask about the extra cost first. Likewise, pan y bebida refers to bread and a drink, but you still need to check which drinks and how many are included. A second drink should not be assumed to be part of the set price.
Spot a suplemento before you choose
A suplemento is an extra charge attached to a particular choice. In our fictional example, the base price is €18 and the fish option has a €3 supplement. Choosing the fish makes that example €21 before any other extras. Choosing the chicken leaves it at €18 if you stay within the listed inclusions. These are teaching figures, not a price estimate for Spain or a restaurant recommendation.
Check the day and the kitchen service
Availability is restaurant-specific. For example, Madrid Tourism lists La Charca’s daily set menu as a Monday-to-Friday lunchtime offer. That does not mean the same schedule applies elsewhere. Check whether the offer is available today, whether the kitchen is still taking orders and whether weekends have a different menu. An open bar does not necessarily mean its kitchen is serving.
Use a translation to prepare a question
Photograph the entire offer clearly, keeping the small print and supplements in the frame. Retain the Spanish dish names so you can point to the right option. GidePass Lens can help translate and explain a menu and prepare an order, but the restaurant must confirm what is actually included. The prepared demo is free to explore and does not upload or analyse your photo.
Six phrases to use at the table
- ¿Tienen menú del día?
- Do you have a daily set menu?
- ¿Qué incluye el menú?
- What does the set menu include?
- ¿Qué bebidas están incluidas?
- Which drinks are included?
- ¿El café está incluido o es aparte?
- Is coffee included or charged separately?
- ¿Este plato tiene suplemento?
- Does this dish have a supplement?
- De primero, ensalada; de segundo, pollo, por favor.
- For my first course, salad; for my main course, chicken, please.
Before you confirm your order
- Confirm today’s set price and available choices.
- Check bread, drinks, dessert and coffee individually.
- Ask about supplements and any additional orders.
- For allergies or dietary requirements, ask staff about ingredients and cross-contact directly. A translation cannot confirm the kitchen’s recipe.