Meals in China can be quick and inexpensive. For students like me, this is often an important option. A couple examples of this are: cups of noodles that can be bought at any store for 4-6 RMB (0.57-0.87¢ USD), cafeteria meals for 12-18 RMB (1.70-2.54$ USD) or fast food like McDonald's and KFC which is 25-35 RMB (3.53-4.95$ USD). Often Chinese residents prefer to eat in groups, and it is important to show wealth and generosity when eating out. For this Field Note, I am going to focus on eating out with groups as I have with my program many times. The style for group meals in China is very different from the states traditionally. Usually, when going to a restaurant you have a choice of what meal you would like to order for yourself off the menu, but in China, it is popular to order a variety of dishes for everyone at the table and these dishes are served continually throughout the eating event. There is typically a rotating tray on the table where dishes are placed and everyone around the table will get a chance to try when the plate gets to them.
I have tried many dishes because of this style of group eating. I am going to focus on a few of my favorites and the most popular. One of the most typical dishes in China is dumplings. Often, Chinese dumplings (called "jiaozi" in Mandarin) are filled with vegetables or pork.
