طعام هذا المطعم أغلى من طعام السوق، لكن هذا المطعم أفضل.

In Arabic, the normal order is:

noun + demonstrative

So:

• هذا المطعم = this restaurant
• literally: restaurant this

This is the usual pattern in Modern Standard Arabic when a demonstrative like هذا (this) modifies a definite noun.

A few similar examples:

• هذا الكتاب = this book
• هذه المدينة = this city

So even though it feels reversed from English, it is completely normal Arabic word order.

Because when a demonstrative modifies a noun in MSA, the noun is usually definite. That means it normally takes الـ.

So:

• هذا المطعم = this restaurant
• هذا السوق = this market

Using هذا مطعم would usually not be the standard way to say this restaurant in MSA.

Arabic treats this as pointing to a specific, known thing, so the noun is definite.

This is the Arabic idāfa construction, often called a possessive or genitive construction.

طعام هذا المطعم literally means:

• food of this restaurant

But in natural English, that becomes:

• this restaurant’s food
• or the food of this restaurant

The structure is:

• طعام = food
• هذا المطعم = this restaurant

Together:

• طعام هذا المطعم = the food of this restaurant

Arabic very often expresses possession this way instead of using something like ’s.

In an idāfa construction, the first noun usually does not take الـ, even if the whole phrase is definite.

So:

• طعام هذا المطعم = the food of this restaurant

Even though طعام does not have الـ, the whole phrase is definite because it is tied to the definite phrase هذا المطعم.

This is a very important Arabic pattern:

• كتاب الطالب = the student’s book
• باب البيت = the door of the house
• طعام هذا المطعم = this restaurant’s food

So the definiteness comes from the whole construction, not necessarily from putting الـ on the first noun.

أغلى means more expensive or costlier.

It is the comparative form of غالٍ / غالي (expensive).

Arabic often makes comparatives using the pattern أفعل. For example:

• كبير = big → أكبر = bigger
• صغير = small → أصغر = smaller
• غالي = expensive → أغلى = more expensive
• جيد = good → أفضل = better

So in the sentence:

• طعام هذا المطعم أغلى من طعام السوق
• The food of this restaurant is more expensive than the food of the market

من is the standard word used after a comparative in Arabic, just like than in English.

So:

• أغلى من = more expensive than
• أفضل من = better than
• أكبر من = bigger than

In this sentence:

• طعام هذا المطعم أغلى من طعام السوق
• The food of this restaurant is more expensive than the food of the market

So whenever you compare two things in this way, من is usually the word you need.

Because أفضل is the normal comparative/superlative form meaning better / best.

Even though the ordinary adjective for good is often جيد, Arabic commonly uses:

• أفضل = better / best

This is just something you learn as the standard form.

So:

• هذا المطعم أفضل = this restaurant is better

Depending on context, أفضل can mean either better or best, but here it clearly means better.

In Arabic nominal sentences in the present tense, the verb to be is usually not stated.

So Arabic says:

• طعام هذا المطعم أغلى من طعام السوق
• literally: Food this restaurant more-expensive than food the market

And:

• هذا المطعم أفضل
• literally: This restaurant better

But in English, you must say is:

• The food of this restaurant is more expensive...
• This restaurant is better.

This is one of the most common differences English speakers notice in Arabic.

لكن means but.

It introduces a contrast:

• The food of this restaurant is more expensive than the food of the market, but this restaurant is better.

So the speaker is saying:

• yes, it costs more
• but it is also better

In MSA, لكن is a very common word for linking two contrasting statements.

Arabic often repeats the noun where English might prefer a pronoun, especially when clarity is important.

So instead of saying something like:

• ...but it is better

the sentence says:

• لكن هذا المطعم أفضل
• but this restaurant is better

This repetition sounds perfectly normal in Arabic and can make the sentence clearer.

A pronoun could be possible in some contexts, but repeating the noun is very common and natural.

Grammatically, السوق means the market, so it is definite.

That usually suggests:

• a specific market already understood from context
• or the market as a known place/category in the situation

So:

• طعام السوق = the market’s food / the food from the market

In real translation, English might sometimes say market food or the food at the market, depending on context.

Because the comparison is specifically between two kinds of food, not between a restaurant and a market.

So the structure is parallel:

• طعام هذا المطعم = the food of this restaurant
• طعام السوق = the food of the market

That makes the comparison very clear:

• The food of this restaurant is more expensive than the food of the market

Arabic often likes this kind of balanced structure, especially in clear written MSA.

It can mean either better or best, depending on context.

Here, it means better, because the sentence sets up a comparison:

• the food is more expensive
• but this restaurant is better

So the meaning is comparative, not superlative.

If the context were broader, أفضل could also mean best, such as:

• هذا أفضل مطعم في المدينة = This is the best restaurant in the city

But in your sentence, better is the correct interpretation.

Yes. In fully vocalized formal Arabic, the words would have grammatical case endings, even though normal writing usually leaves them out.

For example, in careful formal pronunciation, you might have something like:

• طعامُ هذا المطعمِ أغلى من طعامِ السوقِ، لكنَّ هذا المطعمَ أفضلُ

But in ordinary unvocalized text, these endings are not shown, and many learners first study the sentence without needing to pronounce all of them.

So the short answer is:

• yes, the grammar includes case
• no, it usually is not written in everyday MSA text

A simple reading is:

ṭaʿāmu hādhā al-maṭʿami aghlā min ṭaʿāmi as-sūq, lākin hādhā al-maṭʿamu afḍal

A few pronunciation notes:

• ط is a heavy t
• ع in طعام is a deep throat sound
• غ in أغلى is like a French or German throaty r for many learners
• ض in أفضل is an emphatic d

You do not need perfect pronunciation right away; the main thing is recognizing the structure and vocabulary.