What it means
بسته بندی (baste-bandi) covers two related ideas: the general concept of packaging (wrapping, boxing, sealing goods for sale or transport) and, in a restaurant or food context, boxing up leftovers to take home. The word is a pure Persian deverbal compound: بسته is the past participle of بستن (bastan, “to tie, to close”) and بندی is a suffix indicating an arrangement or system of tying. Together they mean “the act of tying up” or “a closed arrangement.” A close near-synonym in the leftovers sense is پک کردن (pak kardan), borrowed from English “pack,” but بسته بندی is the more formal and widely accepted term.
How to use it
- میشه بقیه غذا رو بسته بندی کنین؟ (mishe bagiye ghazâ ro baste-bandi konin?) “Could you box up the rest of the food?”
- این محصول بسته بندی خوبی داره. (in mahsul baste-bandi khubi dâre.) “This product has good packaging.”
- بسته بندی رو با خودت ببر. (baste-bandi ro bâ khodat bebar.) “Take the box with you.”
- هزینه بسته بندی جداست؟ (hazine-ye baste-bandi jodâst?) “Is the packaging charge separate?”
Cultural note
In Iranian restaurants it is common and entirely unremarkable to ask for leftover food to be بسته بندی, and staff will usually do it without a fuss. The word also appears on product labels and in import-export paperwork, where it can mean “packing” or “carton,” making it one of the few everyday food terms that crosses between street use and official documentation without changing form. Home cooks also use it when preserving food in jars or vacuum bags.