đồ nhắm
Definition
- Noun:
- Food eaten with alcoholic drinks: Small dishes or snacks specifically consumed while drinking alcohol, such as beer or spirits. They are meant to complement the drink, enhance its flavor, or mitigate its effects.
- Bar snacks / Drinking food: Informal, often savory, food items served in social drinking contexts.
Usage Examples
- Noun:
- Bia lạnh mà không có đồ nhắm thì thật là thiếu. (Cold beer without any food to go with it is really lacking.)
- Họ gọi thêm một dĩa đồ nhắm. (They ordered another plate of snacks to go with their drinks.)
- Đậu phộng rang muối là món đồ nhắm phổ biến. (Salted roasted peanuts are a popular drinking snack.)
Advanced Usage
- The concept is central to Vietnamese drinking culture. Đồ nhắm is not a full meal but an accompaniment, ranging from simple nuts to more elaborate dishes like grilled meats or dried squid.
- It can imply the social and leisurely aspect of sharing drinks and food with friends.
Variants and Related Words
- Mồi (n): A more colloquial synonym for đồ nhắm, also meaning food or bait to go with alcohol.
- Hết mồi rồi, ra mua thêm đi. (We're out of snacks, go buy some more.)
- Đồ nhậu (n): A very common term, often interchangeable with đồ nhắm, but can sometimes refer to a more substantial meal enjoyed with alcohol.
- Quán này có đồ nhậu ngon. (This place has good food to eat while drinking.)
Synonyms
- Bar food: Food served in bars.
- Drinking snacks: Small snacks consumed with alcohol.
- Appetizers (in a drinking context): Small dishes served before or with drinks.
Related Idioms
- While there is no direct idiom with đồ nhắm, the practice is embedded in common phrases:
- Nhậu lai rai: To drink leisurely over a long period, always accompanied by đồ nhắm.
- Tối nay đi nhậu lai rai với vài người bạn. (Tonight, let's go for a leisurely drinking session with a few friends.)