Top Chinese New Year Eats 2022

Header photo credit: Jason Leung on Unsplash

In light of COVID-19, we encourage diners to take precautions when going out. You can also support your favourite restaurants by getting takeaway and delivery.

Just because the government’s dinner dine-in restrictions have been extended to cover the beginning of the Chinese New Year period, ending (optimistically) on Friday, 4 February, this doesn’t mean we can’t celebrate with some good food and drink.

Here are our top choices for dining – both in and out – and foodie gifting to friends and fam.

Dining in & out

Bibi & Baba

Go for Bibi & Baba’s Singaporean and Malaysian culinary classics this Lunar Year with the star dish of lo hei ($388), made in a creative, punchy style with raw salmon, pickled leek, dried winter melon, cucumber, papaya, carrot, radish, lime, pomelo, crispy crackers, sesame seeds, peanuts, pepper and cinnamon. Also known as “prosperity toss”, it’s believed that the higher you toss the contents of the lo hei, the better fortune and prospects you’ll have in the coming year, so go for the sky! You can also get this lo hei as part of B&B’s CNY sharing set for 6–10 people (from $2,508), available for delivery via JIA Everywhere, which includes Peranakan delights such as salted egg prawns, chicken rendang and dry laksa. Available until 15 February.

7 Ship Street, Wanchai, 2555 0628, book online

Chilli Fagara

If you’re in the mood for some fiery Sichuan flavours, we recommend Chilli Fagara’s limited-time CNY mains, on the menu until 15 February. There’s the double-boiled prosperous chicken soup ($128/person) containing matsutake mushrooms and cordyceps flowers, the taro bird’s nest with water bamboo and wild mushrooms in Sichuan style ($288), the whole mandarin fish in tangy chilli sauce ($388) and several more Sichuan specialities. In particular, fish is an important food item at CNY, with the word for fish – yú (鱼) – sounding like “abundance”. CNY hampers ($698/$1,388) are also available for purchase until 31 January via Chilli Fagara’s online shop.

7 Old Bailey Street, SoHo, Central, 2796 6866 or 2796 6766, book online

Conrad Hong Kong

This five-star hotel has lots going on for Chinese New Year, but we’d like to spotlight Conrad Hong Kong’s gorgeous Chinese afternoon tea ($588/2 on weekdays or $688/2 on weekends and public holidays) at Lobby Lounge, available daily from 3–5:30pm until 11 February. Executive Chef Manki Lee and Pastry Chef David Puig Zaragoza have designed a three-tier traditional red candy box filled with an assortment of symbolic sweets and savouries. These include a mini lo hei for tossing, a golden abalone puff pastry, an explosive sweet treat called Firecracker (milk chocolate and black sesame mousse) and Best of Luck, a chilled concoction of hibiscus tea blended with mandarin purée and lemon juice. A takeaway option is also available.

Lobby, Conrad Hong Kong, Pacific Place, 88 Queensway, Admiralty, 2822 8891, book online

The Legacy House

Rosewood Hong Kong’s elegant Cantonese restaurant The Legacy House is pulling out all the stops to welcome the Year of the Tiger, offering an array of à-la-carte CNY dishes and set menus. We’re especially drooling over this fu gui chicken ($1,680), a masterpiece created by Chef Li Chi Wai featuring a chicken with an rich, elaborate stuffing that includes crabmeat, conpoy and white fungus. Known commonly as “beggar’s chicken”, this version is wrapped in lotus leaves and sealed in a flour-dough crust. It can also be ordered online with two days’ advance notice, with pickup from 29 January until 10 February.

5/F, Rosewood Hong Kong, Victoria Dockside, 18 Salisbury Road, TST, 3891 8732, book online

Man Wah

At Michelin-starred Man Wah at Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong, Executive Chinese Chef Wing-Keung Wong has come up with a selection of celebratory dim sum and dishes that symbolise good fortune and prosperity, from braised spotted grouper fillet with sun-dried shrimp, salted egg, minced pork and ginkgo nuts to stir-fried prawns with supreme broth. The highlight of the CNY offerings this year is the aged tangerine-peel turnip cake created by Chef Wong and his master, Theresa Yiu, also known as Dashijie. The chef duo have incorporated 15-year-old dried tangerine peel from Xinhui District in Jiangmen, China, into their traditional turnip-cake recipe. If you’re dining at the hotel on the first day of the Lunar New Year, you’ll be treated to a lion dance and eye-dotting ceremony in the lobby.

25/F, Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong, 5 Connaught Road Central, Central, 2825 4003, book online

Radical Chic

Living up to its name, contemporary Italian restaurant Radical Chic is serving up a Chinese-inspired celebration from 25 January until 6 February, combining the flavours of Italy and China. The Chinese New Year menu ($1,880/person) showcases fusion dishes such as A5 Wagyu ravioli infused with smoky Lapsang tea, Sichuan pepper pigeon, steamboat spices sorbet and tangerine tart. A uniquely delicious departure from the CNY norm, with unbeatable views to boot.

