Always leave food on your plate in China.
Finishing your plate when dining at someone's home in China suggests the food wasn't filling enough, and that your host was skimping on the portion size. Always leave behind a little food to show the host that their meal was filling and satisfying.
The Japanese consider it rude to leave food on your plate, whether at home or at a restaurant. It's related to one of the fundamental concepts in Japanese culture, mottainai, which is a feeling of regret at having wasted something.
Nah actually it's kind of impolite if you're having a lot uneaten on your plate after the meal. leaving some, it's fine. But if you order a lot but don't even finish 20% of it. Some people may consider it's a bit wasteful.
Traditionally, you should leave a bite on your plate to convey that you enjoyed the meal and were served enough to be satisfied. Today, diners (and especially children) shouldn't be excepted to join the #CleanPlateClub or feel bad if they finish their meal. Instead, just eat until you're full.
The last piece of food on a communal dish is never served to oneself without asking for permission. When offered the last bit of food, it is considered rude to refuse the offer.
Don't leave food behind. It's considered bad manners to leave even grains of rice behind, so be sure to clean your plate! If there are some foods you cannot eat, ask to have them left out of the dish.
Do not touch, hug, lock arms, back slap or make any body contact. Clicking fingers or whistling is considered very rude. Never put your feet on a desk or a chair. Never gesture or pass an object with your feet.
You should behave elegantly. When taking food, don't nudge or push against your neighbor. Don't let the food splash or let soup or sauce drip onto the table. When eating, you should close your mouth to chew food well before you swallow it, which is not only a requirement of etiquette, but also better for digestion.
The China Food Waste Law also made it unlawful to order huge quantities of food to see it go waste. Citizens visiting restaurants are now required by new rules to order no more than the right quantity of food.
China – Leave some food on your plate
If you grew up within a Western culture – perhaps you were told to eat all the food on your plate because it's polite. Well, if you tried to do this in China… it tells your host so you haven't been served enough. So they will keep handing you delicious Chinese food for days!
Many Asian superstitions revolve around chopsticks as well. For example, if you find an uneven pair of chopsticks at your table setting, it is believed you will miss the next train, boat or plane you are trying to catch. Also, dropping your chopsticks is an omen of bad luck.
Madagascar #122. Madagascar had the WORST SCORE in terms of food quality. An average of 79% of people's consumption is derived from nutrient-poor cereals, roots and tubers, compared to a global average of 47%.
China Food Waste Law
First, excessive leftovers are banned to stop hosts from extravagantly ordering food to impress their guests. Restaurants have the right to charge an extra fee to any patron who leaves excessive quantities of uneaten food.
In most traditional Chinese dining, dishes are shared communally. Although both square and rectangular tables are used for small groups of people, round tables are preferred for large groups, particularly in restaurants, in order to permit easy sharing.
It's always the double “bái bái” in Chinese, never just a single “bái.” In English, you might say: Well, I'm off! The word ”xiān” means “first,” so “wǒ xiān zǒu le” actually means “I'm leaving first.” It's an acknowledgement that you're leaving ahead of the person or people you've been hanging out with.
Do give an appropriate greeting. If you are meeting someone in a business context, shake hands and smile. If it is someone older than you with some sort of rank, you may do a very slight bow from the shoulders (as opposed to a full-fledged bow from the waist) as a sign of respect.
The default toast in China is ganbei (sounds like: “gon bay”) which literally means "dry cup." And unlike in the West, you'll be expected to empty your cup after each toast given, or at least give it your best effort.
Guizi (鬼子; pinyin: guǐzi) is a Mandarin Chinese slang term for foreigners, and has a long history of being used as a racially deprecating insult.
Making eye contact in China is a sure-fire way to make enemies, not friends. The Chinese people view eye contact as a necessary tool, but not in the same way that other cultures do. In China, people make eye contact when they are angry. It is meant to challenge the other person and is a sign of disrespect.
Every culture has its own taboos, and it is important to remain aware of them when traveling or encountering another culture to ensure you don't commit a social faux-pas. In Chinese culture, some of the most common taboos involve gift-giving, birthdays, and weddings.
Blowing your nose at the table, burping and audible munching are considered bad manners in Japan. On the other hand, it is considered good style to empty your dishes to the last grain of rice.
In Japan, crossing one's legs is seen as disrespectful. It is because when you do this you show the bottom of your feet to guests, and since they have picked up dirt, you are showing that dirt to your guests.
While restaurant portion sizes in Western countries have birthed a custom of taking leftovers home for a second meal, this is not the case in Japan. If you are considering asking for a take-home container, the answer, unfortunately, will almost always be no.