Chinese banquets: All types!

[MatthewB]

Browniebaker, you have my answer, thank you! Your understanding and perspective are as beautiful as these two people who are getting married. I will relax and just celebrate!

Navan

And don't forget to drink a lot.

[browniebaker]

It was not the slightest problem. The whole thing was too much fun, too much celebration! Some of my extended family was at my table and so made it

easier, joking about not taking much because it was a twelve course banquet,

but most dishes were fancied up with salad garnishes, some almost too beautiful to eat (but I did.) They also had a plain egg noodle dish, I ate that, good and I sure filled up on the sweet red bean soup course and the sweets!

I should say and agree again with Browniebaker, it would have just been horrible to have made a fuss, a bother either ahead of time or while there, it just would not have been good. A large banquet is service by course, with lots of fun and games in between, and thank you's and such, it has nothing to do with yourself, only with your genuine joy and good wishes for the new couple and making your time there joyful in harmony and fellowship with everything.

Really, really happy to hear you enjoyed it! Aren't Chinese wedding banquets a blast?

[Hest88]

Wonderful to hear! I'm so glad you enjoyed it.

At our wedding banquet, we had a guest who didn't eat a thing. He just had an empty plate the entire time and didn't even try to taste anything. I know he isn't a vegetarian, but he does have odd food issues. Everyone at his table reported to me that they were quite put out and an elderly woman was quite insulted with his behavior. Needless to say he didn't give anyone a good impression. I felt slightly bad that we had invited someone who couldn't eat any of the food, but he certainly didn't try to be a good guest either!

[browniebaker]

Of all rude things a guest can do, I'd say that not eating is the very, very least of them. I would not call someone a bad guest for abstaining from eating. Sure, it might have made others uncomfortable, but surely this guest had his reasons for not eating a thing, rational or not. Knowing what I do of eating disorders, I try not to blame others for eating behaviors that are strange because they might be caused by an eating disorder. I agree, though, that by leaving his plate empty during the whole banquet, this guest made a spectacle of himself.

[Navan]

Yes, wedding a BLAST! THey were beautiful, everything beautiful, just so wonderful to be around family too, some us don't get a chance to all be together that often.

Also, I should say that besides garnishes for some dishes, some also had vegetables in them so I could pick out and discretely wipe off as I figured that there would not be enough seafood to set off allergies, and there wasn't (though a little sick that night but not a problem.) I tried to always have s.t. on plate, think a person should do that even if not eating.

Cold Meat Platter

Stuffed Crab Claw (10)

Sliced chicken w/celery and snow peas

Chicken in shark fin soup

Abalone w/chinese greens

Deep fried crispy chicken

Double Lobsters w/ginger & onions

Steamed whole fish

Fried soft egg noddle

Yang chow friend rice (but very mixed w/seafood and meat)

Sweet red bean soup

Double pastries

One of the early courses had a white seaweed, looked kind of like a noodle, at first I thought it was a fish but wasn't - YUM.

[skchai]

One of the early courses had a white seaweed, looked kind of like a noodle, at first I thought it was a fish but wasn't - YUM.

That would perhaps be "clouds ear" or white tree ear fungi. I think.

Edited August 30, 2003 by skchai (log)

[browniebaker]

Double pastries

My sweet tooth is curious: what are "double pastries'? Were these pastries something you could try, or did they have lard in them? I'm wondering, "double"-what -- does this have anything to do with the "double happiness" Chinese character that is prevalent at weddings?

[herbacidal]

Double pastries

My sweet tooth is curious: what are "double pastries'? Were these pastries something you could try, or did they have lard in them? I'm wondering, "double"-what -- does this have anything to do with the "double happiness" Chinese character that is prevalent at weddings?

i'm guessing just 2 different kinds of pastries. Based on personal experience based on the menu which is fairly standard, I would guess they're just simple cookies. fairly doughy probably.

correct me if wrong, please. describe them also if you would, as i've been avoiding chinese weddings for a while and i don't really remember what they look like off the top of my head.

Edited September 1, 2003 by herbacidal (log)

[hzrt8w]

Here is a wallpaper image from the Discover Hong Kong website (click here), run by Hong Kong Tourism Board. The wallpapers are free for download to anybody who is interested.

This picture has a caption of "Imperial banquet at Jumbo floating restaurant".

Question: why were the Caucasians dressed in Ching dynasty costume? And they were having wine with their Chinese Imperial meal?