101/F, International Commerce Centre, 1 Austin Road West, TST, 3618 7880, book online

Shake Shack

For a casual bite this Chinese New Year, it would be hard to beat Shake Shack’s Dark Meat Peking Chicken ($65), available from now through February, while supplies last. This spin on the US burger brand’s Dark Meat Hot Chicken is inspired by a Chinese classic – Peking duck – featuring a crispy dark-meat chicken thigh topped with hoisin sauce, cucumber and leek, all sandwiched in a toasted potato bun. You’ll get a set of cute burger-shaped red packets with each Dark Meat Peking Chicken purchase.

Order in advance and pick up at locations around town

Ship Kee

Laid-back, casual Ship Kee is a newcomer to the traditional Chinese dining scene, and they’re offering a selection of festive dishes in honour of Chinese New Year, available from 28 January until 15 February. The highlight is the braised deboned pork knuckle ($328; 2-day pre-order) with conpoy, fermented soybean sauce, ginger, shallot and black moss – a disappearing classic. Another time-honoured and intricate dish is the baked chicken, liver and pork rolls ($48 each; minimum of 6; 1-day pre-order) – meaty layers of lard, BBQ pork and chicken liver – while the crispy seaweed rolls ($168) are a lighter option, featuring purple Chinese yam, dried oyster, prawn and Chinese celery. Let’s support this new kid on the block!

7 Ship Street, Wanchai, 2893 9688, 6620 3364 (WhatsApp)

Gifting

The Cakery

We can always count on organic, vegan-friendly bakery The Cakery for some CNY gift ideas for our health-conscious loved ones. In addition to their range of traditional vegan puddings, cookies and cake pops, at the top of the list is this brand-new Tangerine Fortune Knock-knock Chocolate Ball ($988). Break open the chocolate shell to reveal pistachios, Chinese coin fondant cookies, lemon-ginger Chinese ingot chocolates and more – literally, good fortune at your fingertips! We think this knock-knock choccy ball would be particularly welcomed by little ones. Order online, with at least seven days’ advance reservation, and pick up at the LANDMARK or Lee Garden Two boutiques.

LANDMARK: Shop 303, 3/F, LANDMARK, 15 Queen’s Road Central, Central, 6683 3833

Lee Garden Two: Shop 124, 1/F, Lee Garden Two, 28 Yun Ping Road, Causeway Bay, 2816 1838

Cookie DPT

Love cookies? Love tea? Well, Cookie DPT’s CNY cookie box set ($350), dubbed Twen-Tea Twen-Tea Two, is tea inspired and includes six tea-flavoured cookies, ranging from a HK milk tea cookie, to a lemon tea cookie, to an oolong apricot cookie. Available for pre-order from 21–31 January and 2–3 February.

Order online

Dang Wen Li

The seasonal star of Dang Wen Li’s CNY collection this year is this adorable Joyous Spring Ladybird Gift Box ($358 early bird/$398 regular). Both an Eastern and Western symbol of good luck, the ladybird-shaped gift box contains gleaming handmade chocolate bonbons in two flavours (pistachio dark chocolate and yuzu white chocolate) and, with a nod to the 852, a locally made almond-milk rice pudding. For something not as grand but just as tasty, check out the mandarin mochi buns ($48 for 2); these are mini brioche buns filled with homemade mochi and mandarin orange jam. Early-bird offers are on until 23 January, with product collection available until 6 February at DWL’s three branches around town. Order online.

Harbour City: Shop OT G63A, G/F, Ocean Terminal, Harbour City, 3–27 Canton Road, TST, 2613 8618

H Queen’s: Shop 2, G/F, H Queen’s, 80 Queen’s Road Central, Central, 3482 7735

ifc mall: Shop 1025B, 1/F, ifc mall, 8 Finance Street, Central, 9727 4759

Fortnum & Mason

Feng shui experts (and father and daughter!) Master Chow Hon Ming and Thierry Chow have teamed up with Fortnum & Mason to curate four gift boxes representing Love, Friendship, Health and Career (from $1,298), with each item selected carefully to represent the many symbolic elements of feng shui. Master Chow says, “They harness smooth transitions in taste, colour and design, allowing qi to move freely and representing overall auspicious energy and health.” For example, the Year of the Tiger Health box, pictured above, includes Earl Grey teabags, Sicilian lemon infusions, cinnamon-dusted milk chocolate almonds, matcha tea biscuits, stem ginger biscuits and a bottle of sparkling tea, with the ingredients well known for their immunity-boosting properties.

