Saying no to food and drink in Spanish, without offending anyone
Saying yes in Spanish is easy. To say no you need practice, because the offer is rarely a single question. It is made, refused, made again, refused again, and only then dropped, and a learner who says no, gracias once and stops talking can end up with a full plate anyway. Below: the phrases people accept, the insisting you will hear first, and what changes between Mexico, Spain, Colombia and Argentina.
The shape of a refusal
A refusal people accept has three parts: thanks, the reason, and praise for what you are turning down. Leave out the reason and your host offers again.
No, gracias, ya comí bastante. Estaba delicioso. No thanks, I’ve eaten plenty. It was delicious.
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| No thanks | No, gracias. | On its own, treated as politeness rather than an answer |
| I’m full | Estoy lleno. / Estoy llena. | Ending matches the speaker |
| I’m really full | Quedé bien lleno. (Mexico, Colombia) / Estoy llenísimo. (Argentina) / No puedo más. (Spain) | |
| I couldn’t fit another bite | Ya no me cabe nada. | |
| Honestly, I can’t | De verdad que no puedo. | The one that ends the insisting |
| Maybe later | Más tarde, quizá. | Buys you twenty minutes |
| It was delicious | Estaba delicioso. / Estaba riquísimo. | Say this every time you refuse food |
| I ate a lot already | Ya comí mucho. | |
| Not for me, thanks | A mí no, gracias. | |
| I’ll have some water instead | Prefiero agua, gracias. | Giving them something to hand you solves the problem |
That last line is the trick worth knowing. The host wants to give you something. Ask for water, coffee or a soft drink and the offer is satisfied.
The insisting, country by country
You will hear these before the offer is dropped. None of them is pressure in the way an English speaker would take it.
| Mexico | Spain | Colombia | Argentina | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The push | Ándale, nomás tantito. | Venga, un poquito. | Hágale, un poquitico. | Dale, un poquito. |
| The guilt | No seas malo. | Que no te va a pasar nada, hombre. | No sea malito. | No me hagas esto. |
| Just taste it | Aunque sea una probadita. | Pruébalo por lo menos. | Pruebe aunque sea. | Probá aunque sea. |
| Serving anyway | Te sirvo tantito. | Te pongo un poco. | Le sirvo poquito. | Te pongo un poquito. |
Poquitico is Colombian, the diminutive of a diminutive, and it is used constantly. Tantito and ándale are Mexican. Venga in Spain is the sound of a decision being pushed. In Argentina people say dale for the same thing.
Refusing twice is normal and expected. If you refuse three times with a smile and a reason, people stop in every country. If you say nothing and let the plate fill up, people take it as a yes.
Allergies, and the things you cannot eat
An allergy is the strongest reason there is, and it is the only one nobody argues with. Say it early, before the food is served.
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| I’m allergic to… | Soy alérgico a… / Soy alérgica a… | |
| shellfish | los mariscos | |
| nuts | los frutos secos | |
| peanuts | los cacahuetes (Spain) / los cacahuates (Mexico) / el maní (Colombia, Argentina) | |
| eggs | los huevos | |
| I’m coeliac | Soy celíaco. / Soy celíaca. | Understood in all four |
| gluten free | sin gluten | |
| I’m lactose intolerant | Soy intolerante a la lactosa. | |
| I can’t eat spicy food | No puedo comer picante. | Mexico will ask |
| Does it have…? | ¿Lleva…? | ¿Lleva cebolla?, does it have onion in it |
| Is there meat in it? | ¿Tiene carne? | |
| It makes me ill | Me cae mal. | For anything that does not agree with you |
| It’s a medical thing | Es por temas de salud. | Ends the conversation politely |
Vegetarian and vegan
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| I’m vegetarian | Soy vegetariano. / Soy vegetariana. | |
| I’m vegan | Soy vegano. / Soy vegana. | |
| I don’t eat meat | No como carne. | |
| I don’t eat fish either | Pescado tampoco. | Worth saying. Carne often means red meat only |
| Does it have ham in it? | ¿Lleva jamón? | Spain, where ham is not always counted as meat |
| Is there lard in it? | ¿Tiene manteca? | Mexico, for beans and tamales |
| Is it chicken stock? | ¿El caldo es de pollo? | Colombia, for soups |
| Vegetables are fine for me | Con las verduras estoy feliz. | |
| Don’t cook anything special for me | No hagas nada especial por mí. |
Say it when you accept the invitation, not at the table. In all four countries the menu is decided days ahead, and a host who finds out at the last minute will feel they failed.
