Shuo Xiong ENG3080J Matthew Vetter 25 June 2013 Chinese restaurant Restaurant as a discourse community has many characteristics

and its own culture. It seems like an easy thing just customers order and waiter get their order to cook, and serve food which costumer want, finally get paid, clean the table and wait next costumers. However, in this area, there are many different customs, and many skills which can realize mood of customers, so waiters can choose an appropriate tone to make customer comfortable. Chinese restaurant, as the worlds most countrys restaurant, combining restaurant local culture and Chinese culture, has many its own features which may be unique. A person can understand clearly how to speak in ways that are acceptable in particular circumstances, but if not endowed with some recognized institutional authority, all the relevant and appropriate words in the World will not command it. (Wardle). Communication is an important skill which can make people exchange their minds. Communication depends on language to express peoples thoughts. As we know, there are many different languages in the worlds spoken by people in different countries. Because of culture influence, their way to show or speak is quite different. It also exists in different industries, although customers and waiters might speak in same language, customer may not understand some local restaurant language because of industry gap. For example, waiter or cashiers usually use different kinds of expression to speak to customers and cooks, for customers, they use language in general like what people communicate in daily life; for cooks, they would like to use

their language. I have interviewed a Chinese waiter in Chinese restaurant; he gives me an example of what they actually use in business hours. Steak, eight, side refers steak, well done, sauce on the side Actually side in Chinese is a two-word phrase, they use just first word to represent; it is similar to use s instead of side. Eight is to describe how well your steak would like. They use ten to be a maximum number; eight of ten is kind of well done. Therefore, this is kind of in-restaurant language which is often being used by inside workers. The customer is "God", they need to enter the hotel dining experience "at home" feeling, which requires flexible restaurant waiter master language skills and enhance their professional qualities. In addition to owning genre, a discourse community has acquired some specific lexis. (Swales) The following is summarized several language skills: Chinese language is profound, long stream of Chinese cultural origins, plus some foreign culture and new things that could cause a lot of common words contain ambiguity, improper use, often make the guests misunderstanding. There is a case: an old man back to the mainland in Taiwan over the Spring Festival, friends and family together to eat dinner at the hotel, the staff were attentive and asked the old man: "Sir, you beg a meal (would you like some food)?"In Chinese, there are many words which use together may have negative meaning although it has same meaning with correct phrase which should be used here. Hear the old man, his face immediately changed, and said to waiter: "Miss, I'm from the mainland to Taiwan, battles for decades, although have done a lot of dirty work, but never to beg a meal, now, I am at an old age, and returning to home, but to beg a meal? "In this case If Miss the "begging" that become "Sir, you add more rice, okay?" there will not be misunderstood. Similarly, some places regard "Miss"(Miss in some places is being understood as prostitute) as opposite meaning. In group of

young, stylish girl, it should be used with caution. It is best to call name to bring the last name, or called "Pretty Girl," even if not pretty, and certainly they will be happy hearing that. Chinese people are deeply influenced by the traditional culture. Based on humble nature, there is a thing so called face, and people regard it as life. If the waiters make them lose face in front of guests, they would certainly have been complaints, and even rage. If you are worried about purchasing power or unreasonable demands are asked by customer, you cannot reject directly, and should use hinted approach carefully. Waiters should politely tell the guests how to do, give customers the face in front of guests. Here is a case: In a hotel, there are three customers like friends gathering, order a few common dishes. As time goes on, they get happy, and want to get something to drink. One of them had never tasted wine made, but hopes to order a bottle of foreign wine to taste. Waiters see them just order some common dishes, and consider them just have a lower purchase power, but suddenly proposed to order a foreign wine, he blurt out: "Foreign wine is very expensive!" After that guest hearing these words, he pulls out a wad of bills, and throw them on the table, "so much money enough? "Finally, manager comes forward to explain and make sorry to customers. In this case, if the waiter worried guests purchasing power, he can use implied price approach like: "We've got 200 yuan a small bottle of brandy and 600 yuan a large bottle of brandy, I see you have been drinking so happy, would you like a small bottle of brandy just to taste? " From this way, it not only implies that prices , but also give customers face and take care of the guests face, definitely it will make the guests satisfied. Some of the guests enter the restaurant, in front of their friends in order to show their extensive knowledge, or in order to show their frequent enter a high-level restaurant and other social occasions, often deliberately give difficulty to the waiters, even sometimes they get things wrong, distorting the facts. At this time, if they do not harm the benefit of restaurant and does not

