Food & Drinks

1. Ngera a soam el menga?

   Nge-ra a so-am el me-nga

   What will you eat?

   Usage

   Ask someone what they want to eat

   Grammar Note

   Ngera = "what"; soam = 2nd-person possessive of sau (liking), "your wish". Together: "What do you want to eat?"

2. Ng kmal choisii!

   Ng kmal choi-sii

   Very delicious!

   Usage

   Exclaim that the food is very delicious

   Grammar Note

   kmal is an intensifier meaning "very". choisii (from Japanese) means tasty/delicious and is in common use in Palau (mesisiich means "strong; healthy", not a taste word)

3. Ng tela a cheral?

   Ng te-la a che-ral

   How much does it cost?

   Usage

   Ask the price of food or any item

   Grammar Note

   tela asks "how many/how much"; cheral is the third-person possessive of "price" (example: Ng tela a cheral a kelek? = "What is the cost of our food?"). The word for "what" is ngera/ngarang, not for quantities

4. Ng soam a ngikel?

   Ng so-am a ngi-kel

   Would you like a fish dish?

   Usage

   Offer fresh fish dishes — a staple of Palauan cuisine

   Grammar Note

   soam is the 2nd-person possessive of sau (liking); "Ng soam a ~?" means "Would you like ~?". ngikel means fish; seafood is central to Palauan cuisine

5. Ke mesulang!

   Ke me-su-lang

   Thank you!

   Usage

   Thank your host or cook after a meal in Palau

   Grammar Note

   ke mesulang is the standard expression of thanks in Palauan

6. Ng soak a menu.

   Ng so-ak a me-nu

   I would like a menu, please.

   Usage

   Request a menu at a restaurant in Palau

   Grammar Note

   soak is the 1st-person possessive of sau (liking), "my wish"; "I want ~" is Ng soak a ~. menu is borrowed from English; English menus are standard in Palauan restaurants

7. Ng soak a chimo el chemang.

   Ng so-ak a chi-mo el che-mang

   I would like one mangrove crab.

   Usage

   Order mangrove crab — one of Palau's prized local delicacies

   Grammar Note

   Mangrove crab is chemang (large sea or mangrove crab); cheluch means "coconut oil / fuel", not crab. "I would like" is soak, whose agreement marker is ng. There is no word for "one serving/dish", so the crab itself is counted with chimo el (the classifier for animals and non-living things)

8. Ng ngar er ngii a ralm er tiang?

   Ng ngar er ngii a ralm er ti-ang

   Is there water here?

   Usage

   Request drinking water during or after a meal

   Grammar Note

   ngar er ngii is the existential expression "there is"; Palauan has its own word ralm for water

9. Ng kmal choisii a kall el Belau!

   Ng kmal choi-sii a kall el Be-lau

   Palauan food is very delicious!

   Usage

   Praise Palauan cuisine as a whole

   Grammar Note

   kall means food; choisii (from Japanese) means delicious; Belau is the native Palauan name for Palau

10. Ng soak a check.

    Ng so-ak a check

    I would like the check, please.

    Usage

    Request the bill at the end of a meal

    Grammar Note

    soak is "my wish" (1st-person possessive of sau). check is borrowed from English; English is well understood at Palauan eateries

11. sar

    Salt

    Usage

    To ask for salt at the table

12. blauang

    Bread

    Usage

    For ordering or shopping

13. beras

    Rice

    Usage

    For ordering or shopping

14. chilt

    Oil

    Usage

    To ask whether oil was used

15. cheluch

    Coconut oil

    Usage

    The oil most often used in Palauan cooking

16. tamanengi

    Onion

    Usage

    To say you cannot eat onion

17. nengi

    Green onion

    Usage

    To say you cannot eat green onion

18. merekos

    Sweet

    Usage

    For asking or telling how something tastes

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