Hong Konger (technically Chinese) here. We usually consider it a dish of its own. I myself used to order a fried rice, without any other dishes, as lunch all the time.
But keep in mind Chinese cuisines are traditionally shared by many people. There is little to no concept of entree vs side dish. It’s common to order many dishes, including fried rice, put on a big table and everyone get everything a little bit.
That sounds like a great time. Now I’m hungry. 😆
Having gone out with my Asian in-laws I had to get used to the idea of nobody getting their own dish. Dishes are bought for the entire table and shared. Many Chinese restaurants will even have a lazy susan (a spinning disk in the middle of the table) that makes it easy to move dishes around and keep them accessible.
Do they eat each item like courses, or mixed?
Envision it like “family style” at an Italian restaurant, or how you eat at home. “Pass the potatoes,” etc.
You just pile up what you want on the plate
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