The more detailed the custom of Shandong banquet, the better.

Visiting relatives and friends is usually carried out during the Spring Festival and around the Mid-Autumn Festival. Most of them go in the morning and return in the afternoon, and it is usually noon to entertain guests. You need to move a lot, and you don't have time. Sometimes you have to visit two or three houses, or you can have breakfast or dinner at relatives and friends' houses, otherwise you will be suspected of "taking it with you".

Locals, especially rural people, have had the etiquette of "although the cooking is good, it is difficult to invite guests" and "don't be rude and persuade drinkers" since ancient times. It is an honor to have guests at home. Make a fire for guests in winter, use a fan for guests in summer, light a cigarette to make a fire, boil water to make tea, warm wine before meals, stay overnight after meals and send guests far away. As the saying goes, relatives are far and near, and friends are thick and thin. The more distant relatives or friends, the more warm and considerate. On the contrary, close people can be a little worse. This is "you're welcome". Enthusiasm is not only manifested in manners, but more importantly in hospitality. "Chicken in the yard, rice in the jar, stewed fish in river water, original soup turned into original dish, talk about confidence, and talk about Sang Ma with the cups in our hands." This has become a routine for receiving guests.

The banquet is usually in the bright room of the hall, with a square table, where elders and relatives and friends sit in front, with their heads separated; Next, sit on the left and right, with the host and guest sitting at the bottom, facing the host and guests (basically the opposite of the hotel seat). This seating arrangement shows respect for elders, relatives and friends, and also facilitates the delivery of dishes and the pouring of wine. In the past, entertaining guests in rural areas generally ranged from eight to ten dishes, and six to ten kinds of steaming bowls were needed. This is because it is easier to steam bowls during the New Year Festival. I have considered and arranged for the Spring Festival. It is better to entertain guests (such as a new son-in-law), with a more exquisite, grand and generous hospitality program and folk food culture. After the guests arrive, they will serve tea first, then jiaozi or four or eight fruit bowls, usually sweets such as fried sugar, crispy mouth and honey juice, and then ten or twelve stir-fried dishes, including chicken pieces, fish pieces and alfalfa meat. Serve two or three large dishes during cooking. In Liaocheng, a big dish refers to the whole, whole piece or big meat. For example, roast leg of lamb, braised elbow, steamed whole chicken, sweet and sour carp and so on. There are also onion sea cucumber, fried scallops, braised fish belly and so on. Although expensive, it is not expensive in the local area.

Generally, the order of serving is cold before hot, salty before sweet, meat before vegetarian, high price before low price. Eating jiaozi before meals, and eating noodles at last, is called "windward jiaozi, air supply noodles".

The big dishes on the table are also different. Yanggu county likes bagged chicken and eight-flavored whole fish, Dong 'e area in Liaocheng likes steamed chicken and sweet and sour fish, chiping, Boping and Gaotang areas like roast chicken and braised fish, Linqing and guanxian areas have more Muslims, and they like stewed chicken and roast leg of lamb in supernatant. When serving chicken, the head of the chicken should face the host and guest. Only the host and guest can eat the head of the chicken, and other guests can't eat it. According to legend, Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty, liked to eat chicken heads when he was a beggar. When he becomes emperor, whoever eats the head of a chicken will be killed. Chicken dishes are generally not served like this in other places. There is a saying that "chickens don't offer their heads, ducks don't offer their palms".

Pour wine every time you serve chicken or fish, and toast when you eat chicken and fish. Meat or strips of meat (alfalfa meat), lotus root boxes, fried meatballs or Four Joy Meetballs, and beef and mutton meatballs. Braised pork and hibiscus chicken are also common dishes. Meatball dishes should be served in the middle. If meatballs are served first, it means "finished eating", which is unlucky; If meatballs are finally served, it means to let the guests "fuck off", which means disrespect for the guests. There is also a certain emphasis on eating. If the host and guest don't move chopsticks, others can't move first. When eating fish, you are not allowed to turn over. You can only eat the fish above, not the fish below. This is the custom in chiping and Linqing that "guests don't turn over the fish". Some places can also eat fish from the other side, which is called "swimming" instead of "turning".

When eating fish, the host first digs out the fish eye and presents it to the guests. Respected people wipe the fish's eyes with chopsticks and invite everyone to have dinner together. These taboos or customs are also evolving, and now no one cares.

There are many ways to propose a toast. The host or guest proposed a toast, and the whole table stood up, offering three cups to the host and guest, and two cups in some places, indicating "yes-men". The toaster drinks first, which means "drinking first is respect". Or clink glasses with guests and drink together, which is called "drinking together". Then the guests respond to the host and say, "It's rude to come and go." Whoever proposes to take the lead first and then proceed in the direction of "grinding" or "clockwise" will have his turn to drink.

Maybe it is.