In addition to the grand and warm welcoming ceremony, signing talks and receiving visitors, etc. The state banquet is an indispensable process, and we can often see the grand occasion of the state banquet on TV: in the magnificent banquet hall, the dishes are delicious and the tableware is exquisite, which is pleasing to the eye.
The host and guest got together at the banquet, which pushed the atmosphere of the visit to a climax. In addition to receiving foreign guests, state banquets are also held when major events are held in China. As a state of etiquette, China naturally attaches great importance to state banquets.
However, Chairman Mao once angrily criticized the state banquet: "There are many things that have not been thrown away. Invite foreigners four dishes and one soup! " Since then, frugality has become a new policy for state banquets.
On June 6th, representatives from all over the country gathered in Tiananmen Square to witness this exciting moment in founding ceremony. Subsequently, the central government held the first National Day reception for more than 600 guests, which was called the "First Banquet for the Founding of the People's Republic of China".
Premier Zhou personally asked about the arrangement of the whole state banquet. In order to take care of the tastes of guests from all corners of the country, Premier Zhou decided to use Huaiyang cuisine for the state banquet.
Huaiyang cuisine, Premier Zhou's hometown cuisine, takes into account the strengths of the northern and southern cuisines and can satisfy the tastes of most people. Later, Huaiyang cuisine and Shandong cuisine have always been the leading dishes at state banquets.
The location of the "First Banquet of the Founding of the People's Republic of China" was chosen in the Beijing Hotel not far from Tiananmen Square. Yu Xinqing, director of the State Council Ceremony Bureau, is in charge of the banquet, and Zheng Lianfu, the first "banquet designer" in New China, is the banquet manager.
Beijing Hotel is famous for its first-class hardware facilities, but it is good at managing western food. After receiving the task of state banquet, Beijing Hotel quickly turned to Yuhuatai, a famous Huaiyang chef, for help, and invited nine famous Huaiyang chefs, including Zhu Dianrong and Sun Jiufu, to cook for the state banquet.
These chefs have their own unique skills, and they really deserve their reputation. Chef Zhu Dianrong is good at "Braised Lion Head"; Sun Jiufu made more than 600 soft and delicious Huaiyang soup packets by himself. Wang Dukun's seafood "Braised Shark's Fin", even overseas Chinese representatives who are used to eating delicacies applauded.
The "First Banquet of the Founding of the People's Republic of China" is extremely rich in cuisines, including 17 dishes, including eight cold dishes, eight hot dishes and one soup. The main course of the banquet is eight hot dishes, including abalone, stewed lion's head, braised carp, emerald shrimp, braised shark's fin, stewed chicken, braised autumn duck and fresh mushroom cabbage.
The staple food is Huaiyang steamed stuffed bun, Huangqiao sesame seed cake, fried rice cake and Aiwowo. In addition, after-dinner fruits and drinks were carefully prepared.
From now on, this menu is not particularly brilliant, nor is it made of high-grade and luxurious raw materials, but the kung fu of the state banquet dishes is included in the whole cooking process.
For example, a seemingly ordinary "boiled cabbage" is made of soup boiled by local chicken. The appearance is no different from that of cabbage made of light white water, but it actually tastes fresh and smells delicious. This exquisite production, the pursuit of moderate taste, has become the keynote of the future national banquet food style.
In order to make the state banquet achieve the best effect, the organizers have scrutinized every detail.
The layout of each table, the route of serving and the position of the waiter have been rehearsed repeatedly. The serving time should also be carefully calculated. After the dishes are cooked from the kitchen, they are delivered to the guests at a suitable temperature.
At the banquet, the staff in the kitchen and the waiters in the lobby of Beijing Hotel were full of energy and enthusiasm. It is the first time that they have served so many guests as hosts. Many delegates attending the banquet were also excited, and attending the state banquet became an unforgettable memory in their lives.
Chairman Mao always drinks everything at banquets and is in high spirits. Premier Zhou delivered a warm speech. Commander-in-Chief Zhu De happily toasted everyone: "Comrades, today is a historic page!"
The "First Banquet for the Founding of the People's Republic of China" was a complete success. In the next 10 years, a state banquet will be held every National Day.
1953, President Kim Il Sung visited China, and Chairman Mao hosted a banquet to welcome the DPRK delegation. This is the first time to receive a foreign head of state at a state banquet. The state banquet was grand and luxurious, and Moutai was served on the table for the first time. Since then, the standard of state banquets has become higher and higher.
1959 National Day State Banquet was held in the newly completed Great Hall of the People, with more than 5,000 guests.
The preparatory work began a month ago, and nearly 100 famous chefs were hired from Fengzeyuan, Yuhuatai, Huifengtang and other hotels.
