German Phrase
Wie wär's mit dem Italiener?
Meaning
This phrase is a common and informal way to suggest going to an Italian restaurant. It literally translates to "How would it be with the Italian?" but is understood as a proposal for a dining location. The term "der Italiener" refers to the Italian restaurant itself, not an Italian person.
When to use
Use this phrase when you want to suggest an Italian restaurant to friends, family, or casual acquaintances. It's perfect for informal settings like planning dinner or a casual outing. You can easily swap "dem Italiener" for other types of restaurants, like "dem Griechen" (the Greek place) or "dem Chinesen" (the Chinese place).
✦Grammar Breakdown
Wiewär'smitdemItaliener
Wie wär's
This is a common contraction of "Wie wäre es" (How would it be?). It's a very natural and informal way to make a suggestion in German, similar to "How about..." in English.
mit
The preposition "mit" means "with" and always requires the dative case for the noun or pronoun that follows it. This is a fundamental rule for German prepositions.
dem Italiener
"Dem" is the dative masculine definite article. "Italiener" here refers to the Italian restaurant, not an Italian person. In German, it's common to use the masculine noun for a nationality to refer to a restaurant of that cuisine (e.g., der Grieche, der Chinese).
🗨In Conversation
Ich habe Hunger. Wo sollen wir essen gehen?
I'm hungry. Where should we go eat?
Wie wär's mit dem Italiener?
How about the Italian place?
✕Common Mistakes
Was wäre es mit dem Italiener?
While grammatically understandable, "Was wäre es" is not the idiomatic way to form this suggestion. "Wie wär's" (from "Wie wäre es") is the standard and natural expression.
Wie wär's mit der Italiener?
The preposition "mit" always takes the dative case. Since "Italiener" (referring to the restaurant) is masculine, the dative article is "dem", not "der" (which would be dative feminine or nominative masculine).
Wie wäre es mit der italienischen Restaurant?
This is too literal and clunky. Germans commonly refer to ethnic restaurants by the nationality, e.g., "der Italiener" for an Italian restaurant. Also, "Restaurant" is neuter, so it would be "dem italienischen Restaurant" in dative, but the simpler form is preferred.
↔Alternatives
Was hältst du von dem Italiener?
What do you think of the Italian place?
Sollen wir zum Italiener gehen?
Shall we go to the Italian place?
Lass uns zum Italiener gehen.
Let's go to the Italian place.
Cultural Tip
In Germany, it's very common to refer to restaurants by the nationality of their cuisine using the masculine noun for a person of that nationality, e.g., "der Italiener" for an Italian restaurant, "der Grieche" for a Greek restaurant, or "der Chinese" for a Chinese restaurant. This is not considered impolite or informal; it's simply how people refer to these establishments in everyday conversation. It's a linguistic shortcut that's widely understood and accepted.