restaurant
A native Thai recording for this word is on the way. Please check back soon.
- 1 restaurant
A general word for a restaurant, from a simple neighborhood eatery to an upscale dining establishment.
restaurant
A business that prepares and serves meals to customers, regardless of its size, cuisine, or price range.
Learning notes
Explanation
The word combines ร้าน, “shop,” with อาหาร, “food.” It is a neutral, everyday term that also appears in signs, listings, and written descriptions. The cuisine follows the noun: ร้านอาหารไทย means “Thai restaurant,” and ร้านอาหารจีน means “Chinese restaurant.” The usual classifier is ร้าน: ร้านอาหารสองร้าน means “two restaurants.” Once the context is clear, speakers often shorten it to ร้าน, as in ร้านนี้, “this restaurant.”
Usage
Use it to ask where to eat, choose a place for dinner, recommend a restaurant, or search a map. It also appears in conversations about opening or running a restaurant.
Caution
It does not normally refer to a grocery store or a shop that only sells food products. A coffee-focused business is usually called ร้านกาแฟ, and a bar is generally called บาร์.
Differences from similar words
1 restaurant synonyms
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โรงอาหาร refers to a cafeteria or canteen at a school, workplace, or similar institution. ร้านอาหาร generally refers to a restaurant serving customers.