Learn Hardcore Chinese: Zhè jiā shítáng de wǔfàn bǐ xiàoyuán wàimiàn de xiǎo fàndiàn piányi liǎng kuài. - The lunches in this cafeteria are two yuan cheaper than in the small restaurant outside the campus.

So 这家食堂 literally means "this (one) cafeteria" or "this cafeteria (as an establishment)." Using 家 here is natural and idiomatic because a 食堂 is a place that serves food, similar to a restaurant.

Why is there a 的 in 食堂的午饭? Could you say 食堂午饭 without 的?

的 in 食堂的午饭 marks an attributive/possessive relationship: "the cafeteria’s lunch" / "the lunch of the cafeteria."

食堂的午饭 – the lunch of the cafeteria

You can sometimes drop 的 between a place and something strongly associated with it, e.g.:

学校老师 – school teachers
公司同事 – company colleagues

But 食堂午饭 without 的 sounds a bit clipped or colloquial; 食堂的午饭 is the default, neutral form and is what learners should normally use.

Why is there a 的 in 校园外面的小饭店? What exactly is modifying what?

校园外面的小饭店 is a noun phrase where several elements modify 饭店:

校园 – campus
外面 – outside
的 – connects the modifier to the noun
小 – small
饭店 – restaurant

Structure: [校园外面] 的 [小饭店]

So the whole phrase means "the small restaurant outside the campus."

Here, 校园外面 acts like "outside the campus," and 的 turns that phrase into an attributive modifier for 小饭店.

How does 比 (bǐ) work here? What is the basic structure of this comparison?

The standard pattern with 比 is:

A + 比 + B + Adjective (+ degree/amount)

In this sentence:

A: 这家食堂的午饭 – the lunch in this cafeteria
比 – "than"
B: 校园外面的小饭店 – the small restaurant outside the campus
Adjective: 便宜
Degree: 两块

So the structure is:

这家食堂的午饭比校园外面的小饭店 便宜两块。
A 比 B Adj + amount.

Meaning: A is cheaper than B by 2 yuan.

Why is there no 是 before 便宜? In English we'd say "is cheaper".

In Chinese, adjectives can directly act as predicates without 是 in many cases.

这个菜好吃。– This dish is tasty.
今天冷。– Today is cold.

When you use 比 for comparisons, you do not add 是:

他比我高。– He is taller than me.
这家食堂的午饭比校园外面的小饭店便宜两块。
(not: 是比…便宜 or 比…是便宜)

So 便宜 itself is functioning like "is cheap" in this structure.

Why isn’t there a 很 before 便宜? I often see adjectives with 很, like 很贵, 很大.

很 is often used with adjectives to make the sentence feel complete and natural:

这很贵。– This is expensive.
这家食堂很便宜。– This cafeteria is cheap.

But in comparative sentences with 比, you normally do not use 很:

他比我高。✔
他比我很高。✘ (incorrect in standard Mandarin)
这家食堂的午饭比校园外面的小饭店便宜两块。✔

The comparison itself already gives a degree, so 很 is not needed (and is ungrammatical in this pattern).

What does 两块 mean exactly? Is something like 钱 or 人民币 missing?

两块 literally means "two kuài," where 块 is a casual word for Chinese yuan (RMB), like "bucks" in English.

一块 (钱) – 1 yuan
两块 (钱) – 2 yuan
十块 (钱) – 10 yuan

In everyday speech and writing, 钱 (money) is very often omitted when the context is clear:

这个十块。– This is 10 yuan.
便宜两块。– (It’s) 2 yuan cheaper.

So 两块 here is shorthand for 两块钱. You could also say 两块钱 or 两块人民币, but 两块 is the most natural in casual contexts.

Is 便宜 an adjective or a verb here? How does 便宜两块 work grammatically?

便宜 is primarily an adjective meaning "cheap."

In this pattern:

A 比 B 便宜两块

you have:

Adjective: 便宜
Degree complement: 两块 ("by 2 yuan")

So grammatically it's:

Adjective + amount (degree complement)

This is similar to:

他比我高五厘米。– He is 5 cm taller than me.
今天比昨天冷三度。– Today is 3 degrees colder than yesterday.

