Business Entertaining - T

· Hospitality is very, very important. Expect to be invited out every night after hours. This will entail visiting local night spots and clubs, often until late at night.
· The largest meal of the day is taken in the evening, at about 06:30 PM. Entertainment is most often done in a restaurant and rarely in a home. If you are invited to a home, consider this an honor. Do not discuss business during a meal unless your host brings it up first.
· If you are the guest of honor at a round table, you will be seated facing the door. This is a custom carried over from feudal times that signified trust and goodwill on the part of the host, since the guest would be first to see an attack and the host would be the last. It is also customary for the guest to be the first to sample a dish before anyone else starts eating.
· At a meal, eat lightly at the beginning, since there could be up to 20 courses served. Expect your host to keep filling your bowl with food whenever you empty it. Finishing all of your food may be insult to your host, since it can mean he did not provide enough food. Leaving a bowl completely full is also rude.
· Your attempt at using chopsticks will be appreciated. When you are finished, set your chopsticks on the table or on the chopstick-rest. Placing them parallel on top of your bowl is considered a sign of bad luck.
· Leave promptly after the meal is finished.
· Good topics of conversation include Taiwanese sights, art, calligraphy, family, and inquiries about the health of the other’s family. Topics to avoid are the situation with mainland China and local politics. Generally, conversation during a meal focuses on the meal itself and is full of compliments to the preparer.

Business Entertaining - C

· Business lunches have become more popular, but you will probably be treated to at least one business banquet. You should always return the favor.
· Banquets at restaurants can be ordered in varying degrees of extravagance. Be sure to reciprocate at the same price per person as your Chinese spent at tour banquet; never surpass your host in the degree of banquet lavishness.
· Most banquets start between 06:30 and 07:00 P.M. and last for about two hours. You should arrive about 30 minutes before your guests; they will arrive on time.
· If you are the guest, always arrive promptly or even a little early.
· Business is not generally discussed during a meal.
· Never begin to at or drink before your host does.
· It is polite to sample every dish. The Chinese may even test your fortitude on purpose with exotic delicacies like marinated, deep-fried scorpions, completely intact with their stingers, on a bed of rice.
· At a meal, eat lightly at the beginning, since there could be up to 20 courses served. Expect your host to keep filling your bowl with food whenever you empty it. Finishing all of your food may be insult to your host, since it can mean he did not provide enough food. Leaving a bowl completely full is also rude.
· Your attempt at using chopsticks will be appreciated. When you are finished, set your chopsticks on the table or on the chopstick-rest. Placing them parallel on top of your bowl is considered a sign of bad luck.
· Try not to drop your chopsticks; it is considered bad luck.
· Toasting is big in China. At banquets, the host offers the first toast, and the ceremony continues all evening.
· Never take the last bit of food from a serving dish; this can signify that you are still hungry.
· The serving of fruit signals the end of the meal.
· If you do not want refills of tea, leave some in your cup.
· Generally, women should not drink alcoholic beverages. Business women should accept a drink, if offered, take a sip and leave it.