Can you name or guess what dishes they were having? Let's label them this way: Dish #1 is the one closest to us, the viewers, with purple/white flower-like garnishing. Go clockwise around the table. Dish #9 is the double bonus dish right in the center of the table.

[Laksa]

You really need the larger image to see the dishes well. Here's the link to the 1024x768 image:

http://www.discoverhongkong.com/eng/intera...wall_mice33.jpg

Hey, I didn't know they served Malaysian kueh in Imperial China, which is what dish #6 clearly is.

Dish #9 in the middle looks like sharks fin, #5 is steamed fish of some sort, could it be carp? #2 is a plate of dumplings made to look like goldfish.

Would be interested to find out the poetic names for these dishes too.

The drink they're having looks more like brandy to me, straight up. It looks more brandy-colored in the glass that's closest to the photographer. Could also be very strong Chinese tea, but why serve it in those glasses?

And... the pink color looks so unnatural. What did they use for food coloring in Imperial China?

[aprilmei]

The Hong Kong Tourism Board is absolutely awful. They used to be called the Hong Kong Tourism Association (HKTA) but when they renamed themselves the HK Tourism Board, they objected to the acronym of HKTB because (they said) the TB sounds like - you guessed it - tuberculosis. It's stupid, but why they didn't think of that BEFORE changing their name is anyone's guess. Then during SARS last year, their ad campaign was "Hong Kong will take your breath away." Clever, huh? Come visit Hong Kong and catch severe acute respiratory syndrome! And in the lead-up to the handover in 1997 (an EXTREMELY big event, in case you didn't know), they had such a stupid campaign which they called "100 days of wonders" (street jugglers and mime "artists") that the local press re-named it "100 days of blunders".

To get back on-topic (slightly), I know that Jumbo is trying to reposition itself as a more upscale dining experience than it was previously (it was a place only for tourists) but this picture doesn't make it look much better - it's completely tacky.

[aprilmei]

The drink they're having looks more like brandy to me, straight up.  It looks more brandy-colored in the glass that's closest to the photographer.  Could also be very strong Chinese tea, but why serve it in those glasses?

And... the pink color looks so unnatural.  What did they use for food coloring in Imperial China?

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Actually, they do sometimes serve tea in those glasses. Not quite sure why - glasses with hot tea aren't the most comfortable things to handle. But it might be wine too, because it's becoming more fashionable to drink wine with Chinese food.

[Laksa]

The Hong Kong Tourism Board is absolutely awful. They used to be called the Hong Kong Tourism Association (HKTA) but when they renamed themselves the HK Tourism Board, they objected to the acronym of HKTB because (they said) the TB sounds like - you guessed it - tuberculosis. It's stupid, but why they didn't think of that BEFORE changing their name is anyone's guess. Then during SARS last year, their ad campaign was "Hong Kong will take your breath away." Clever, huh? Come visit Hong Kong and catch severe acute respiratory syndrome! And in the lead-up to the handover in 1997 (an EXTREMELY big event, in case you didn't know), they had such a stupid campaign which they called "100 days of wonders" (street jugglers and mime "artists") that the local press re-named it "100 days of blunders".

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aprilmei, would you like to tell us how you really feel?

[aprilmei]

aprilmei, would you like to tell us how you really feel? 

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Yeah, I guess that was a bit emphatic. But Hong Kong is much more interesting than the HKTB makes it appear.

[Pan]

Hey, I didn't know they served Malaysian kueh in Imperial China, which is what dish #6 clearly is. 

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Must be something the traders brought back from Malacca.

[hzrt8w]

I agree that even looking at the picture at high resolution, the dishes are hard to see because the picture was taken from a distance. I with there are close-up pictures on those dishes. I was hoping those dishes look like something what pan and jo-mel had experienced in Beijing. But this could well be a Hong Kong chef's interpretation (or imagination) of an Imperial banquet.

It looks like they brought out dim sums, the main courses, and some desserts all at the same time (for picture-taking sake?). It looks to me that #6 and #8, or even #1 are desserts. #2 is har gow (in a skin that was made to shape like fish, I have seen that before), which is dim sum. #4 is another dim sum. So, only #3, 5, 7 and 9 are main course dishes. #3 could be shrimps sliced in half and steamed with garlic. #5 could be a steamed fish like Laksa said. #7 is Chicken with Chinese ham and jade (green vegetable)? #9 is... oh, that's anybody's guess.

A wonderful picture. Just so Hollywood made-believe like.

