Ordering food at restaurants

The two patterns

In tier-1 cities and increasingly elsewhere, ordering happens in two main ways:

• In-person, paper menu — at older and traditional restaurants. Menus are typically Chinese-only outside tourist areas; some have photographs.
• QR code on the table — open the WeChat scan or Meituan/Dianping; a digital menu loads, you choose, the order is placed and billed.

Dianping (大众点评)

Dianping is the Yelp equivalent — restaurant reviews, ratings, queue numbers, photos, reservations. The app is mostly Chinese; the search by Chinese characters or by Latin name works. For visitors, Dianping ratings: - 4.5+ is genuinely good. - Ranked lists of 100 exist by city, by cuisine type, by category. - Reviews are Chinese; Google Translate the photos for picture menus.

Meituan (美团)

Meituan is the omnibus app — food delivery, restaurant booking, attraction tickets, hotel booking, transit. For dining: - Group-purchase deals (set menus at fixed prices) are heavy. - Delivery from any restaurant in your area. - Takeaway pickup at canteens and chain restaurants.

Reservations

• Most casual restaurants don't take reservations; you queue. Dianping shows live queue numbers.
• High-demand restaurants take reservations via Dianping or WeChat mini-programme.
• International-brand and upmarket restaurants take reservations via OpenRice (in HK), Dianping or direct phone.
• Banquet bookings for 8+ people typically need 1–3 days' notice.

Group dining etiquette

Chinese group dining is structured. The host decides: - Table size and shape (round for traditional, rectangular for modern). - Number and type of dishes (rule of thumb: number of dishes = number of guests, plus 1–2 'face' extras). - Soup placement (clear soup mid-meal, sweet soup at the end is canonical Cantonese; sweet-soup-only is more western). - Drinks (tea throughout, plus beer or baijiu for the toasting).

The host pays. The Chinese practice of fighting for the bill is real — guests politely insist on paying, the host wins. Reciprocate by hosting next time. Splitting the bill is uncommon at traditional Chinese banquets.

Useful phrases

• 服务员 (fú wù yuán) — waiter/waitress; the standard call.
• 点菜 (diǎn cài) — to order.
• 买单 (mǎi dān) — bill, please. Or '埋单' in Cantonese.
• 加点饭 (jiā diǎn fàn) — more rice, please.
• 不要辣 (bù yào là) — no spice.
• 微辣 (wēi là) — mild spice.
• 不要葱 (bù yào cōng) — no scallions.

Tipping

Don't, in mainland China. Hong Kong restaurants add a 10% service charge automatically; you don't add to it.