{"id":35927,"date":"2024-04-26T08:08:33","date_gmt":"2024-04-26T08:08:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2024\/04\/26\/when-u-s-diplomats-visit-china-meal-choices-are-about-more-than-taste-buds\/"},"modified":"2024-04-26T08:08:33","modified_gmt":"2024-04-26T08:08:33","slug":"when-u-s-diplomats-visit-china-meal-choices-are-about-more-than-taste-buds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2024\/04\/26\/when-u-s-diplomats-visit-china-meal-choices-are-about-more-than-taste-buds\/","title":{"rendered":"When U.S. Diplomats Visit China, Meal Choices Are About More Than Taste Buds"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"text-align:center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1050\" height=\"550\" src=\"https:\/\/i3.wp.com\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2024\/04\/25\/multimedia\/00xp-chinafood-qvzh\/00xp-chinafood-qvzh-facebookJumbo.jpg?resize=1050,550&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-post-thumbnail size-post-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"When U.S. Diplomats Visit China, Meal Choices Are About More Than Taste Buds\" title=\"When U.S. Diplomats Visit China, Meal Choices Are About More Than Taste Buds\" \/><\/div><p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Beijing beer made with American hops, to highlight the trade relationship between the two countries. Tibetan food, to send a human rights message. Mushrooms with possible hallucinogenic properties, just because they taste good.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Where, what and how American dignitaries eat when they visit China is a serious matter. Choices of restaurants and dishes are rife with opportunities for geopolitical symbolism, as well as controversy and mockery. Chopstick skills \u2014 or a lack thereof \u2014 can be a sign of cultural competence or illiteracy.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">An exorbitantly expensive meal can make an official look out of touch. Too cheap or informal, and you risk appearing undignified. Authenticity, history, cooking technique and taste can all affect the perception of a meal choice.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">When Secretary of State <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/04\/25\/business\/economy\/blinken-china-trade.html\" title=\"\">Antony J. Blinken started a trip through China<\/a> on Wednesday, part of the Biden administration\u2019s efforts to stabilize the relationship between the two countries, some on Chinese social media wondered whether he would have time on his visit to stop and try some of the city\u2019s famous xiaolongbao (soup dumplings).<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">One recommendation that he do so came with something of a political warning: \u201cEating xiaolongbao is just like handling international relations,\u201d a commentator <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/weibo.com\/1245559881\/Obb4t24YQ?refer_flag=1001030103_\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">wrote on Weibo<\/a>. \u201cIf your attention slips even a little, you\u2019ll burn your mouth.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Mr. Blinken did in fact visit a renowned soup dumpling restaurant that night. It\u2019s unclear how much he considered the symbolism of his dumplings, but by indulging in a traditional popular snack, and by attending a basketball game, the optics suggested there was a more cordial spirit than on the trip he made last year, soon after a Chinese spy balloon drifting across the United States had heightened tensions.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">But Mr. Blinken\u2019s eating habits have drawn far less interest than that of Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. Over two trips, this month and last year, her meals in China attracted so much attention that the state-run Global Times <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.globaltimes.cn\/page\/202404\/1310208.shtml\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">deemed<\/a> it a form of \u201cfood diplomacy.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Last year, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/business\/2023\/aug\/16\/janet-yellen-inadvertently-ate-hallucinogenic-mushrooms-in-china-and-started-a-trend\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Ms. Yellen made headlines<\/a> when, at a restaurant in Beijing serving cuisine from Yunnan Province, she ate mushrooms that were revealed to be mildly toxic and could cause hallucinations if not cooked properly.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Ms. Yellen later said that she was not aware of the mushrooms\u2019 potential hallucinogenic properties when she ate them and felt no abnormal effects. Still, the story sparked a brief craze for the mushrooms in China.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">This month, during a four-day trip to China, Ms. Yellen visited a famed Cantonese restaurant in Guangzhou, and a Sichuan restaurant in Beijing. The dishes she ordered were quickly posted online, drawing broad approval from commenters for the variety and affordability of the dishes ordered, her chopstick skills and the fact that she and her team sat among other diners instead of in a private room.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">The dishes Ms. Yellen and her team ordered were classic meals from their respective regions and were not modified to foreign tastes, according to Fuchsia Dunlop, a London-based cook and food writer who specializes in Chinese cuisine.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">\u201cThey haven\u2019t chosen really expensive, show-off dishes and ingredients,\u201d Ms. Dunlop said, speaking about the Sichuan meal. \u201cThis is very much what everyday people in Sichuan like to eat. This menu was chosen for flavor, not prestige.