Tour Guides - Dining on the Tour

Chinese have a saying “people regard food as heavenly high”, something similar to “Bread is the stuff of life.” Dining on the tour can be an art. It requires the guide’s consideration on a healthy and cheerful experience of the local foods.



Clean and healthy is the basic and primary criteria. The tour guides shall take responsibility on the sanitary conditions of the restaurants. Moreover, check out special requirements before hand, e.g. if any vegetarian, kosher, etc.



Then, taste and specialty of foods matter. Tour guide is not simply leading the clients to a restaurant and call for the meal. The guide shall explain and help to enjoy local dishes. It’s sometimes challenging for foreigners to figure out by themselves how to eat. For instances, you don’t expect fresh hands to eat a crab smoothly, or non-westerners to use forks and knives skillfully. It’s important, as a tour guide, to introduce and instruct.



A professional tour guide also needs to pay attention to small details besides food and restaurant. Check the number of dishes – make sure there’s no missing or short of amount. Take a note of time – mind the following tour if any. For the tour guide himself, eat after all clients are settled and finish before they do, as the guide needs to coordinate throughout meals. Point out the restrooms. Make sure of payment of the meal. Remind travelers of their belongings. When it’s tour of a big group, check nobody has been left behind at departure. Tour guiding belongs to the service industry, and in most cases, attention to details matters.