Let’s forget for a moment that front of house vs back of house secret war and think; what makes everything go smoothly between the moment a diner arrives and the moment he leaves satisfied with a smile on his face? Yes, all of us who work in this world know it, you and I know it, and that is the communication between the front of the house and back of the house, every day-to-day detail that tells you when, how and what to do with the greatest calling card of any restaurant: “the menu”. The fact that the waiter is called “the salesman” by the back house staff says a lot about how goals are set within the kitchen, if a diner has any allergies to notify, cooking preference, substitutions, absolutely everything counts for us to achieve that final smile.
Now, let’s think for a moment, if more than half of the staff is Spanish-speaking or you are starting in a Spanish restaurant, all this nice communication stuff we just talked about simply goes down the drain (and not just because someone has crossed the line and made the trays fall). Fortunately, you don’t have to learn Spanish in 2 minutes before the diners come in, Spanish in the kitchen can be as useful as we are willing to learn it, step by step, perhaps the phrases, vocabulary, slangs and keywords to get us started and begin to feel confident speaking in both the front and back house.
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Spanish FOH to BOH Slang
If two teachers have code words, so their kids don’t know what they’re saying in an adult conversation, no doubt all other professions have those kinds of code words. And in restaurants, we are experts at making diners not know that a dish has to be taken off the menu because it’s over (if you’ve ever searched for “what does 86 mean”, I just gave you the answer 😉). In this chart, I’m going to give you the lingo between FOH and BOH in Spanish. You’re going to be able to answer questions like “What does all day mean in a kitchen?” or “What does it mean when a chef says hands?” I assure you.
| Spanish | English | Example / Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| Fiesta | Party | Una fiesta para ocho - A party of 8 |
| Ocho seis | 86'd | La lasaña está 86 - Lasagna is 86’d |
| Voy atrás | Behind | Me gritó “¡Voy atrás!”, pero igual nos tropezamos - He shouted "Behind!", but we still bumped into each other. |
| Campista | Camper | No sé cómo sacar al campista - I don't know how to get the camper out |
| Competir | Comp / Comped | Hay que competir a dos - We have to comp two guests |
| Tapa | Cover | Fue un día flojo, solo tuvimos 12 tapas - It was a weak day, we only had 12 covers |
| Soltar la cuenta | Drop the check | Le solté la cuenta, pero no ha pagado - I dropped him the check, but he hasn't paid |
| Recoger / Recogida | Pick up | Pedro necesita que le recojan la mesa 10 - Pedro needs for someone to pick up table 10 |
| Mueve ese hueso | Push | Mueve ese hueso, tenemos demasiados camarones - Push the shrimps tonight, we have too many of them |
| Girar y quemar | Turn and burn | Mejor giras y quemas si no quieres encamotarte - You better turn and burn if you don’t want to get slammed |
| Todo el día | All day | Tengo dos hamburguesas, todo el día - I’ve got 2 burgers all day |
| Oído | Heard | An Adam and Eve on a raft for table 3, heard! |
| CP | Family meal | Hoy hay pasta de CP – Today’s Family meal is pasta |
| Correr | Run | Corre la ensalada a la mesa del Chef - Run the salad to the Chef's table |
| Cena y pica | Walkout | Se nos escapó un cena y pica - We missed a walkout |
| Marchar / Marchando | Working / On deck | Marchando el principal de la mesa dos - Working main from table 2 |
| Cantar | Reading | ¡Cocina! El camarero va a cantar la orden - Kitchen! The waiter it’s going to read the command |
| Aún muge | Still mooing | Bistec, ¡aún muge! - Steak, still mooing! |
| Los muertos | The deads | Saca / Recoge los muertos para el próximo servicio - Collect the dead for the next service |
| Used to talk about dishes left on the tables | ||
| ¡Muerde! | It bites! | ¡Usa un trapo que muerde! - Use a cloth because the plate is burning hot! |
| ¿Quién lleva? | Hands! | ¿Quién se lleva la 15? - Hands, order 15! |
| Descamochar | Clean leftovers | Descamocha los platos antes de traerlos - Clean the leftovers off the plates before bringing them in |
| Ser rallado / Irse de lado | Having a great tip | ¡Me fui de lado con esa mesa! - Amazing, what a great tip from that table! |
| Ser matado / Piojo | Stiffed / Flea | Me mataron, ¡qué piojo! - They stiffed me, what a flea! |
| Pollo | Crumber | Daniel dejó el pollo en la mesa - Daniel left the crumber on the table |
| Caballo | Waiter’s napkin | El caballo debe estar pulcro en todo momento - A waiter's napkin must be neat at all times |
Daily FOH to BOH Terms & Phrases
In this section, we lower (just) a little bit the level of complexity. With a little more literal sentences you can make the base strong enough so that when giving orders or making a request in the kitchen, everything will be easier. To have a more complete work without a doubt I recommend you to take Spanish lessons specialized in cooking and restaurants, not only you will have this kind of information, but you will be able to give much more sense to everything you have read.
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| Salón / Sala / Piso | FOH |
| Cocina | BOH |
| La reservación / reserva | Reservation / Reso |
| Corredor | Runner |
| La sección / estación | Section / Station |
| A la carta | À la carte |
| Al minuto / Al momento | À la minute |
| Ayudante | Busser |
| Ventana | Window |
| Trabajo secundario | Side work |
| Turno de mesa | Table turns |
| Turnos | Shifts |
| Carro de servir | Serving cart |
| Venta cruzada | Cross-selling |
| Doble | Double |
| Piscina de propina / Moche | Tip pool |
| Punto de venta | POS |
| Poco hecha / Al punto / Pasada | Rare / medium / well done |
| Tomar comanda | Take the order |
| Aperitivo / Entrada / Entrante | Appetizer |
| Plato principal | Main course |
| Menú de degustación | Tasting menu |
| Especialidad del chef | Chef’s special |
| Inicia la 30 | Let's get started with table 30! |
| Sale un / una… | Marching a… |
| Monta la 30 | Clean the table 30 |
| Sobre la marcha | On the fly |
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I know, not all English is as simple as spelling or pronunciation of common English words. At first, there are always searches like “FOH meaning” (btw the acronym FOH stands for in front of house, which in Spanish as you saw is salón) and, as you could guess, BOH meaning is back of house or cocina in Spanish; however, once you become familiar with terms that are every day to us, the rest comes to be like a diner who asks for no substitutions and is happy with just the way the menu is, in other words…. Simple!
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Bio: 28-year-old graphic designer and writer with 7 years of experience, passionate about communication in all its aspects as the main tool to forge links. I consider myself a detailed, patient, and empathetic person, so even if you consider yourself a difficult student, I will know how to guide you to reach the level of Spanish you need for whatever activity you have in mind. As a student of Literature, I always had the same love for books and their stories, as well as for the Spanish language and its formation. I believe that the best way to learn is to be passionate about what you are learning and that is what I always want to achieve with my students. I have worked with children, adolescents, and adults, so I have knowledge about the different learning stages that a person can go through and the different strategies to approach them.
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