Que Tal - (Not in Mexico??)
I have a Mexican worker here. He states that Que tal is NOT a way to say 1. How are you?, How is everything? • Hola Jaime. ¿Qué tal? as I have read on this website.
Does this only apply to perhaps certain countries?
7 Answers
"¿Qué tal?" is so very common in Mexico that it is not really thought of as slang any more where "¿Qué onda?" still is. Both are perfectly acceptable, but "¿Qué onda?" isn't usually used by the "establishment types."
At least in Spain ¿Qué tal? is maybe the most common way for asking how are you?.
Maybe there it's more common ¿Qué onda? or something else, but ¿Qué tal? is perfectly correct.
What part of Mexico, what age is your friend, what level of society? A high school kid from Atlanta might think "Wassup?" is acceptable while a CEO from New York would not.
I have some Mexican acquaintances that are quick to correct me if I say something wrong. They've never said anything when I've used "¿Que tal?" with them.
Spanish from Spain and Mexico is very different, what it is acceptable in one place might not be in the other. I am from Spain and I had to learn Mexican when I came to the US with all the Mexicans I know here. "Spanish" that I had never heard before...
In Spain, ¿qué tal? is "how are you?" and "how is everything?".
And also,
"¿qué tal (te parece) ir al cine?" = "what about going to the cinema?"
What would be the equivalent in English for Que Tal?
I agree with Julian but I must admit that most of the "non-establishment types" that I used to hang out with never ever said "¿Qué tal?" and did seem to think that that was a stuffy, odd way greet someone. I can see how a 27 yr old Oaxacan might not be accustomed to hearing it. I've always just said "¿Cómo estás?" or "¿Qué pasa?" or, maybe, "¿Qué onda?" depending entirely on who I'm speaking to or possibly even the equally informal "¿Quihúbole?"
