Saya pesan mi tanpa cili di gerai itu.

Saya means I. In Malay, the subject is often stated clearly, especially in neutral, careful speech.

Malay can sometimes omit the subject if it is obvious from context, but for learners, keeping saya is the safest and most natural choice.

So:

• Saya pesan mi tanpa cili di gerai itu. = I ordered noodles without chilli at that stall.
• In conversation, if the subject is already obvious, a speaker might shorten it, but that is more context-dependent.

Also, saya is polite and standard. It is a very useful default word for I.

Yes — pesan can be a little confusing because it has more than one meaning.

As a verb, pesan can mean:

• to order food
• to book / reserve
• to leave a message / tell someone something

In this sentence, Saya pesan mi..., it clearly means I ordered noodles.

Examples:

• Saya pesan nasi goreng. = I ordered fried rice.
• Saya sudah pesan meja. = I already reserved a table.
• Dia pesan kepada saya... = He/she told me... / left a message for me...

So the meaning depends on context.

Malay often uses bare nouns more freely than English does.

So mi by itself can simply mean noodles in a natural way. You do not always need a word like some, a serving of, or a bowl of.

That means:

• Saya pesan mi = I ordered noodles

If you want to be more specific, you can add a classifier or description, for example:

• semangkuk mi = a bowl of noodles
• mi goreng = fried noodles
• mi sup = noodle soup

But in everyday speech, just mi is completely normal.

Both mi and mee are used to mean noodles.

A few useful points:

• mi is the standard Malay spelling.
• mee is also very common in signs, menus, and informal writing.
• In real life, you may see both.

So:

• mi goreng
• mee goreng

Both are commonly understood. If you are learning standard Malay, mi is a good form to remember.

Not exactly.

Tanpa cili means without chilli. It tells the seller not to include chilli.

That is different from not spicy, because something can still be spicy even without visible chilli, depending on the sauce, seasoning, or paste used.

Compare:

• tanpa cili = without chilli
• tidak pedas = not spicy

So if your goal is specifically no chilli added, tanpa cili is good.

If your goal is I want it mild / not hot, then tidak pedas may be better.

You can even combine them:

• Mi tanpa cili, ya. Tak pedas. = Noodles without chilli, please. Not spicy.

Malay nouns usually do not change form for singular vs plural the way English nouns do.

So cili can mean:

• chilli
• chillies

The exact number is understood from context.

This is very common in Malay:

• buku = book / books
• kerusi = chair / chairs
• cili = chilli / chillies

If you really want to show plurality clearly, Malay can use reduplication:

• cili-cili

But in normal speech, especially in a sentence like this, just cili is enough.

Here, di is a preposition meaning at, in, or on, depending on context.

So:

• di gerai itu = at that stall

Important: di for location is written separately from the noun:

• di gerai
• di rumah
• di sekolah

This is different from di- as a passive verb prefix, which is written attached to the verb:

• ditulis = written
• dibeli = bought

So in your sentence, di is just the location marker.

Gerai usually means a stall, especially a small food stall or market stall.

Kedai usually means a shop or store, though it can also appear in food-related expressions like kedai makan.

So the difference is roughly:

• gerai = stall, booth
• kedai = shop, store

In this sentence, gerai suggests a small food stall rather than a full shop or restaurant.

This is a very common word-order difference between English and Malay.

In Malay, demonstratives like ini and itu usually come after the noun:

• gerai itu = that stall
• buku ini = this book
• rumah itu = that house

So Malay says something more like stall that, even though in natural English we translate it as that stall.

This noun + demonstrative order is standard and very important to get used to.

Yes — Malay verbs usually do not change form for tense the way English verbs do.

So pesan itself does not tell you whether the action is present, past, or future. The tense is usually understood from:

• context
• time words
• the situation

So this sentence could be understood as:

• I order noodles without chilli at that stall
• I ordered noodles without chilli at that stall
• I will order noodles without chilli at that stall

depending on context.

If Malay wants to make time clearer, it can add words like:

• sudah = already
• sedang = currently / in the process of
• akan = will

Examples:

• Saya sudah pesan mi tanpa cili di gerai itu. = I already ordered noodles without chilli at that stall.
• Saya akan pesan mi tanpa cili di gerai itu. = I will order noodles without chilli at that stall.

Malay word order is fairly flexible, although some orders sound more neutral than others.

The sentence as given is very natural:

• Saya pesan mi tanpa cili di gerai itu.

This goes roughly:

• subject + verb + object + extra information + location

But you can move the location earlier if you want to emphasize it:

• Di gerai itu, saya pesan mi tanpa cili.

This is also correct, and it highlights at that stall.

So the original sentence is a normal, neutral order, but Malay does allow some rearrangement for focus.

Yes. Both are possible, but they differ in style.

• pesan = common in everyday speech
• memesan = the more fully prefixed form, often more formal or careful

So:

• Saya pesan mi tanpa cili... sounds natural and conversational.
• Saya memesan mi tanpa cili... is also correct, but sounds a bit more formal or written.

Learners will often hear the shorter root form in everyday spoken Malay.

A simple learner-friendly pronunciation is:

sah-yah puh-sahn mee tahn-pah chee-lee dee guh-rai ee-too

A few notes:

• saya ≈ sah-yah
• pesan has an e like a relaxed uh sound: puh-sahn
• mi = mee
• cili = chee-lee
• di = dee
• gerai ≈ guh-rai
• itu ≈ ee-too

Malay pronunciation is usually quite regular, so once you learn the spelling patterns, it becomes easier than English in many ways.