A guide to saying it like a local
How to Say "The wine list please" in French
Ask for the wine list at a French restaurant with this polite and standard phrase.
La carte des vins, s'il vous plaît.
lah KART day van, SEEL voo PLEHneutral
French TTS · 0:01
Use this when you're seated at a restaurant and ready to order drinks, specifically wine. It's the most direct way to get the wine menu from your server.
Alternatives
- Le carte des vins, s'il vous plaît.Slightly less common but still understood; 'la carte' is the correct gender.
- Je voudrais la carte des vins.A more complete sentence, good if you want to be a bit more formal.
Ways to get it wrong
Forgetting 'des'
Saying 'la carte vins' is incorrect; you need 'des' to mean 'of wines'.
Pronouncing 'carte'
The 'r' sound is in the back of your throat, not a hard English 'r'.
Saying 'la vin'
'Vin' (wine) is masculine, so it's 'le vin', but 'carte des vins' uses the plural concept.
A small cultural note
In France, wine is often an integral part of the meal, and asking for the wine list is a very common and expected step.
The same phrase in other languages
Frequently asked
How do I ask for the regular menu too?
You can ask for both by saying 'La carte et la carte des vins, s'il vous plaît.' This means 'The menu and the wine list, please.'
What if I don't want wine?
You can simply ask for 'la carte' (the menu) if you're interested in food, or specify other drinks like 'la carte des boissons' (the drinks menu).
Can I just say 'Vins'?
While a server might understand, it's too abrupt and impolite. Always use a full phrase like 'La carte des vins, s'il vous plaît.'