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">According to a Treasury Department spokeswoman, the department generally solicits suggestions from staff at the local embassy for restaurant recommendations when Ms. Yellen travels. Then, Ms. Yellen will research the restaurants herself and make the final decision.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">On occasion, specific establishments will be chosen to convey a diplomatic message, the spokeswoman added. She cited Ms. Yellen\u2019s visit this month to a brewery in Beijing that uses American hops, aimed to highlight the significance of American agricultural exports to China.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Some restaurants where Ms. Yellen has dined at have capitalized on her fame, like the Yunnan restaurant where she ate the mushrooms, which released a set menu based on what she ordered, called the \u201c<a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/weibo.com\/1841574517\/N8SzIcBmv?refer_flag=1001030103_\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">God of Money<\/a>\u201d menu, a nod to her position as Treasury Secretary.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Ms. Yellen isn\u2019t the first American dignitary to turn Chinese restaurants into overnight sensations. In 2011, a visit by then-Vice President Joe Biden to a Beijing noodle restaurant sent its business skyrocketing, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.chinadaily.com.cn\/bizchina\/2011-08\/23\/content_13173761.htm\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">according to<\/a> Chinese state media, and led the restaurant to create a \u201cBiden set\u201d noodle menu.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In 2014, after Michelle Obama visited a hot pot restaurant in the city of Chengdu, the restaurant said it would create an \u201cAmerican First Lady\u201d set menu. <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.163.com\/dy\/article\/H9QH4HFF0552SSWA.html\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Articles in<\/a> <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.chinanews.com.cn\/gn\/2014\/03-28\/6002938.shtml\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Chinese media<\/a> noted approvingly that Ms. Obama was able to handle the spicy soup, which was not toned down for a foreign palette.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-53u6y8\">\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">Her visit to a Tibetan restaurant in the same city, however, attracted controversy, and her staff at the time readily <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2014\/03\/26\/world\/asia\/michelle-obama-mixes-some-politics-into-china-trip.html\" title=\"\">acknowledged<\/a> that the venue had been chosen deliberately to show support for the rights and religious liberties of Tibetans in China.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">But for Mrs. Obama\u2019s husband and other U.S. presidents, Chinese cuisine served at official state banquets is often Americanized or customized to better suit a foreign palette.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">In 2009, President Obama was served a Chinese-style beef steak and baked fish, according to Chinese state media, and in 2017, President Trump <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/news.cgtn.com\/news\/35596a4d35597a6333566d54\/share_p.html\" title=\"\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">ate dishes including<\/a> kung pao chicken and stewed boneless beef in tomato sauce. Both meals finished with fruit ice cream, which is highly atypical of traditional Chinese meals.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">But even those meals may hint at an international trend, Ms. Dunlop said. Mr. Obama\u2019s menu contained \u201cvery safe, conservative choices that would be appealing to foreigners,\u201d she said, while Mr. Trump\u2019s menu was slightly more contemporary and showed off more Chinese cooking techniques.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-at9mc1 evys1bk0\">That shift, Ms. Dunlop said, \u201cmay reflect China feeling a bit more confident with Westerners\u2019 familiarity with real Chinese food\u201d in 2017 versus 2009.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<aside class=\"css-ew4tgv\" aria-label=\"companion column\"\/><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/04\/26\/world\/asia\/us-diplomats-chinese-food.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Beijing beer made with American hops, to highlight the trade relationship between the two countries. Tibetan food, to send a human rights message. Mushrooms with possible hallucinogenic properties, just because they taste good. Where, what and how American dignitaries eat when they visit China is a serious matter. Choices of restaurants and dishes are rife [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":35928,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2024\/04\/25\/multimedia\/00xp-chinafood-qvzh\/00xp-chinafood-qvzh-facebookJumbo.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[11028,168,5604,7205,8856,7344,221,1690],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35927"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=35927"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35927\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":35929,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35927\/revisions\/35929"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/35928"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35927"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=35927"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=35927"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}