Intermediate Spoken Chinese

Professor Vitale and the restaurant manager continue discussing the menu for the banquet (continued from the previous lesson).

Basic Conversation 14-4

1. RESTAURANT MANAGER	Cài shi nín zìjĭ diăn ne, háishi yóu wŏmen pèi ne?
	Will you order the dishes yourself, or should they be arranged by us?
2. VITALE	Wŏ duì nĭmen Dōngbĕi fēngwèirde cài bú tài shúxi, hái shi nín gĕi wŏmen pèi ba.
	I’m not very familiar with your Manchurian cuisine; it might be better if you arranged it for us.
3. RESTAURANT MANAGER	Hăo ba. Sìge lĕngpán, bādào cài, yíge tāng, hái yŏu yídào tiánshí. Xíng ma?
	All right. Four cold dishes, eight hot dishes, a soup, and a dessert. Will that do?
4. VITALE	Kéyi, kéyi.
	Fine.
5. RESTAURANT MANAGER	Qĭng liúxià nínde xìngmíng, dìzhĭ, diànhuà, yĭbiàn wŏmen tóng nín liánxì.
	Please leave your name, address, and phone number, so that we can contact you.
6. VITALE	Hăo, zhè shi wŏde míngpiàn. Máfan nín!
	All right, this is my name card. Much obliged!

Build Up

1. Restaurant manager
zìjĭ	oneself [PR]
nín zìjĭ	you yourself
yóu	by [CV]
pèi	coordinate, arrange [V]
yóu wŏmen pèi	arrange by us
Cài shi nín zìjĭ diăn ne, háishi yóu wŏmen pèi ne?	Will you order the dishes yourself, or should they be arranged by us?
2. Vitale
duì	to, toward [CV]
Dōngbĕi	the Northeast, Manchuria [PW]
fēngwèi(r)	special local flavor [N]
Dōngbĕi fēngwèirde cài	Manchurian cuisine
shúxi	be familiar [SV]
duì...shúxi	be familiar with... [PT]
wŏ duì nĭmen Dōngbĕi fēngwèirde cài	I’m not very familiar with
bú tài shúxi	your Manchurian cuisine
hái shi nín gĕi wŏmen pèi ba	it would be better if you arranged it for us
Wŏ duì nĭmen Dōngbĕi fēngwèirde cài bú tài shúxi, hái shi nín gĕi wŏmen pèi ba.	I’m not very familiar with your Manchurian cuisine; it might be better if you arranged it for us.
3. Restaurant manager
lĕngpán(r)	cold dish [N]
dào	(for courses of food) [M]
bādào cài	eight courses of hot dishes
tiánshí	dessert [N]
Hăo ba. Sìge lĕngpán, bādào cài, yíge tāng, hái yŏu yídào tiánshí. Xíng ma?	All right. Four cold dishes, eight hot dishes, a soup, and a dessert. Will that do?
4. Vitale
Kéyi, kéyi.	Fine.
5. Restaurant manager
-xià	down [RE]
liúxià	leave behind [RC]
liúxià nínde xìngmíng	leave your name
yĭbiàn...	so that..., in order to... [PT]
tóng	with [CV]
liánxì	contact [V]
tóng...liánxì	contact (someone) [PT]
tóng nín liánxì	contact you
Qĭng liúxià nínde xìngmíng, dìzhĭ, diànhuà, yĭbiàn wŏmen tóng nín liánxì.	Please leave your name, address, and phone number, so that we can contact you.
6. Vitale
Hăo, zhè shi wŏde míngpiàn. Máfan nín!	All right, this is my name card. Much obliged!

1A. Note the question Cài shi nín zìjĭ diăn ne, háishi yóu wŏmen pèi ne? “Will you order the dishes yourself, or should they be arranged by us?” The word cài “dishes” is, of course, a preposed object here, and shi in the first phrase means something like “is it the case that” or “is it a situation of.” Therefore, we could translate this question literally as “As regards the dishes, is it the case that you yourself order, or by us arrange?”

1B. The pronoun zìjĭ “oneself” often occurs immediately after a noun or pronoun to indicate emphasis. Examples:

1C. Note the two ne in the question Cài shi nín zìjĭ diăn ne, háishi yóu wŏmen pèi ne? “Will you order the dishes yourself, or should they be arranged by us?” It’s not uncommon to add a ne at the end of each of the alternatives in choice-type questions with háishi.

1D. THE COVERB YÓU “BY, FROM.” Examine the coverb yóu in the question Cài shi nín zìjĭ diăn ne, háishi yóu wŏmen pèi ne? “Will you order the dishes yourself, or should they be arranged by us?” Yóu means “by” or “from” and indicates the person who performs the action of the verb or who is responsible for something. Some more examples of yóu:

“Why don’t you handle this matter.” (lit. “This matter by you be handled.”)

1E. Pèi means “coordinate, match, arrange.” When arranging a formal Chinese menu, it’s very important that the proper kinds of foods be coordinated or matched with each other.

1F. In the video for this lesson, the large glass jar on the left side of the restaurant counter contains a deer penis (lùbiān, lit. “deer whip”) immersed in wine. Some Chinese people will pay a premium to drink such concoctions in the belief that the reproductive organs of animals can cure sexual dysfunction and improve virility.