[Pan]

I think I can say with a fair degree of assurance that none of the dishes I had at the Li Family Restaurant in Beijing resembled anything in the picture.

[Dejah]

I think I can say with a fair degree of assurance that none of the dishes I had at the Li Family Restaurant in Beijing resembled anything in the picture.

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Maybe that's why they were dressed in period costumes . . . clothing "makes the meal"?

[Dejah]

Watch for the FIRST cyber event of the Chinese Forum!

12:01 am, October 8, 2005

Come and join in the special first cyber banquet

Visit the venue...

Drool at the banquet fare prepared for this special event...

Drink to his health of our guests of honor...

Join us as we sing and make merry...

[hzrt8w]

Ben Hong's 63rd Birthday Special Banquet Menu

乳猪一品拼盘

Suckling Pig Combination Platter

(Sucking pig, BBQ pork, roast duck, jelly fish and pork legs)

百花酿蟹拑

Deep-Fried Crab Claws

上汤焗龙虾

Lobster Braised with Premium Broth

(*cough* *cough* Hey hey!!! Why are you guys so impolite! You should wait until our special guest picks the first piece!!! Sorry Ben.)

瑶柱会北菇

Dried Conpoy Braised with Black Mushrooms

红烧蟹肉生翅

Shark Fin Soup with Crab Meat

北菇鲍贝扒时蔬

Abalone Braised with Black Mushrooms and Lettuce

清蒸海上鲜

Steamed Fish

红烧脆皮乳鸽

Fried Crispy Pigeons

鲜菇干烧伊面

Yi Fu Noodles Braised with Fresh Straw Mushrooms

海鲜蛋白炒饭

Seafood Egg White Fried Rice

精美甜品：煎堆，旗子饼

Desserts: Deep-Fried Sesame Sticky Rice Puffs and Flag Cakes

Footnote: These pictures are courtesy of origamecrane

Edited October 8, 2005 by hzrt8w (log)

[Tepee]

You're lucky I managed to find some long-burning candles....since we may have to wait a loooong time till you get to this restaurant.

Cake is Sunny-as-Your-Disposition Citrus Chiffon Cake, with Whipped Cream of Koi Pond...the Koi* representing liveliness. Although you can't tell from this pic, the 3 candles on the cake are smaller than the 6 on the board.

* There are some comments that it looks like a pig from this angle. Koi or Pig, dear birthday boy, it's up to you...

Edited October 8, 2005 by Tepee (log)

[jackal10]

I was asked to bring some wine along...

A couple of cases of Champagne to start

For the meal:

Alsace 1991 Gewurztraminer Zind Humbrecht Domaine Heimbourg

One of the best plots of the one of the best producers in a good year. Delicious with Chinese food with its lychee notes and slight sweetness.

Rhone 1996 Cornas A Clappe.

Stand up to anything

Canada 2000 Paradise Ranch Merlot Icewine

Sweet sticky for pud

Brandy in the study afterwards...

[Laksa]

Long life noodles are a must at every Foochow birthday celebration.

The chicken is pink from being stir-fried with red rice lees before going in the soup.

[jackal10]

Title says it all really.

We've had discussions of traditional Chinese wedding feasts, what would one serve for a 30th Birthday for a traditional feast, or even a family style celebration?

Edited October 8, 2005 by jackal10 (log)

[hzrt8w]

I want to first put in a qualification so I don't get a lot of people angry at me. The following is my personal observation based on my own experience growing up in Hong Kong, everything in Hong Kong-Cantonese style. I am not sure if it can be generalized.

If you are talking about a family celebration in the restaurants for a birthday, then pretty much anything goes. Typically the host (if not the birthday person him/herself) would order things that the birthday boy/girl likes. That's only common sense.

If you are talking about a formal banquet... well... I typically didn't see birthday banquets for "young" people. What I typically saw were birthday banquets for 50th, 60th, 70th, 80th birthdays (the big ones). (Maybe it's the affordibility factor?) The menu is the traditional banquet dishes, not that much different from wedding to birthday (or baby red egg (first month)). It is more a factor of how much money the host wants to spend, really. In a birthday banquet, though, one would see towards the end there would be a dish of noodles ("sou mein" - symbolizing longevity) and also some "sou bao" (steamed buns with lotus seed paste filling that shaped like peaches) - also symbolizing longevity.

Could it be that the tradition (difference between weddings and birthdays) is now lost?

The banquet dishes had been discussed before. If you want to see an example:

Click here.