Whats the difference.... again?

Ive learned beber in class and this course is saying tomar. Is there a difference or are their usage personal preference?

Hola Tammy, The usage depends on the region. In Mexíco and Central America tomar is commonly used. The waitresses at el restaurante mexicano y el restaurante salvadoreño siempre preguntan ¿ Para tomar? When asking what to drink. Both are right and you will be understood. I always take the opportunity to order and speak in Spanish when my wife and I go to eat at both places. I am always warmly welcomed to speak in Spanish and it's great practice.¡Tambien la comida está riquisima! Don't be shy and try speaking whenever you can. Buena suerte. Saludos, Rich

This question was discussed some years back in this forum and Mauricio was one of the posters who provided a response. The basic gist of the earlier post was that you can use either word. Some regions favor one word over the other, but both words are acceptable choices. http://members.rocketlanguages.com/your-community/spanish-vocab/tomar-vs-beber

I had this exact discussion with two Spanish friends from Barcelona who had also lived in Chile for many years. The consensus was that while both would be understood, "beber" tends to be used more for alcoholic drinks and "tomar" more for non alcoholic drinks. They also suggested that since "tomar" also means "to take", the Spanish student might want to reserve its use to this and use beber for ordering drinks. It's important to note however that after you become familiar with both beber and tomar it becomes apparent from the context that the reference is to drink.

hola

Hola !!