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• Achieving sustainable development goals requires reducing food waste. • Preference for food variety reduces food waste while larger portion size increases food waste. • Increases in consumers' income lead to more plate waste. • Chinese Face-culture significantly results in more consumer plate waste. • Regulations and social norms can be used to foster civilized food consumption habits. China is observing a rapid increase of food-away-from-home (FAFH) plate waste along with economic growth. Food waste reduces food use efficiency, exerts pressure on environment and resources, and threatens national food security. This study analyzes the impact of consumers' preference for variety and restaurants' dish portions on FAFH plate waste using a survey data from 170 restaurants in Beijing and Lhasa. The primary findings are that higher food variety leads to less plate waste and bigger portion size results in more plate waste. We also observe that increases in consumers' income lead to more plate waste. Moreover, the Chinese Face-culture plays a significant role on consumers' plate waste. Serving dishes with suitable portions in restaurants should be incentivized to help reduce both the amount and rate of plate waste. Our results can suggest relevant policy tools to nudge people in forming sustainable consumption behavior and provide valuable implications for reducing food waste and improving food security in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]