Spain. Carne commonly means red meat, and people may not count ham as either. Ask specifically. Vegetarian eating is easy in cities and harder in small towns.
Mexico. Beans and tamales are often made with manteca, lard. Ask. Sin carne on a menu is understood, and ¿es vegetariano de verdad? is a fair question.
Colombia. Soups and rice are frequently built on chicken or beef stock. Ask ¿Lleva caldo de pollo? to find out.
Argentina. At an asado there will be provoleta, grilled vegetables, salads and bread. Tell the asador in advance and he will put something on the grill for you, though it may share the grill with the meat.
I don’t drink
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| I don’t drink | No tomo. | Mexico, Colombia, Argentina |
| I don’t drink | No bebo. | Spain |
| I don’t drink alcohol | No tomo alcohol. | |
| I’m driving | Estoy manejando. (Mexico, Colombia, Argentina) / Estoy conduciendo. (Spain) | The reason nobody questions |
| I’m on antibiotics | Estoy tomando antibióticos. | Also unarguable |
| I have to work early | Mañana trabajo temprano. | Works once |
| I don’t drink, it’s personal | No tomo, es algo personal. | Ends it, kindly and completely |
| A soft drink, please | Un refresco. (Mexico, Spain) / Una gaseosa. (Colombia, Argentina) | |
| Alcohol free beer | una cerveza sin alcohol / una sin | Una sin is the Spanish shorthand and it is ordinary |
| Just water | Solo agua, gracias. | |
| I’ll join the toast with this | Brindo con esto. | Holding up whatever you have |
Hold something. People offer less to a hand with a glass in it than to an empty one, whatever is in the glass.
In Spain people drink with food more than around it, and someone drinking a cerveza sin or a soft drink at a long lunch passes without comment. In Mexico people pour tequila in a caballito, the tall shot glass, and the round goes with food. In Colombia people buy aguardiente by the bottle for the table, known as guaro, and the bottle goes round with everyone serving everyone; refusing a shot is fine, and the bottle keeps arriving. In Argentina people drink wine with dinner and fernet con coca at a gathering, made in a big bottle and shared.
| What you will hear | What it means |
|---|---|
| ¿Le sirvo? | Shall I pour you one? |
| ¿Te sirvo un poquito? | Shall I give you a little? |
| Échese un trago. | Have a drink. (Colombia) |
| Una y ya. | Just one and that’s it. |
| ¿No tomas? | You don’t drink? |
| Yo voy despacio. | I’m going slowly. Something you say rather than hear |
Mate, and the one rule that matters
Mate goes round a circle in Argentina, and in Uruguay, Paraguay and southern Brazil. One person, el cebador, fills it, drinks the first one, and passes it on. You drink the whole thing, which takes a few sips, and hand it straight back to the cebador. It then goes round again in the same order.
Gracias means you are finished. Say gracias when you hand the mate back and you have left the circle, politely and permanently. Say nothing at all while you are still drinking, which feels wrong to an English speaker and is correct.
The rest of it:
- Do not move the bombilla, the metal straw. It is set in place and stirring it ruins the mate.
- Do not wipe the bombilla before you drink. Nobody does.
- Do not hold the mate while you talk. Drink it and pass it back.
