When Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping sit down to a lavish state banquet in Beijing on Thursday, one Chinese cuisine is likely to feature on the menu: Huaiyang food, from the region surrounding Shanghai, known for its mild and subtle flavours, refined knife-work and emphasis on seasonal dishes.
For decades, China has used the powerful symbolism of food during landmark official events and when receiving distinguished foreign visitors.
In China’s modern history, famines and political turmoil that caused decades of widespread rationing turned food into a potent status symbol in Chinese culture.
“One of the key strengths of Huaiyang cuisine is its broad appeal. Its flavours are widely acceptable and accessible to most people … including international guests,” said Shi Qiang, executive chef at Gui Hua Lou, an upscale Huaiyang cuisine restaurant in Shanghai.
“From the overall philosophy of Huaiyang cuisine, state banquets are not centered on luxury ingredients, they don’t rely on expensive items, extravagance is simply not the focus.”
One of the eight major regional cuisines of China, Huaiyang cuisine has long played a starring role at major diplomatic events.
It was served at the 1949 “founding banquet” when the People’s Republic was established, at China’s 50th anniversary commemoration banquet in 1999, as well as a 2002 banquet hosted by then-President Jiang Zemin for the visiting US President George W. Bush.
Food has also featured in unexpected viral moments when foreign officials visited China in recent years. In 2023, former US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen joked about eating “magic mushrooms” at a Yunnan cuisine restaurant in Beijing, while then-US Vice President Joe Biden ate at a humble Beijing eatery in 2011 famed for its fried liver.
China even created a chicken dish named after US top diplomat Henry Kissinger, served to him during his secret visit in 1971, and dishes served to foreign leaders are often turned into “set banquets” by local restaurants.
Some iconic Huaiyang dishes include tender, springy “lion’s head” pork meatballs, Yangzhou fried rice, “squirrel fish” deep-fried in a sweet-and-sour sauce, and “wensi tofu” – a block of tofu sliced into thousands of fine strands.
