Learn Portuguese (Portugal): Eu peço um café e um bolo.

Eu peço um café e um bolo.

I order a coffee and a cake.

Breakdown of Eu peço um café e um bolo.

and

a / an / some (all forms)

o café

the café

Questions & Answers about Eu peço um café e um bolo.

Why is it peço? Shouldn't the "I" form of pedir be something like "pedo"?

The verb pedir (to ask for, to order) is irregular. In the present tense, the "I" form changes the letter d to a ç, becoming peço. The other present tense forms follow regular patterns: pedes, pede, pedimos, pedem.

Wait, doesn't pedir mean "to ask"? Why is it translated as "I order" here?

Pedir translates to both "to ask for" and "to order" (like at a restaurant or café). Note that if you want to ask a question, you must use a completely different verb: perguntar.

Why don't we need a word for "for" after peço? In English we say "I ask for a coffee".

In Portuguese, the verb pedir already has the meaning of "to ask for" built into it. You don't need to add a preposition like por or para after it. You just use peço followed directly by the item you want.

Do I have to say Eu at the beginning of the sentence?

No, you can drop the Eu and simply say Peço um café e um bolo. Because the verb form peço is only ever used for "I", it is already obvious who is ordering. In everyday spoken Portuguese, the Eu is usually left out unless you want to emphasize that you are the one ordering.