Premier Zhou personally examined and approved the menu, which followed the light, mellow and mild style of previous state banquet dishes. Some details have been adjusted. For example, among the guests of the state banquet are Chinese envoys and international friends, and their eating habits should also be taken into account.
There can't be dishes with bones in the menu, after all, it's a bit rude to spit bones in public. The processing capacity of the Great Hall of the People is limited. The dishes of this state banquet are mainly cold dishes, including fruits, snacks and drinks, and only two hot dishes are reserved.
In order to make thousands of field service personnel act in unison, the preparatory team set up a "traffic light" command system in an ingenious way.
When the red light is on, all the waiters are at rest; When the yellow light is on, remind the waiter to take his positions and prepare for action; When the green light is on, the waiter synchronously operates the serving and changing procedures.
Everything is going step by step in an orderly way.
This stunning 5,000-person state banquet is the first of its kind in large scale and high specification. Later, the state banquet became bigger and bigger, even reaching the scale of tens of thousands of people.
Holding a state banquet can not only broaden international exchanges and enhance friendship, but also unite domestic people and boost morale.
However, since the 1960s, great changes have taken place in China's domestic and international environment.
With the continuous improvement of international status, our exchanges with foreign countries have become increasingly frequent, and more and more foreign guests have been received, which has caused great reception pressure to the concierge department.
Greeting, sending and accompanying also take up too much time and energy of the country, which makes them overwhelmed.
In addition, the living standard of the people is in sharp contrast with the luxury of the state banquet. Chairman Mao noticed this practical problem.
In a conversation with Wang Dongxing, he criticized formalism in protocol work. Chairman Mao said: "We entertain foreigners, and the table is filled with precious dishes such as bird's nest and shark's fin without exception. Many foreigners don't like to eat, and they waste a lot of money for no reason. "
He then made suggestions on the improvement of state banquet dishes: "In the future, four dishes and one soup will be enough for entertaining foreigners."
Chairman Mao and other proletarian revolutionaries of the older generation came all the way from hard times and hated extravagance and waste.
It's not a taste to see the people scrimping and saving, but the state banquet is wasted. Moreover, holding a state banquet often requires thousands of staff to participate in the service, which is also a waste of human resources.
Chairman Mao thought: "It is a waste of the country's money and materials to receive banquets and talk about ostentation and extravagance, not to throw more."
Chairman Mao's mood reached an angry state in "On Correctly Handling Contradictions among the People". He wrote in the report: "There is a dangerous tendency among many of our staff who are unwilling to share weal and woe with the masses. This is very bad. "
1965, chairman Mao gave four instructions for receiving foreign guests at the meeting: reducing the specifications of the banquet and streamlining the accompanying personnel; Reduce the gifts given; All the gifts received will be given to the public.
Chairman Mao advocates economy and opposes extravagance and waste of young people. He said so, and he has been doing so himself.
As early as the "Three Bays Adaptation", when Chairman Mao was eating, he poured the white rice porridge in his bowl into the vat of wild vegetable porridge eaten by the soldiers, stirred it evenly, and ate a pot of rice with everyone, abolishing the bad habit of "officers and men dividing stoves" in the old army.
After the founding of the People's Republic of China, Chairman Mao did not change his true colors and was reluctant to change a few patched pajamas.
On one occasion, officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs saw that the leather shoes on Chairman Mao's feet were very worn, and thought that meeting foreign guests would damage the image of the country.
So, I'm going to buy him a new pair of pointed leather shoes to wear on important occasions.
Chairman Mao resolutely refused after knowing it. He said humorously, "Will foreign guests come to Mao Zedong to see me or my leather shoes?"
Chairman Mao is also very strict in controlling food at ordinary times. He asked the chef not to buy out-of-season vegetables because it was not worthwhile. When my son Mao just returned to China, he was still used to wearing a suit and eating bread. Chairman Mao sent him to work in his hometown. He lived in the countryside for half a year.
In the difficult period of three years, in order to share joys and sorrows with the people of the whole country, Chairman Mao took the lead in announcing that he would not eat meat, because of malnutrition, he got edema disease. At that time, the CPC Central Committee left Xibaipo for Beijing, which Chairman Mao called "going to Beijing to catch the exam".
He warned party member cadres not to be Li Zicheng, but to maintain the style of hard work, at least: no birthday celebrations, no gifts and less toasts. ...
Because of this, Chairman Mao was worried about the increasing ostentation and extravagance at the state banquet and the increasingly luxurious dishes, and was angry at the waste phenomenon, which led to severe criticism.
Chairman Mao put forward clear requirements for reception work such as state banquets, and Premier Zhou instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to arrange and implement the instruction of "four dishes and one soup".
From 65438 to 0966, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs submitted a report to the Central Committee, "Pay attention to thrift in banquets and resolutely oppose extravagance and waste". The report was quickly approved, and its general contents are as follows:
You don't have to hold a banquet to entertain foreign guests. You can use simple forms such as cold meals, tea parties or cocktail parties. For important foreign guests, generally only one formal banquet is held; Lower the banquet standard, do not talk about ostentation and extravagance, do not show off.
