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10 Tips for Chinese Dining Etiquette

Today’s blog is a guest post provided by Phoebe Yu. 

So you’ve mastered the ancient art of chopsticks-fu, and can order your way out of a dimsum cart.  But Chinese dining is more than delicious food and fragrant dishes.  Eating together is a highly social activity, which is why dishes are always shared and individual portions don’t exist.  The round table and round plates and bowls as well, symbolize harmony and union.

Therefore, it’s good to keep a few things in mind when eating out at a Chinese restaurant, to preserve the social harmony of the dining table.

Here are some dos and don’ts of Chinese dining:

1. Do be polite and always think of others before yourself.  This is probably the most important rule of thumb that you can stick to, and it is probably the root of all the other rules of Chinese dining etiquette.
2. The head of the table sits farthest away from the door or the crowds (in a crowded restaurant).
3. Do serve others first before yourself.  Once the dishes start arriving, don’t put the food in your plate first, but start by serving the others in your table.  In typical Chinese dining fashion, the eldest is normally served first.  Same goes when pouring the tea.
4. Don’t hoard.  You typically take small portions from the communal dishes so that everyone else has a chance to try the food.
5. Don’t turn the Lazy Susan while someone else is taking food from the communal dishes, but wait for them to finish.  And the Lazy Susan always goes clockwise.
6. Don’t use your chopsticks to poke and inspect the food in the communal dishes.  Instead, just take the piece or the portion you want and transfer it straight to your bowl.
7. Don’t leave your chopsticks standing vertically on your rice bowl, but use the chopstick rest on your table.
8. Don’t take the last piece.  Instead, offer it to others.
9. Do cover your mouth with your hand or napkin when using a toothpick, so that other people don’t see the food stuck in your teeth. However, in North America it is considered impolite to use toothpicks at the table to remove lodged food particles.  Instead, excuse yourself and use the restroom.
10. Finally, always fight for the bill and offer to pay.  However, the Chinese have a perfected system in place when it comes to bill payment.  So although one person pays this time, the other will get the bill for the next time.  And they usually remember who paid the last time, so the bill payment is fairly rotated among friends.

It’s important to note though, that you won’t be expected to learn all the rules or subtle nuances of Chinese dining etiquette.  As long as you stick to these general tips, your next Chinese dining experience should come as a breeze!

About the author: Phoebe Yu is a Vancouver-based writer. To learn more, visit her at: yuphoebe.blogspot.ca

Posted by Margaret in Dining Etiquette and tagged chinese dining etiquette.