2A. DUÌ...SHÚXI. Look at the sentence Wŏ duì nĭmen Dōngbĕi fēngwèirde cài bú tài shúxi “I’m not very familiar with your Manchurian cuisine.” The pattern duì...shúxi means “be familiar with.” The basic pattern is:

Notice that the pattern for saying “to be familiar with” is duì...shúxi and NOT *gēn…shúxi, as you might expect from the vantage point of English. Also, the stative verb shúxi “be familiar” has an alternate pronunciation shóuxi, which is quite common and which is in fact used by the speaker in the conversation for listening.

2B. The coverb duì “to” or “toward” is quite common. Here is another example:

3A. The lĕngpán(r) is usually a large plate with several kinds of cold appetizers that starts off a formal dinner.

3B. While tiánshí “dessert” is served on formal occasions as at banquets, at home Chinese people usually eat only fruit for dessert.

5A. YĬBIÀN. Yĭbiàn “so as to facilitate...,” “so that...,” or “in order that...” is a somewhat formal way to indicate purpose. Yĭbiàn is similar in meaning to wèile but is more formal, includes the ideal of “facilitate” and, unlike wèile, can never occur at the beginning of a sentence. Another difference between yĭbiàn and wèile is that yĭbiàn can be followed by nouns or pronouns as well as verbs, but wèile (in the sense of “in order to”) must be followed by a verb. Another example with yĭbiàn:

“For materials cited one should indicate the source, so as to facilitate verification.”

5B. TÓNG...LIÁNXÌ. The pattern tóng...liánxì means “contact (someone).” The basic pattern is:

Qĭng liúxià nínde xìngmíng, dìzhĭ, diànhuà, yĭbiàn wŏmen tóng nín liánxì.

“Please leave your name, address, and phone number, so that we can contact you.”

Instead of the coverb tóng, the coverbs gēn and hé/hàn can also be used in this pattern. In English, the verb “contact” is transitive and takes a direct object (“contact him”). The Chinese verb liánxì, on the other hand, is intransitive and cannot take an object; it must be used with a coverb like tóng or gēn. This is the reason why many Chinese people, when speaking English, produce ungrammatical sentences like “I will contact with you tomorrow.” Of course, when Americans speak Chinese, they often make far worse mistakes!

AV1–7. CUISINES OF CHINA. China has many different cuisines. Except for Beijing food and Shanghai food, which are named for cities, most Chinese cuisines are named for the province or area from where they originate. Basically, northerners eat many different wheat products while southerners prefer rice. Northern food tends to be salty, food in the southeast is often sweet, and southwestern food is typically very spicy. As a result of improved transportation as well as large-scale migrations to different provinces in the last century due to wars and political movements, most Chinese cuisines are now available in most parts of China.

AV1. Bĕijīng cài “Beijing food,” which is often slightly oily and more salty than that of other regions, is noted for its lamb and duck. Garlic, scallions, leeks, chives, and vinegar are used generously. Since wheat is the basic grain in north China, Beijing cuisine includes many flour products such as noodles, dumplings, and buns. Many so-called Beijing dishes, including kăoyā “roast duck,” actually originate from Shandong.

AV2. Dōngbĕi cài “Manchurian food” makes frequent use of pine nuts. Candied apples and pears are other specialties. Formerly, bear paw was a famous Manchurian specialty.

AV3. Since Shanghai is a seaport and there are many lakes and rivers in the region, Shànghăi cài “Shanghai food” includes many kinds of seafood as well as freshwater fish and shellfish. Shanghai cuisine tends to be rather rich and oily, with much sugar and soy sauce used in cooking.

AV4. Guăngdōng cài “Cantonese food” is the style of Chinese cooking with which Americans are most familiar. Cantonese food is mildly seasoned and colorful, including many steamed or sweet-sour dishes and all kinds of sauces.

AV5. Táiwān cài “Taiwanese food” is rather mild in seasoning, using little salt, with numerous soups and noodle dishes. Since Taiwan is an island and most cities are located near the coast, Táiwān cài includes much seafood.

AV6. Chuāncài “Sichuan food” is hot and spicy, with lots of red chilis, peppers, scallions, and garlic. This type of cuisine includes many suānlà “hot and sour” dishes. Chuān is an abbreviation for Sichuan province.

AV7. Xiāngcài “Hunan food” is also hot and spicy and, in general, quite similar to Sichuan cuisine, though it may be richer and oilier and include more steamed foods. Xiāng is an abbreviation for Hunan province.

1. pánzi	dish, plate [N]
2. chăofàn	fried rice [N]
3. chăomiàn	fried noodles [N]

1. Bĕijīng cài	Beijing food [PH]
2. Dōngbĕi cài	Manchurian food [PH]
3. Shànghăi cài	Shanghai food [PH]
4. Guăngdōng cài	Cantonese food [PH]
5. Táiwān cài	Taiwanese food [PH]
6. Chuāncài	Sichuan food [N]
7. Xiāngcài	Hunan food [N]

wŏ zìjĭ	“I myself”
nĭ zìjĭ	“you yourself”
tāmen zìjĭ	“they themselves”
Wáng tàitai zìjĭ	“Mrs. Wang herself”

DUÌ	OBJECT	SHÚXI
toward	(object)	be familiar
“be familiar with”