So 便宜两块 = "cheap by 2 yuan" → "2 yuan cheaper."

Why is the phrase 校园外面的小饭店 and not something like 外面校园的小饭店? What is the word order rule?

In Chinese, place words usually come before the noun they modify, and broader location tends to come before more specific descriptions.

校园外面的小饭店 breaks down as:

校园外面 – outside the campus
的 – linking marker
小饭店 – small restaurant

So it's "the small restaurant (that is) outside the campus."

外面校园的小饭店 is not natural because 外面 normally modifies a location noun (校园外面, "outside the campus"), not the other way around. The typical pattern is:

[Place] + [Position word] → together modify the noun with 的

e.g.

学校对面的小商店 – the small shop across from the school
公园旁边的饭馆 – the restaurant next to the park

Is something omitted after 校园外面的小饭店? Should it be 校园外面的小饭店的午饭?

Yes, there is an ellipsis (omission), and native speakers do this a lot when the meaning is clear from context.

Literally, you could say:

这家食堂的午饭比校园外面的小饭店的午饭便宜两块。

The second 的午饭 is understood and therefore dropped to avoid repetition. The sentence is still clear: you are obviously comparing the lunch in one place to the lunch in the other.

This kind of omission after 的-phrases is very common when both sides are parallel:

我的手机比你的（手机）新。– My phone is newer than yours (phone).
这家食堂的午饭比校园外面的小饭店（的午饭）便宜两块。

What’s the difference between 这家食堂的午饭 and 这个食堂的午饭? Are 家 and 个 both OK?

Both are grammatically possible, but they feel slightly different:

这家食堂的午饭 – uses 家, the typical classifier for restaurants/food places; sounds very natural and idiomatic.
这个食堂的午饭 – uses 个, the general classifier; still acceptable, but a bit less specific/stylistically weaker.

Since 食堂 is a place that serves food, 家 is the best-fit classifier. Native speakers will almost always say 这家食堂, not 这个食堂, in this kind of context.

Could I say 这家食堂的午饭便宜校园外面的小饭店两块 by moving the 比-phrase later?

No. That word order is not natural or grammatical.

The 比 phrase must come before the adjective it modifies. The standard and required pattern is:

A + 比 + B + Adjective (+ amount)

So you need:

✔ 这家食堂的午饭比校园外面的小饭店便宜两块。
✘ 这家食堂的午饭便宜校园外面的小饭店两块。

Placing 校园外面的小饭店 after 便宜 without 比 breaks the comparative structure.

If I wanted to say the cafeteria lunch is 2 yuan more expensive instead of cheaper, what would change?

You would simply change the adjective:

便宜 (cheap) → 贵 (expensive)

So:

这家食堂的午饭比校园外面的小饭店贵两块。
– The lunch in this cafeteria is 2 yuan more expensive than (that in) the small restaurant outside the campus.

The rest of the structure (A 比 B + adj + amount) stays the same.

Why doesn’t 午饭 have a measure word here? Shouldn’t it be something like "one lunch"?

Here, 午饭 is being talked about as a type of meal in general, not as a single countable unit.

这家食堂的午饭 – "the lunch offered/served at this cafeteria" (as a general category)
校园外面的小饭店的午饭 – "the lunch offered at the small restaurant outside the campus"

When referring to a specific portion/serving, you might use a classifier:

一顿午饭 – one lunch (one meal)
一份午饭 – one serving/portion of lunch

But in this sentence, we are comparing the general price of lunch at two places, so 午饭 is used as an uncountable noun and takes no measure word.

How is 便宜 pronounced in real speech? I’ve seen both piányi and piányí.

In standard modern Mandarin:

便宜 is usually pronounced pián‧yi:
- 便 (pián) – 2nd tone
- 宜 reduced to a neutral tone (light, unstressed): ‧yi

You might also sometimes hear piányí (both syllables with the 2nd tone), but pián‧yi with a neutral second syllable is more common and is what most textbooks teach.

In any case, the meaning is the same: "cheap" / "inexpensive."