There are no expensive dishes such as shark's fin and bird's nest at the banquet, and the variety generally does not exceed "four dishes and one soup", as long as the amount of dishes is enough;
Minimize the number of people accompanying meals and control the banquet time within one and a half hours; Know the tastes and living habits of guests in advance, and make targeted recipes as much as possible to avoid waste. For example, Sihanouk likes to eat "lion's head in casserole", and American guests like to eat "Buddha jumps over the wall" and so on.
During 1969, Albania's new ambassador to China had a serious traffic accident on his way back to the embassy after attending a banquet hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Premier Zhou was furious after hearing this, and demanded that Moutai be removed from the state banquet and replaced with low-alcohol wine. It is stipulated that drinking is not allowed at state banquets, and drunk driving is strictly prohibited.
The implementation of these measures soon achieved results and stopped the wind of extravagance and waste.
Not only the people applauded it, but even the veteran cadres thought it was time. However, the new regulations encountered some problems at the beginning of implementation. Foreign guests from some countries expressed their incomprehension about China's sudden lowering of reception standards.
Koleka, the first vice-president of the Albanian Council of Ministers, and his party made some special demands during their visit to China. When Premier Zhou was informed, he instructed the Protocol Department to include a visit to Dazhai in Shanxi in the visit schedule. Premier Zhou accompanied guests in Dazhai to eat kimchi and drink millet porridge in Wowotou. The biggest meal is mutton jiaozi and shredded potatoes.
The guests naturally understood China's good intentions when they saw the people of China scrimping and struggling hard.
Later, some delegations also took the initiative to ask China to lower the standard of state banquets. Since then, the reception work in China has always followed the standard of "four dishes and one soup".
Of course, "four dishes and one soup" does not include cold dishes, snacks and fruits. The choice of ingredients and food safety standards for state banquets have not been relaxed, and the style of paying attention to taste has not changed.
With the implementation of China's basic national policy of reform and opening up, the economy continues to develop and foreign exchanges are increasing. State banquets are also being reformed with the times.
From September, 65438 to September, 0978, only some members of the visiting countries' embassies in China were invited to attend the state banquet, and no ambassadors from other countries who were unrelated to the visiting guests were invited to accompany them.
Since 1980, the national anthems of the two countries are no longer played at state banquets, and the famous songs of visiting countries are played by military bands at dinners. At the state banquet, neither the host nor the guests made a formal speech.
1984, the central government revised the latest standard of state banquets to "four dishes and one soup" for Chinese food and "three dishes and one soup" for western food. Cold dishes are made into large platters, which simplifies the serving procedure and introduces buffet and other forms.
At present, China adopts the standard of "three dishes and one soup" or "two dishes and one soup" when entertaining foreign guests. Only 30-50 state guests are invited to attend, and the state banquet time is controlled within 75 minutes. 1987, the kitchen will serve the cooked dishes according to the number of people, which is hygienic and reduces waste.
No matter whether it is a country visit or a foreign guest coming to China, the thank-you banquet is cancelled. These changes are also international practice.
1984 state banquet reform plan also quantifies the banquet expenditure standard.
The standard for each guest at a general banquet is 30-40 yuan; Banquets attended by important national leaders such as president and Premier are 50-60 yuan; If it is a banquet for particularly important foreign guests, the cost per guest shall not exceed that of 80 yuan.
With the rising price, this standard is constantly being revised, but up to now, it has not broken through the standard of 200 yuan for every guest.
After the closing ceremony of the 2008 Olympic Games, the President hosted distinguished guests from all over the world at Diaoyutai State Guesthouse. This "Olympic State Banquet" adopted the standard of "three dishes and one soup".
From the grand "First Banquet for the Founding of the People's Republic of China" to the present "Three Dishes and One Soup", it can be seen from the changes of state banquets for decades that China's style of receiving guests is becoming more and more pragmatic.
"A porridge and a meal are hard-won", whether it was Chairman Mao's angry approval of the state banquet in those days or the "CD Action" advocated by * * * today, all of them are interpreting the fine tradition of the Chinese nation of "practicing economy and opposing waste". We should pass on the spirit of thrift from generation to generation.
Wang Jianzhu, Deciphering State Banquet Specifications: Four Dishes and One Soup to Three Dishes and One Soup, Jiefang Daily, 20 14, 10, 10/4;
Ma Baofeng, Anecdote of State Banquet: Chairman Mao said four dishes and one soup are enough, People's Daily, 2065438+031214;
The State Banquet in New China is not a gluttonous meal. Premier Zhou has set the standard of four dishes and one soup. Nanjing Daily 20 1 1.