At a restaurant in Guangdong, China, two men casually pull out cigarettes and start smoking while eating.

When they continue to smoke without any regard for those around them, a woman dining at the next table strongly protests.

However, the men respond by asking what the problem is and continue smoking. As the argument escalates, the woman, enraged, spits the food she was chewing at the men.

The altercation ends when the men who were smoking leave the restaurant.

Smoking is prohibited by law in public places, including restaurants, across China.

While penalty regulations vary by province and city, in Beijing, individuals caught smoking in restaurants or public places can be fined 50 yuan, approximately 13,000 won. Business owners who fail to prevent smoking or encourage it can face fines of around 6,000 yuan.

However, these non-smoking rules are rarely enforced.

It is easy to see people smoking not only in restaurants that sell alcohol but also in regular eateries, as well as at bus stops, in front of subway stations, and even in front of schools.

This is influenced by a culture that is lenient toward smoking. In China, there is still a perception that cigarettes are a recreational product, and there even remains a culture of offering cigarettes to build rapport.

Because of this, if a restaurant owner, employee, or another customer tries to stop someone from smoking, the common reaction is to treat them as if they are making a fuss.

Enforcement is also lax. Surprise inspections at the local government level are almost non-existent, and even when authorities are dispatched following a report, their stance is that they cannot punish the offender if the person has already left the scene.

"What's the problem?" Chinese woman spits chewed food after confronting smokers in restaurant (July 6, 2026)

Reported by Han Sang-woo | Written by Kim Da-yeon | Video by Kim Byeong-jik | Produced by SBS Digital News