Beware of another possible health hazard

My colleagues and I have been enjoying several new restaurants and bars that have been doing brisk business since opening a few years ago on Huixin Dongjie, across the street from the Beijing University of International Business and Trade and next door to China Daily.

We enjoy an occasional respite from canteen food and never paid much attention to the restaurants' tableware until one day last year, when we found the tables at one of our favorite establishments set with dishes wrapped in plastic.

We were told that each set - a bowl, a cup, a spoon and a plate - cost 1 yuan. A label on the wrapper claimed that the dishes had been cleaned and disinfected according to standards set by the municipal health bureau. On that day, my colleagues and I refused to pay the extra 1 yuan each to use the plastic-wrapped dishes, because we thought it was ridiculous for restaurants not to provide free tableware. However, because we often eat at that restaurant, we finally gave in and paid the extra yuan, so as not to trouble the attendants. After all, we thought, it is only 1 yuan.