Shop 022, G/F, K11 ATELIER, Victoria Dockside, 18 Salisbury Road, TST, 3916 8100

Green Common

For a more healthful spin on Chinese New Year puddings, head to Green Common for some (almost) guilt-free turnip cake ($138) made with zero-cholesterol OmniPork, fresh radish and red quinoa, seasoned with vegan XO sauce packed full of umami aromas from shiitake mushroom, lion’s mane mushroom, chilli and spices. Or for those with a sweet tooth, the pumpkin rice cake ($128) with red quinoa, turmeric and oat milk makes for a low-fat and cholesterol-free treat. Order online and redeem fro 20–31 January at the Alexandra House, Nexxus Building, Harbour City, Tseung Kwan O, Tsuen Wan and Kwun Tong shops.

All Green Common locations around town

KiKi Noodle Bar

When it comes to CNY puddings, it’s difficult to pass up KiKi Noodle Bar’s sweet and savoury offerings each year. Since 2018, we’ve been ordering the brand’s traditional-with-a-twist Taiwan dried longan and brown sugar pudding ($108 early bird/$118 regular) and Taiwan dried sakura shrimp pudding ($108 early bird/$118 regular) for gifting – we love the flavours, packaging and reasonable pricing. Early-bird offers are on until 24 January, with the CNY puddings available for collection from 25–31 January at KiKi’s three branches around town.

ifc mall: Shop 2017, 2/F, ifc mall, 8 Finance Street, Central, 2114 3426

K11 MUSEA: Shop 406, 4/F, K11 MUSEA, Victoria Dockside, 18 Salisbury Road, TST, 2111 3764

Telford Plaza (KiKi Tea @ Sun’s Bazaar): Shop P23, Podium, Telford Plaza, 33 Wai Yip Street, Kowloon Bay, 6117 5699

Little Bao

Chef May Chow of Little Bao fame has worked with her beloved mother, MayMa, to create two CNY puddings that put a spin on tradition. Each beetroot-turnip cake ($268) and taro cake ($268) is made to order from scratch, without the use of additives or preservatives. The beetroot-turnip cake contains locally produced Sam Hing Lung rose wine sausage, Japanese dried scallop, Japanese dried shiitake, Thai dried shrimp, organic sunflower oil, agave nectar, sea salt and yuzu peel, while the taro cake is highlighted by Okinawan purple sweet potato, complemented by Guangzhou Nai Po taro, Sam Hing Lung rose wine sausage and cured pork belly, Japanese dried shiitake, Japanese dried scallop, Thai dried shrimp, agave nectar, sea salt and five-spice seasoning. Both cakes are packaged in environmentally friendly boxes designed in collaboration with local artist Armechan and design agency Kith & Kin. Order online and pick up at Little Bao’s Causeway Bay shop or Happy Paradise in SoHo until 30 January.

Little Bao Causeway Bay: G/F, Shop H1, 9 Kingston Street, Fashion Walk, Causeway Bay, 2555 0600

Happy Paradise: UG/F, 52–56 Staunton Street, SoHo, Central, 2816 2118

The Peninsula Hong Kong

The CNY puddings crafted by The Peninsula’s Michelin-starred Spring Moon culinary team are perfect for luxury gifting. We particularly like their iconic red date pudding ($388) for its silky-smooth texture, earthy, mellow red date flavour and coconut filling. Other pudding flavours include taro ($368), water chestnut ($368) and turnip ($368). And if you’re really out to impress, the Divine Treasures Hamper ($3,688) is filled with the red date pudding alongside delicacies including dried abalone, homemade XO chilli sauce, fish maw, Hokkaido conpoy and aged Yunnan pu’er tea. Order online.

1/F, The Peninsula Hong Kong, Salisbury Road, TST, 2696 6760

Rosewood Hong Kong

There’s an advent calendar leading up to Christmas, so why not for Chinese New Year? Luxury hotel Rosewood Hong Kong has curated a delicious “A Sense of Place” CNY advent calendar ($888) packed full of sumptuous treats including XO sauce, chewy peanut candy with black sesame, ginger cookies, black date candy with walnut, fortune cookies and egg rolls. This extravagant calendar is a fun way to ring in the Year of the Tiger in style. Order online. Pickup available until 31 January, with delivery until the 30th.

Victoria Dockside, 18 Salisbury Road, TST, 3891 8888

Tea WG

We just love Tea WG’s Tiger Hill Tea tin ($368)! Made in honour of the Year of the tiger, this limited-edition tea is a blend of black and Darjeeling first-flush teas from the Himalayan mountains. Your recipient will certainly be repurposing the stunning tin after they’ve finished their last cuppa. Available at all Tea WG boutiques in Hong Kong and at the Tea WG eBoutique on HKTVmall until 19 February.

All Tea WG locations around town

Yung Kee

This Cantonese stalwart has recently reopened with a new look, but Yung Kee is sticking to tradition with its CNY pudding offerings. The giant taro cake ($248) is made with special taro from Lechang that’s known for its extra-floury texture and rich flavour, but it’s the coconut rice cake ($238) that’s set our heart aflutter. It’s simple and delicious – made with just organic cane sugar and coconut milk. Phone the enquiry hotline at 5599 2800 to order.

32–40 Wellington Street, Central, 2522 1624

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