Order of serving Chinese food
A standard Chinese meal usually starts with cold dishes, then stir-fry, then main course, then snacks and soup. If you feel a little tired, you can order some dessert and finally serve a plate of fruit. When ordering food, we should take into account the dishes of each program.
Preferred dishes
1, China specialty. This is especially important when entertaining foreign guests. Such as fried spring rolls, dumplings, steamed dumplings, lion's head, kung pao chicken and so on. It is not delicious, but it is highly praised by many foreigners because of its distinctive China characteristics. ?
2. Dishes with local characteristics. For example, soup mutton in Xi 'an, braised pork in Maojia, Hunan, stewed lion's head in Shanghai, and instant-boiled mutton in Beijing, I'm afraid these specialties will be more praised than the same raw seafood when entertaining foreign guests there.
The specialty of this restaurant. Many restaurants have their own specialties. The last special dish of this restaurant can best reflect the host's care and respect for the invited guests.
Taboos for ordering Chinese food
When arranging the menu, we should also consider the dietary taboos of the guests, especially the dietary taboos of the guests. There are four main dietary taboos:
1, religious dietary taboos, can't be ignored at all. For example, Muslims usually don't eat pork or drink alcohol. Buddhists in China eat less meat, not only meat, but also irritating foods such as onions, garlic, leeks and mustard greens. Some Buddhists who believe in Guanyin are forbidden to eat beef in their diet, so they should pay special attention when entertaining Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan and overseas Chinese compatriots.
For health reasons, some foods are also taboo. For example, people with heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, arteriosclerosis, high blood pressure and sequelae of stroke are not suitable for eating dog meat. Patients with hepatitis should avoid eating mutton and soft-shelled turtle. People with digestive diseases such as gastroenteritis and gastric ulcer soup are also not suitable for eating soft-shelled turtle. Patients with hypertension and high cholesterol should drink less chicken soup.
3. People's dietary preferences are often different in different regions. For this reason, we should take this into account when arranging the menu. For example, people in Hunan generally like to eat spicy food and eat less sweets. British and American people usually don't eat pets, rare animals, animal viscera, animal heads and claws. In addition, when entertaining foreign guests, try to eat as little hard food as possible, and foreigners are unlikely to spit out the food they have bitten into their mouths when eating, which also needs to be considered.
4. Some occupations, for some reasons, often have different special taboos in catering. For example, national civil servants are not allowed to eat, invite guests, eat and drink at official banquets, eat beyond the standards stipulated by the state, and drink alcoholic beverages. For another example, drivers are not allowed to drink alcohol during work. If you ignore this point, you may make the other party make mistakes.
Precautions for Chinese food 2: Precautions for Chinese tableware
chopsticks
Chopsticks are the most important tableware in Chinese food. Chopsticks must be used in pairs. The picture above shows the standard method of holding chopsticks.
In China's dining etiquette, when picking up food with chopsticks, we should pay attention to the following questions:
1. Note that chopsticks are used to hold food. It is impolite to scratch, pick your teeth or pick something other than food.
2. When talking with people, you should put down chopsticks temporarily, and you can't dance chopsticks like a baton while talking.
No matter whether there is food residue on chopsticks, don't lick them. Is it appetizing to pick up food with licked chopsticks?
4. Don't put chopsticks vertically on the food. Because in China custom, this method is only used when paying homage to the dead.
spoon
The main function of spoon in Chinese food is to scoop vegetables and food. Sometimes when eating with chopsticks, you can also use a spoon to help yourself eat, but try not to use a spoon alone to get food. At the same time, when taking food with a spoon, don't scoop it too full, so as not to spill it and dirty the table or clothes. After scooping out the food, you can pause in the same place for a while, and then move over to enjoy the soup until it stops flowing downwards.
In a restaurant, when you don't use a spoon for a while, you should put it on the plate in front of you. Don't put the spoon directly on the table, or let the spoon stand at attention in the food. After taking food with a spoon, eat it immediately or put it on your own plate, and don't put it back. If the food you take is too hot, don't scoop it with a spoon, and don't blow it with your mouth. You should put the food in a bowl until it is cold. Also be careful not to put the spoon in your mouth or lick it repeatedly.
bowl
Chinese bowls can be used to hold rice and soup, and you can eat them with a rice bowl when you eat. When holding a bowl, hold the bottom of the bowl with four fingers of your left hand and put your thumb on the end of the bowl. When eating, the height of the rice bowl is roughly the same as that of the chin.
If the soup is served in a soup cup with a lid alone, the way to explain that the soup has been finished is to take out the spoon and put it on the saucer, and turn the lid upside down and lay it flat on the soup cup.
plate
Chinese food has many kinds of plates. Smaller plates are called plates, which are mainly used to hold food, and their uses are roughly the same as those of bowls. When eating, it is generally required that the plates remain in place on the dining table and cannot be piled together.
What needs to be introduced emphatically is a kind of dish with special purpose-cabbage. The main function of Chinese food eaters is to temporarily place dishes taken from public dishes for enjoyment. When using a dish, generally don't take too many dishes in the dish. It looks messy, like a hungry ghost reborn, which is indecent. Don't spit food scraps, bones and fishbones you don't eat on the dining table, but gently put them at the front of the dish. Don't spit directly from your mouth when you take it. Use chopsticks to clamp it at the front of the dish. If the plate is full, you can signal the waiter to change the plate.
