Learn Hardcore Spanish (Spain): Pues hoy cenamos en un restaurante cerca de casa. - Well, today we are having dinner at a restaurant near home.

It’s a discourse marker meaning roughly “well,” “so,” or “right then.” It softens the start, signals a decision/transition, or buys a second to think. It doesn’t change the factual content; you can drop it with no loss of meaning.

Do I need a comma after Pues?

Not necessarily. Many speakers write it without a comma in short sentences like this. A comma is acceptable if you want a slight pause: Pues, hoy cenamos… Both are fine in informal writing.

Why is cenamos in the present if it’s about later today?

Spanish often uses the present for near-future plans, especially with time markers like hoy, esta noche, mañana. It’s similar to English “We’re having dinner (tonight).” It sounds scheduled/decided.

Could cenamos be past tense here?

Grammatically, yes: cenamos is both present and preterite for “we” with -ar verbs. In Spain, if you mean “earlier today,” people usually prefer the present perfect: Hoy hemos cenado en un restaurante… Using the simple preterite for “today” is more characteristic of many Latin American varieties.

What’s the difference between hoy cenamos, hoy vamos a cenar, and hoy cenaremos?

Hoy cenamos…: Common, sounds like a set plan (neutral, everyday).
Hoy vamos a cenar…: Also common; emphasizes intention/arrangement.
Hoy cenaremos…: A bit more formal or predictive; can sound like a promise/forecast. All three are correct; choice is nuance.

Why isn’t nosotros written?

Spanish drops subject pronouns when the verb ending shows the subject. Cenamos already means “we have dinner.” Use Nosotros for emphasis or contrast: Nosotros hoy cenamos… (no ellos).

Why en un restaurante and not a un restaurante?

Use en to indicate where the action happens (location). Cenar en un restaurante = have dinner in a restaurant. Use a with motion verbs: Vamos a un restaurante (we’re going to a restaurant). You can combine both: Vamos a cenar en un restaurante.

Can I say Vamos a cenar a un restaurante?

Yes. Here, a un restaurante goes with the motion verb vamos (destination), and cenar names the activity. It’s also fine to say Vamos a cenar en un restaurante (linking the place to the act of dining). Both are natural.

Why un restaurante and not el restaurante?

Un restaurante = an unspecified/any restaurant.
El restaurante = a specific one both speaker and listener identify (already mentioned or known).

Where can I put hoy in the sentence?

It’s flexible:

Hoy cenamos en un restaurante… (very natural)
Cenamos hoy en un restaurante…
Cenamos en un restaurante hoy… Placing hoy first is the most common for emphasis on “today.” None of these changes the basic meaning.

Why cerca de and not cerca a?

With cerca, Spanish uses de: cerca de X. Alternatives:

al lado de = right next to
por aquí cerca = nearby around here

Does casa mean “home” here? Why no article or possessive?

Yes. Casa without an article or possessive often means “(my/our) home” in a general, familiar sense. Cerca de casa is “near home” (the speaker’s home by default).

How do I specify whose home it is?

Use a possessive:

cerca de mi casa = near my house
cerca de tu casa = near your house
cerca de nuestra casa = near our house If you say cerca de la casa, you’re referring to a specific house already identified in context.

Is hoy the best time word for dinner, or should I say esta noche?

Both work:

Hoy cenamos… = today (general frame)
Esta noche cenamos… = tonight (more precise for dinner) In Spain, esta noche is very common when talking about dinner plans.

What’s the usual verb for the evening meal in Spain?

Cenar = to have dinner (evening meal)
Comer = to have lunch (main midday meal in Spain)
Almorzar: in Spain it often means a mid‑morning snack/light meal; in many Latin American regions it means “to have lunch.”

Any pronunciation tips (Spain)?

pues: [pwes]
hoy: the h is silent, [oi]
cenamos: in much of Spain, ce- is
cerca: [ˈθeɾka]
restaurante: [restawˈɾante] (no written accent)

Is this sentence formal or informal?

Neutral and perfectly fine in everyday conversation. Pues is very common in spoken Spanish; in formal writing you might omit it or choose a more explicit connector depending on context.

Can I drop Pues entirely?

Yes. Hoy cenamos en un restaurante cerca de casa is equally correct; you just lose the conversational “well/so” feel.

What are some natural alternative ways to say the same thing?

Pues esta noche cenamos en un restaurante cerca de casa.
Hoy vamos a cenar en un restaurante cerca de casa.
Hoy cenamos fuera (cerca de casa).
Hoy cenamos en un sitio cerca de casa. All are idiomatic in Spain, with tiny nuance differences in tone or specificity.