affect the other guests consuming, the waiter is better to follow his or her wish and obey the advice, support their "distorting the facts." For example, when some customers enjoy brandy, they asked to join the soft drinks and other beverages, and say "good drink". Although this does not match with the method of drinking brandy which is tasting after the first sniff. In this case, the waiter can adapt to the requirements of customers, without having to correct him. In addition, because of not understanding, guests sometimes get the trouble and make a joke, the waiter should be under innocuous circumstances, to help guests get rid of embarrassing. For example, after eating crabs, the tables will give guests ginger decoction to wash their hands, but they drink it, after watching other people washing hands, they will definitely feel embarrassing. At this time, the waiter can say: "The crab is so cold, after drinking ginger decoction, it will fend off the cold in stomach and keep warm, also may help digestion." Customers will certainly appreciate you very much. Some guests enter the hotel, mainly to socialize. During the period of having meal, they will make various demands, one can improve their material and spiritual enjoyment, on the other hand, it shows their widely knowledge, and they will have a feeling of self-affirmation. At this time, the waiter must be careful and try to provide better service, and prepare everything well in advance before customers ask to do. When facing excessive or arbitrary requirements, waiters might not prevent, but to pretend to make it real. There is a case: there is a middle-aged child with a young girl, and they frequently affectionate. They frequently ask to have tea, napkins and other services. They ordered a steamed fish, requiring face to face looking at slaughtering, and not allowed to put onions, ginger, MSG and other spices that they are afraid of making a stale fish. After putting it on the table, he complains that the taste is too light, and asks to re-produce without tasting it anymore. Waiter send the fish back to kitchen and chef cook taste and say it is

moderate. Based on his various demand and expression, waiter decide to keep it same and return it to customers. He smiled to customers and said: "Sir, it has been reproduced upon your request by the Chief cook, please enjoy." The guests pick up the chopsticks, try to taste a little, kept saying:" good taste. " During the service operation, waiters sometimes will make mistakes unconscious, more or less. There will be out this kind of problems, issues, although sometimes it may not the waiters false, customers requires waiters to directly face and solving problems. At this time, waiters should be flexible and have a certain strain capacity in order to move customers base on loving. I believe that most customers will laugh, do not seriously care about. Here is a case: During a waiter makes serving process, suddenly a customer who is next stand up, sprinkle a few drops in the guest's coat, the waiters face suddenly turning red, kept saying: "I'm sorry", put down the dishes, and he quickly finds a clean napkin to wipe for the guests, and ask if you need to get the laundry room to wash. Customers see the waiter apologized sincerely, smiled and said: "This is not entirely blame you, I do not care, thank you. In this case, the waiter uses love moving reached an unexpected effect. The Customers who are consuming at restaurant have many different levels, social status. Some Customers ask some demands which undermine human personality. For these requirements, the waiter should not allow, but use the appropriate language skills to make customers to give up their demands. For example, some Customers will say: "Miss, Can you dance with me after work?" Then the waiter should say: "I'm sorry, my boyfriend will come after work to pick me up" to reject him, even though you may not have a boyfriend. Sometimes Customers will say: "Miss, Can you drink a glass of wine to help us have more fun, okay?" At

this time, the waiter should say: "I'm sorry, I'm allergic to alcohol, and you certainly do not want to make me uncomfortable!" Guests enter the restaurant for consuming, there are a variety of situations, such as weddings, birthday, children's birthday party, business, social, friends, etc., for each type of customers, the waiter should make full use of language skills, match up their hobbies, so customers are fully aware of the services to be provided on target, resulting in psychological satisfaction, feeling it is valued to pay. For example, in business social events, in order to make customers gust happy, managers can say:" You rarely treat, and today this person must be your important guests. This will give customer much faces. There are many language skills in restaurant, waiters use them correctly in appropriate situation, it will have unexpected effect which make everybody happy. Economists such as Peter Drucker (1993) suggest that interactive service workers lack the necessary education to be knowledge workers (Mirabelli). So waiters must have some basic knowledge on different area in order to make a better service. In addition, there are many different on food selection. Once I spend all days in Chinese restaurant to observe which food is being selected by different countries people. At first, for tools of eating, American like to use fork and spoon, but for Chinese, most of them select chopsticks. For food selection, American like to choose noodles with some fried food like fried chicken, fries, etc.. However, Chinese like to choose rice rather than noodles, and they usually choose cooked food. Furthermore, I pay attention on vegetable selection, and I found that Chinese also like to eat cooked vegetable, but most American like to eat raw vegetable which is just being washed clean. This different eating style makes different

body in America and China. Chinese people are relatively weaker than America, and American seems have much power. However, obesity people in America are more than Chinese. In restaurant culture, there are many things different which I do not expect. Every work has its own culture which outsiders might understand. Unless going into to review some workers and make observation, you will feel different with your job. Catering services are focus on treating customers well, so make much communication and use correct way to express become so important. No matter what kinds of accident happen, remembering Customers are god any times, then waiters choose right ways to handle without harming customers benefit. It will definitely help in this industry.

References Mirabelli, Tony. Learning to serve: The language and Literacy of Food Serve Workers. Writing about Writing: A College Reader. Ed. Elizabeth Wardle and Doug Downs. Boston: Bedford, 2011. 538-56. Print. Swales, John. The Concept of Discourse Community. Writing About writing: A College Reader. Ed. Elizabeth Wardle and Doug Downs. Boston: Bedford, 2011.466-80. Print. Wardle, Elizabeth. Identity, Authority, and Learning to Write in New Workplaces. Writing About Writing: A College Reader. Ed. Elizabeth Wardle and Dough Downs. Boston: Bedford, 2011. 520-37. Print.

Interview question: How do workers communicate each other and communicate with customers? Is it same? Can customers understand what workers talk to each other? Is there any communicate skills in talking to customers or with each other?