noun HSK 2
Traditional 餐廳
cān tīng
restaurant · dining hall · dining room

Meaning

餐厅 refers to any place where people eat meals, from casual eateries to formal restaurants. It can also mean the dining room in a home or institution. This is one of the most common and essential words for talking about eating out or dining spaces in Chinese.

Usage

Native speakers use 餐厅 in both formal and informal contexts to refer to restaurants of all types. In everyday speech, 饭馆 (fàn guǎn) is also common for casual restaurants. When specifying types, Chinese speakers often add descriptors like 中餐厅 (Chinese restaurant) or 西餐厅 (Western restaurant).

Examples

  1. 01
    这家餐厅的菜很好吃。
    Zhè jiā cān tīng de cài hěn hǎo chī.
    The food at this restaurant is delicious.
  2. 02
    我们去餐厅吃晚饭吧。
    men cān tīng chī wǎn fàn ba.
    Let's go to a restaurant for dinner.

Characters

Measure words

  • jiā一家餐厅
  • 一个餐厅

Common collocations

  • 餐厅
    Zhōng cān tīng
    Chinese restaurant
  • 西餐厅
    cān tīng
    Western restaurant
  • 餐厅
    kuài cān tīng
    fast food restaurant
  • 餐厅吃饭
    zài cān tīng chī fàn
    to eat at a restaurant

Origin

The word combines 餐 (meal) and 厅 (hall/room), literally meaning 'meal hall' or 'eating room.'

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