How to Eat Informally in China

China is a food loving nation. Chinese people are very relaxed in informal eating situations. The common dishes are placed in the center and everyone serves themselves, or the host serves the honored guest the most choice pieces first. Informal dining in China is a great deal more fun than formal banquets.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

1. Understand how informal Chinese dining differs from Western dining. In China, the dishes are brought to the table and placed in the center. Each dish is delivered fresh and placed within the reach of everyone. If a guest is at the table, the host will serve the first morsel to the guest, and everyone will proceed to sample the dish.
2. Place discarded bones, shells or other nonedibles next to your plate. Some Chinese people will place a small piece of paper, napkin or cardboard next to their plate for this purpose. Do not expect anyone to come along and clear this away until after a meal.
3. Talk is expected at the table, so chat away while eating. It is not impolite to speak while eating, but food should not fall out of the speaker's mouth.
4. Serve yourself. This is the motto in China once a meal with friends or family has started. In restaurants, the dishes are often placed on a large rotating platter. Most Chinese restaurants have large round tables for this reason. It is always best to eat out with a large group, as the number of dishes increases, and a host, or honored elder, is judged by their ability to order the best matched variety of foods.
5. Reach across the table, but not directly across a neighbor's plate. Just motion to the dish and it will either be rotated towards you or passed directly. Take as much as desired and place the dish back on the table. More often than not, each person uses their chopsticks to take a serving from the communal dishes.
6. Eat until full. Always leave a little food on the plate. It is not considered wasteful, but is a sign that there was more than enough food to eat. Chinese people love to share food with friends and family.
7. Finish a meal with a good tooth-picking. However, it is considered impolite to show your teeth while picking them. To be polite and avoid errant bits flying across the table, people cover their mouths with their free hand.

Tips & Warnings

• Do not expect dessert, as most Chinese people will end a meal with fruit.
• Expect to have the meal paid for by the person who invited everyone, but it is OK to argue a bit about offering to pay.