Why is Western food considered superior in China and Chinese food considered fast food in the West?

Chinese food and Western food are two completely different foods, with obvious differences in taste, cooking methods, staple foods, and even dining methods. At the same time, there is little overlap between Western food culture and Chinese food culture, but there are also special examples, such as famous Western food pasta, hamburgers, and pizza. Of course, some people think that these foods borrowed from Chinese noodles, meat buns, and pancakes.

With the exchange of world cultures, Chinese food appears on Westerners’ tables, and Western food also appears around us. Many famous Western foods can be found around us. Regarding this phenomenon, a foreigner asked on the American version of Zhihu: "Why is Western food considered high-quality in China, and Chinese food is considered fast food in the West?" Western food is still a higher-end consumer food around us, but it is not Not superior. Many people are willing to experience this kind of dining style and food once. If we talk about our favorite food, we will still choose Chinese food. After all, Chinese food is rich and varied to suit our tastes, and Western food cannot. The ultimate reason why Western food can become a higher-end consumer food around us is because it is Western food and has an exotic flavor, and Western restaurants are not as common as Chinese restaurants around us. Of course, having said that, it is still because of our taste. I don’t like Western food, it’s just a food worth experiencing, so the number of Western restaurants will only be less than that of Chinese restaurants, unlike Chinese restaurants which are very common abroad.

So why is Chinese food considered a kind of fast food in the West? The reasons, as we have said before, are mainly three points. First, fast food culture is popular among Westerners, and Chinese food will naturally cater to them. The second point is that Chinese food had a low start abroad in the early days. At that time, opening Chinese restaurants abroad was just a business to support the family, which led to their stereotyped understanding of Chinese food, even though there are many high-end Chinese restaurants abroad now. The third point is that the Chinese food that Westerners eat is not traditional Chinese food, they are food that caters to Westerners' tastes. Now let's take a look at the question asked by foreigners: "Why is Western food considered superior in China, while Chinese food is considered fast food in the West?" How do foreign netizens view this issue? Some foreign netizens said: Both of these statements are not entirely correct. Yes, Western food in Western restaurants is more expensive in China, but eating local Chinese food is much cheaper. In some cases, eating at such a restaurant can be a special occasion and sometimes an "elegant" experience. But on the other hand, those who have little exposure to Western food or the outside world are usually only exposed to "Western food" through fast food, so they don't think too much about it. Chinese food can also be "fast food", but in the West there are many Chinese restaurants that are not fast food, so people don't automatically think of Chinese food as the default fast food. This question seems to be asked under the wrong premise.

Some foreign netizens said: Although this question is actually generalized, I will still indulge in it. You see, Chinese food is generally cheap, so our model is to use the best price to evaluate. That's why in most cases (again, this is a generalization) ambiance is not preferred over price and efficiency. This is also the reason why Chinese people like to go to Western restaurants on special occasions, it is more elegant. In addition to taste, Western restaurants also pursue atmosphere, experience, decoration, etc. In the West, most Chinese restaurants are known for their low-priced buffets, offering low-priced food such as chicken wings, fried noodles, and fried rice. Again, we aim to differentiate on price, efficiency, and even taste.