A bite of diplomacy

Former US President Richard Nixon's special envoy and then US secretary of state Henry Kissinger first visited Beijing in 1971, with mission of arranging Nixon's visit to China. 

With only 48 hours' stay in Beijing, Kissinger was arranged two formal meetings with 13 hours in total. So Zhou suggested having meal first. 

The two reached an agreement after the meal, and arranged the details of Nixon’s visit. Both sides announced the news of Nixons visit to China on July 15,1971.

The main course of the meal for Kissinger is Peking roast duck. During the meal, Zhou talked about how to eat the course in various ways, and selected a nice piece of the dish for Kissinger personally. After lunch, Kissinger visited the operation room of Beijing roast duck accompanied by Zhou.

French food diplomacy

Chinese President Xi Jinping visited France in March, 2014 and received state banquet hosted by French President Francois Hollande in the Elysée Palace. 

Guillaume Gomez, the new executive chef of the Elysée Palace tried to inquire about Xi's taste from his Chinese counterpart before Xi's visit. 

As a return, Xi signed 50 business contracts during his visit in Paris, which worths 18 billion euros in total. 

Menu of the banquet for President Xi

Appetizer: truffle goose liver with the 1997 Luc-Saluces sweet wine 

Main course: Landes roast poultry with Viennese mushroom, country-style soft potatoes, 1997 Lafite red wine and the 2005 Amoue de Deutz champagne

Dessert: Cheese, chocolate and caramel ice cream 

Hamburger diplomacy 

Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev was once reported eating hamburger with US President Barack Obama in a small restaurant after meeting in the White House. Media comments said that "Hamburger diplomacy" shows a recovered relation between the US and Russia.

US state banquet expense 

 Former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh

$ 572,187

Former Mexican president Felipe Calderon Hinojosa

$ 563,479

 German prime minister
Angela Merkel

$ 215,883

 Former South Korean president Lee Myung-bak

$ 203,053

Kimchi diplomacy

When photos show then South Korea's first lady Kim Yoon-ok feeding her Japanese counterpart Miyuki Hatoyama with kimchi, it was acknowledged that the Japan-South Korea relations which was in the doldrums due to historical and territorial disputes resumed normal. 

The first time kimchi came to world was when western national athletes tried and attracted by the food at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. 

Sushi diplomacy

US President Barack Obama visited Japan in April, 2014. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe set an informal banquet for him at a decent sushi restaurant in Ginza.

Obama and Abe sit at the table, neither of them wearing ties. Abe filled Obama's glass. Both seem to be joyful judging from the expression on their faces. Obama claimed that it is the best sushi he ever had.

The seemingly relaxing dining is actually a trading negotiation. Both came straight to the point and stuck on TPP(Trans -Pacific Partnership Agreement) trading. The dining ends up with no breakthrough. 

Sukiyabashi Jiro, the sushi restaurant Obama and Abe dined in is one of the two Michelin three-star restaurants in Japan. There are only ten seats and no toilets inside, yet reservations need to be made one month ahead of time. One meal in store costs at least 30,000 yen (about $300) and time limit is 15-30 minutes.

The restaurant becomes famous in the US due to the documentary Jiro: Dreams of Sushi. Jiro Ono, who is 89 years old, seldom serves in person now. Yet he made sushi by his own hand and broke the time limit for Obama.