Nine Course Chinese Meal

The conference gala included a fancy Chinese dinner. I had hoped for Malaysian food. (I hadn't eaten Chinese food since my trip to Beijing in 2001.) I loved the multiple courses. We had plenty of time to socialize.
In the beginning, I sat at a table of American dietetians. Then I saw the appetizers arrive. Meat, meat, and more meat:
A server dished up our portions for each course:

Soon after receiving this meaty plate, I followed another dietetian to a vegetarian table full of Indian ladies. The rest of our courses contained mock meat. I had forgotten that texturized protein could have so many different flavors and textures (not all good).

Roasted mock chicken:

Wok-fried fresh mock prawns:

Mushroom and vegetable stir fry, the best course:

Dessert was a chilled soup of gingko nuts, red dates and white fungus. Several ladies skipped this course and headed to Hard Rock Cafe instead. Thousands of miles from home, and we still go to American chains!