Because the Chinese believe that an even number is auspicious and an odd number is ominous, it is taboo to order "three dishes", "five dishes" and "seven dishes".

The general order of Chinese food is: appetizers - - main course - - snacks.

Appetizers: usually a large platter of four cold dishes. Sometimes as many as ten kinds. The most representative is the cold mix of jellyfish skin, eggs and so on. Sometimes after the cold pots, followed by four kinds of hot pots, common is fried shrimp, fried chicken, and so on. However, the hot pots are mostly omitted.

Main course: immediately after the appetizers, also known as large pieces, large dishes.

Expanded:

In the 1960s, Mao Zedong had a series of instructions on the specifications of state banquets, and in one of the conversations, he criticized, "The specifications of banquets nowadays are too high, and what is eaten is not as much as what is thrown away. It is a waste of national materials. Thousands of all on the bird's nest shark's fin, spend more money, and not affordable. Some things foreigners don't even eat. If we invite foreigners, I think 'four dishes and one soup' is enough."

After this, Zhou Enlai set the rule that the standard for state banquets would be "four dishes and one soup". Since then, the state banquet has basically maintained this standard for half a century.

Then the state banquet for foreign heads of state, the menu should be strictly in accordance with the "four dishes and one soup" standard. However, by the end of the 1990s and the beginning of this century, the standard of state banquets has begun to try "three dishes and a soup" or "two dishes and a soup".

Then at noon on August 24, 2008, then President Hu Jintao in the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse again set up "Olympic State Banquet", banquets to participate in the closing ceremony of the Olympic Games of the country's VIPs, the standard for "three dishes and a soup".

Leaders banquets for state guests, some only use "three dishes and a soup", or "two dishes and a soup". This practice not only saves money and materials, but also saves time and labor. Now the state banquet time is generally 1 hour and 15 minutes, while in the past the state banquet usually spend two or three hours.

From "four dishes and a soup" to "three dishes and a soup", the deletion of a dish, spanning more than half a century. However, both standards were set at a time when it was all about streamlining and economizing.