Formal Chinese Dining Etiquette (Beginning)

Summary

The host will usually sit with his/her back exposed to the front door, or he/she will sit on the left of the guest of honor. However, the guest of honor will always sit with his/her back facing the wall.
At the beginning of the banquet, people will pretend to avoid sitting at the guest of honor seat. Once the host pushes the guest of honor to his/her seat, everyone else will take a random seat.
If you know you are the guest of honor and a foreigner, then when the host shows you the seat don't hesitate to sit down. The host will not expect you to act like the other people at the party. Also, both you and I know that you are very special.
The people will eat food family style, meaning food is placed in the middle of the table on a plate that spins (a Lazy Susan). Everybody can reach for the food they want.
Next to all the empty bowls and plates will always be a pair of chopsticks and only rarely a spoon.
Do not pass a plate around; instead reach for it with your chopsticks. It is very acceptable to reach in front of another.
Do not try to dig up the item that you want or like in the dish, but pick what is closest to you.
Unless you're eating finger food, please do not eat with or lick your fingers. Only children eat like that.

Let start with a joke...

Before going to the main topic, I would like to ask you a question. Very simply, instead of asking each other "How are you?" what do the Chinese natives say to each other? I will provide you with a hint:

Knock, Knock...

Who's there?

Lettuce...

Lettuce who?

Lettuce in and we'll tell you!

If get my hint, your answer will be "Have you eaten?" (Ha, Lettuce, get it?) I'm too funny.

That's right. In China, eating is very important. You can never escape eating in China. And this subject leads to the most important custom in China (in my opinion), which is "Banquet." For anything from a wedding to a funeral, from the birth of a baby to the 100th birthday of an old man, from creating a bond with a new friend to humiliating an enemy, there will always be a banquet.

The banquet is the most effective way to do anything in China.

There is a saying that true "Business" is done outside of the boardroom. In America, if you want to talk business, a game of golf may be your solution. The same theory holds true in China, if you want anything done, a banquet can be your solution.

This page will only talk about the beginning of the banquet, and so, I will cover all the dining etiquette that you need to know.

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