How much food and beer can three tiny Chinese women, one small Chinese man, one small American man, and one not-small-enough Canadian woman eat and drink? You’d be amazed!

Four of Jacob’s adult students invited us to have dinner with them. The opportunity to meet them for the first time while picking up some Chinese etiquette was just too great to pass up. I expected that we would eat a little food, drink a cup or two of tea, and have some stilted Chinglish conversation. Boy was I wrong.

Food, Drink & Language

Everyone was shy at first so it was hard to gauge their English proficiency as they didn’t speak much. But not to worry: the tongue-loosening beer arrived almost immediately. A box containing a dozen large bottles was brought to our private room. Half of it warm the way the Chinese like to drink it and half of it cold as they know the loawai (foreigners) have it.

Jacob and I looked at each other and wondered “why would the waitress be bringing in so many?” It was a weeknight and there were only six of us – one of whom was driving and not drinking. I knew all about gambei – or toasting – I just didn’t know how often it happened. A lot. No, more than that. And it’s not just a toast and you take a little drink. You have to down your drink.

All the Seafood That’s Fit to Eat

There was no way of knowing what surprises we’d find in the food being served as everything was ordered before we arrived. The first dish was half a fish – the front half with the head still on, of course, and teeth that reminded me of the piranhas we ate in Brazil – that was absolutely delicious. And, sorry to disappoint you, but that was the weirdest thing served.

We had oysters – raw and cooked in a delicious sauce, crabs, shrimps cooked two different ways, scallops, rice cakes, and various vegetable dishes. Um, Um, Um! Oh, and lots of beer. I soon learned to only half fill my glass or I’d be drinking from under the table.

I realized at the dinner just how much I had already learned about Chinese food etiquette: they only serve warm drinking water as cold is considered bad for you; the dishes are place before the guest of honor; groups are seated in private dining rooms; the heads of food are always left on (as are the shells for shellfish); and that the hosts will pay the bill – they wouldn’t let us share the cost of the meal. Rather, we’ll reciprocate at a later date.

It was one of those expat experiences that we live for but can’t happen often enough.

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