- Está lavado means the mate has lost its strength and it is time for fresh leaves.
- To refuse from the start: no, gracias, yo no tomo mate, said before the round begins.
Coffee has its own version of this in Colombia, where tinto, small black coffee, is offered constantly and all day. No, gracias, ya me tomé uno is the whole refusal.
The toast
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Cheers | Salud. | Everywhere |
| Cheers | Chin chin. | Spain, Argentina, as glasses meet |
| Here’s to you | Por ti. / Por vos. (Argentina) | |
| Here’s to us | Por nosotros. | |
| Up, down, centre, in | Arriba, abajo, al centro, adentro. | Mexico, with the glass moved each way |
| I’m toasting with water | Brindo con agua. | Expect an objection in Spain and Argentina, where toasting with water is held to bring bad luck |
Look at the person as you touch glasses. In Spain and Argentina it is noticed if you do not.
Accepting, when you decide to
| You want to say | Spanish | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Alright, just a little | Bueno, un poquito. | |
| Just to try it | Solo para probar. | The half-yes that ends most insisting |
| Half of that, please | La mitad, por favor. | |
| That’s plenty | Ya, ya, así está bien. | Said while they are serving |
| Stop there | Hasta ahí, gracias. |
You get out of more of these situations by taking a small amount, tasting it and saying qué rico than with any refusal. You are not obliged to finish it.
Ten sentences you can say tomorrow
- No, gracias, ya comí bastante. Estaba delicioso. No thanks, I’ve eaten plenty. It was delicious.
- De verdad que no puedo. Quedé bien lleno. Honestly, I can’t. I’m completely full. (Mexico, Colombia)
- Solo para probar, un poquito. Just a taste, a little bit.
- Soy alérgico a los mariscos. I’m allergic to shellfish.
- Soy vegetariano. Pescado tampoco, gracias. I’m vegetarian. No fish either, thanks.
- ¿Lleva jamón? Does it have ham in it? (Spain)
- No tomo alcohol, pero brindo con esto. I don’t drink, but I’ll join the toast with this.
- Estoy manejando, mejor una gaseosa. I’m driving, I’ll have a soft drink instead. (Colombia, Argentina)
- Gracias. Thanks. (Argentina, handing back the mate, and it means you are done)
- Ya, ya, así está bien. Muchas gracias. That’s plenty, thank you.
Questions people ask
Is it rude to refuse food in Spanish-speaking countries? No. It is rude to refuse without warmth. Thank them, give a reason and praise the food, and refuse as many times as it takes.
Why do they keep offering after I said no? Because one refusal is read as politeness rather than as an answer. The offer is repeated to show it was sincere. Two or three refusals is the normal length of the exchange.
How do I say I’m full? Estoy lleno or estoy llena. Stronger: ya no me cabe nada. In Spain, no puedo más is what people actually say.
Does “gracias” really mean I’m done with the mate? Yes. Say it when you pass the mate back and the cebador will stop including you. While you are still in the round, hand it back without saying anything.
What do I say if I don’t drink? No tomo in Latin America, no bebo in Spain. If you would rather not explain, estoy manejando or estoy tomando antibióticos are accepted without question anywhere.
Can I say I’m on a diet? You can, with estoy a dieta, and it is the weakest reason on this page. Expect it to be argued with, especially in Mexico and Colombia.
Is vegetarian food easy to find? In big cities in all four countries, yes. In small towns, expect to explain, and expect stock, lard and ham to turn up in things described as meatless.
How do I refuse a shot without leaving the group? Take the glass, hold it, toast with everyone and drink what you want. With yo voy despacio you are covered for the rest of the evening.
Practise these words
gracias, lleno, probar, servir, tomar, brindar, salud, alérgico, carne, picante, poquito, suficiente, preferir. Vozelu is a free website for practising Spanish, and it has each of these. You see a sentence with one word missing, you type the word, and a native voice reads the sentence back. Practise the words on this page.