¿Nos trae la cuenta, por favor?
In Spanish, 'can we have the bill?' is expressed as ¿Nos trae la cuenta, por favor?
This phrase is used as a polite request to a server for the total amount of money owed after a meal.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase literally translates to 'Will you bring us the account, please?', where cuenta means account or bill.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
¿Nos trae la cuenta, por favor? is a standard polite way to request the bill in a restaurant setting. For more formal situations, you may use ¿Nos podría traer la cuenta, por favor? or ¿Podría traernos la cuenta, por favor? to say 'Could you bring us the bill, please?'
How does it change in a sentence?
In the phrase ¿Nos trae la cuenta?, the verb traer (to bring) is conjugated in the third-person singular trae to address the server politely using the usted form.
Did you know?
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, it is considered rude for a server to bring la cuenta before you explicitly ask for it, as it implies they are rushing you out of the restaurant.
- In some Spanish-speaking cultures, rather than calling out for the bill, you might catch a server's eye and make a subtle writing motion in the air with your hand. This silent gesture is a common, polite way to signal you are ready to pay.
- The word cuenta comes from contar, which means both 'to count' and 'to tell a story'.
Examples in context
- Camarero, ¿nos trae la cuenta, por favor?Waiter, can we have the bill, please?
- Ya terminamos, ¿nos trae la cuenta, por favor?We are finished, can you bring us the bill, please?
Example conversation
Sofía and Alejandro are finishing their dinner at a restaurant.
- SofíaTodo estuvo delicioso. ¿Nos trae la cuenta, por favor?Everything was delicious. Can we have the bill, please?
- AlejandroClaro que sí, se la traigo ahora mismo.Of course, I will bring it to you right now.
- SofíaMuchas gracias, Alejandro.Thank you very much, Alejandro.
- AlejandroDe nada, Sofía. Aquí tienen.You're welcome, Sofía. Here it is.