Tang Zhong
The soup cup is used to hold soup. When eating, there is one thing to pay attention to when using the soup cup: take out the spoon and put it on the saucer, and put the lid upside down on the soup cup, indicating that the soup has been finished.
cup
Chinese food cups are mainly used to hold soft drinks such as water, fruit juice and soda. Be careful not to hold wine in a water cup, and don't turn the water cup upside down. Another thing to note is that what you drink in your mouth can't be spit back into the cup, which is very indecent.
toothpick
Toothpicks are also a must-have item on the dining table of China people. It has two functions, one is to get food; The second one is used to pick teeth. But when eating, try not to pick your teeth in public. Cover your mouth with your other hand when you have to pick your teeth. Don't "watch" or re-enter food in public, and don't throw or spit casually. After picking your teeth, don't take a toothpick, let alone use it to get food.
table napkin
Before eating Chinese food, each diner is usually given a wet towel. The function of this wet towel is to wipe hands. After wiping your hands, put them back on the plate and take them away by the waiter. Before the banquet is over, the waiter will put on another wet towel. Unlike the former, this wet towel is used to wipe your mouth, not your face or sweat.
Precautions for Chinese food: precautions for Chinese food.
Table layout
At banquets in China, round tables are usually used to place dishes and drinks. There are two ways to arrange the pecking order of the round table.
The first case is a small banquet consisting of two tables. This situation can be divided into two horizontal and two vertical. When two tables are arranged horizontally, the left side takes precedence and the right side takes second place. The left and right mentioned here are determined by the position facing the main entrance. When two tables are arranged vertically, the table time should be far above and near below. The distance mentioned here is based on the distance from the main entrance.
The second case is a banquet with more than three tables. When arranging the number of tables for a multi-table banquet, we should not only pay attention to the rules of "facing the door", "respecting the right" and "taking the distance as the top priority", but also consider the distance between other tables and the main table. Generally, the closer to the main table, the higher the number of tables; The farther away from the main table, the less the number of tables.
When setting the table, the size and shape of the table used should be basically the same. Except for the main table, which can be a little bigger, no other dining table can be too big or too small.
In order to ensure that the attendees can find their own table in time and accurately during the banquet, they can indicate each other's table on the invitation, hang a schematic diagram of the banquet table layout at the entrance of the banquet hall, arrange ushers to guide the guests to sit according to the table, or put table cards on each table.
Rank arrangement
At the banquet, the specific ranking of each table is also divided into primary and secondary rankings. There are four basic methods of ranking, and they usually work at the same time.
The first method is that most hosts should sit facing the main entrance and at the main table.
The second method is to hold a multi-table banquet, and each table must be attended by the representative of the host. The position is generally consistent with the main direction of the main table, and sometimes it can be directly opposite to the main table.
The third method is the ranking of each table, which should be based on the distance from the table owner, with the nearest being the top and the far being the bottom.
The fourth method is that each table has the same level as the table owner, and the table owner is right, that is, the table owner faces right, right and left.
In addition, the number of people dining at each table should be controlled at 10, preferably even. For example, six people, eight people and ten people. If there are too many people, it is not easy to take care of them, but they may not be able to sit down.
According to the arrangement of the above four rankings, the specific arrangement of the round table ranking can be divided into two specific situations. It's all about the theme.
The first case: the arrangement of a theme at each table. Its characteristic is that each table has only one host, the host and guest sit at the right head, and each table has only one dialogue center.
The second situation: the arrangement of two themes per table. It is characterized in that the host and wife sit at the same table, the male host is the first host, the female host is the second host, and the guest of honor and the lady of the guest of honor sit on the right side of the male and female hosts respectively. Therefore, each table objectively forms two dialogue centers.
If the status of the guest of honor is higher than that of the host, in order to show respect, you can also arrange to sit in the host's seat, or ask the host to sit in the host's seat.
In order to facilitate the accurate seating of guests, in addition to the timely guidance and instructions of the host and the host, eye-catching personal name seat cards should be placed on the table in front of each guest's seat. When holding a foreign banquet, the seat card should be written in both Chinese and English. The convention in China is that Chinese comes first and English comes second. When necessary, the name of the dining car is written on both sides of the seat card
When arranging seats for light meals, if you need to arrange a table, you can refer to the arrangement of the table at the banquet. The arrangement of ranks can follow four principles.
One is the principle of high right and low left.
Two people sit side by side, usually the upper seat on the right and the lower seat on the left. This is because Chinese food is served clockwise, so the person sitting on the right has priority over the person sitting on the left.
The second is to respect the principle of middle seat.
Three people sit together to eat, and the person sitting in the middle is higher than the people on both sides.
The third is the most important principle of others.
When dining, according to etiquette, the person facing the main entrance is the upper seat, and the person facing the main entrance is the lower seat.
The fourth is the special principle.
In high-end restaurants, there are often beautiful scenery or elegant performances for diners to enjoy indoors and outdoors. At this time, the seat with the best viewing angle is the upper berth seat. When eating in some middle and low-end restaurants, people usually take the position near the wall as the upper seat and the position near the aisle as the lower seat.