Ordering now, not expressing a general preference
I'd like means I would like: you can use it to politely say what you want to order now. After like, name the food or drink immediately.
I like says that you generally enjoy something. It is a correct phrase, but by itself it does not clearly place an order.
I'd like / I would like + food or drink.
I'd like a bowl of tomato soup, please.
A bowl of tomato soup, please.
The speaker has chosen a dish and is ordering it now.
I like tomato soup.
I like tomato soup.
This expresses a general preference; the speaker is not necessarily ordering soup yet.
Ask in question form
Can I have…? and Could I have…? are common ways to ask for food or a drink. Could often sounds gentler. In this kind of order, it does not indicate the past.
After can or could, use have, without to and without the endings -s or -ing. The question order is: Can/Could + I + have.
For a shared order, you can change I to we: Can we have…? or We'd like….
Can / Could + I / we + have + order, please?
Could I have a small lemonade, please?
Could I have a small lemonade, please?
The question is a polite request for the drink to be served.
We'd like two vegetable pizzas, please.
We'd like two vegetable pizzas, please.
We'd like means we would like; the order is for several people.
State the portion and simple details
To make the order clear, state the quantity or portion: a sandwich, two sandwiches, a glass of water. In a café, a tea or two coffees can also mean one or two portions of a drink.
With adds an ingredient, while without excludes it: with milk, without sugar. Small and large specify the size.
If the name of the dish is already clear from the menu, the is possible: the fish. Article choice in general is a separate topic; here, the important thing is to state the order clearly.
Can we have three glasses of water, please?
Can we have three glasses of water, please?
The three portions are shown by the plural form glasses.
I'd like a coffee with milk but without sugar, please.
I'd like a coffee with milk but without sugar, please.
With milk and without sugar are two different details of one drink.
Politeness and short replies
Please is a useful addition to a request. Its absence does not by itself make a sentence ungrammatical: politeness also depends on the situation and tone.
I want… is grammatically correct, but direct and it may sound sharp when ordering. To begin with, it is convenient to use I'd like… or Can/Could I have…?
After a café worker's question, a natural short answer is: the name of the option you want + please. It does not have to be a complete sentence.
I'd like some rice.
I'd like some rice.
This is a grammatically correct order without please; you can add please for greater politeness.
Server: White or brown bread? Customer: Brown bread, please.
Server: White or brown bread? Customer: Brown bread, please.
The short reply answers a specific follow-up question.
Clarify and finish the order
What would you like? invites you to state your order. Small or large? asks about the size, and Hot or cold? asks about the temperature. Eat in or take away? asks whether you will eat here or take the food away.
You can answer an offer with Yes, please or No, thank you. Anything else? means “Would you like anything else?”: add the item you need or finish the order with That's all, thank you.
Questions about the menu, recommendations, and payment are related topics. Here, you already know what you want and are placing that order.
Server: Would you like bread with your soup? Customer: Yes, please.
Server: Would you like bread with your soup? Customer: Yes, please.
The short answer accepts the offered addition.
Server: Anything else? Customer: That's all, thank you.
Server: Anything else? Customer: That's all, thank you.
The customer says that they are not ordering anything else.
Common mistakes
Incorrect:Can I has a fruit salad, please?
Correct:Can I have a fruit salad, please?
After can, use the base form have, not has.
Incorrect:I would likes a cheese sandwich, please.
Correct:I would like a cheese sandwich, please.
After would, use like without the ending -s.
Incorrect:I'd like two cup of tea, please.
Correct:I'd like two cups of tea, please.
After two, a countable portion noun is plural: cups.