Chinese New Year in Singapore 2018: 8 Restaurants For Convivial Reunion Lunches and Dinners

PUBLISHED January 19th, 2018 05:39 pm

Chinese New Year is the most celebrated of occasions of the Chinese calendar, and the reunion meal with family members and friends is perhaps the most time-honoured tradition of the festival. In fact, we think we speak for most when we say that we have multiple reunion dinners in the full 15-day season! If you haven’t decided on where to go yet, it’s time to get booking. From Chinese restaurants with the comforting classics and dishes with a contemporary Chinese spin, these 8 venues have your Lunar New Year covered.

Shang Palace

Amidst the red glass ceiling and exquisite hand-painted walls of Cantonese cuisine stalwart Shang Palace, award-winning Chinese Executive Chef Mok Kit Keung has created a series of seven-course and eight-course menus for your dining pleasure – and darn if they don’t sound delicious. Look forward to modern dishes like Braised Pi Pa Imperial Bird’s Nest and Egg in Supreme Broth and the Pan-fried Sun-dried Oyster with Honey that’s served in rice cracker. Alternatively, a special eight-course reunion dinner at the hotel’s Island Ballroom on 15 February sees everything from Braised Bird’s Nest Soup with crab meat and shredded fish maw to Braised Chicken and Eight Treasures wrapped in a large lotus leaf.

Prices: from $148++ per person (seven courses) to $328++ per person (eight courses, minimum four pax to dine)

Available: 15 February to 2 March 2018

Shang Palace is located at Shangri-La Hotel, Singapore, 22 Orange Grove Rd, Singapore 258350, p. +65 6213 4398/4473, e. [email protected].

Man Fu Yuan

Known for its masterful – and inventive – Cantonese cuisine, Man Fu Yuan is ringing in Chinese New Year with five auspicious menus, curated and crafted by Executive Chef Eric Neo. Amongst the abundance of sumptuous dishes, look out for their signature Chinese Tea-smoked Duck with dang gui (Chinese Angelica root), the perennial Man Fu Yuan Abundance Treasure Pot with no less than 18 delicacies, and the new Prosperity Yu Sheng featuring salmon, Hokkaido scallops, and a unique sake goma sesame dressing. If none of them catch your fancy, Man Fu Yuan’s new a la carte dishes – like Double-Boiled Black Truffle Soup and Crispy Noodles with Lobster – exude the same festive indulgence.

Prices: from $128++ per person (five courses, minimum two pax to dine), and from $1188++ for a table of 10 people (eight courses)

Available: 18 January to 2 March 2018

Man Fu Yuan is located at Level 2, InterContinental Singapore, 80 Middle Road, Singapore 188966, p. +65 6825 1131.

Wan Hao Chinese Restaurant

Wan Hao Chinese Restaurant has always been the epitome of modern Cantonese cuisine, and you can bet that it gets better this festive season. Award-winning Executive Chinese Chef Brian Wong has launched four bespoke menus that see dishes like Wok-fried Lobster Meat with Fresh Milk and dollops of caviar, Double-boiled 10-head Abalone in Chinese Ham Chicken Soup, and the obligatory Prosperity Yu Sheng filled with lobster, scallop, salmon, tuna caviar, and crispy fish skin. On the a la carte front, creations such as the Imperial Pot of Prosperity Pen Cai (from $688++) with crispy oysters, braised Irish goose, and pig trotter; Braised Iberico Pork ($38++) with Chinese sausage and yam in a claypot; and Deep-fried Lobster Meat ($38++) with yuzu mayo will have your family salivating in no time.

Plus, let’s not forget the takeaway treats including signature Ginseng Roast Duck ($96 nett) or Nian Gao Tart with Cempedak ($32 nett), and more.

Prices: from $108.80++ for four to eight pax (nine courses) to $2088++ for a table of ten pax (nine courses)

Available: 16 January to 2 March 2018

Wan Hao Chinese Restaurant is located at Level 3, Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel, 320 Orchard Road, Singapore 238865, p. +65 6831 4605, e. [email protected].

Full of Luck Club

The funkier younger sibling of the award-winning Li Bai Cantonese Restaurant, Full of Luck Club in Holland Village is the spot for a more casual and comfortable Lunar New Year meal this year. The modern Chinese concept caters to groups of all sizes with reunion dinner set menus for two, four, six, eight, and ten people. Highlights include a Delightful Platter of honey glazed charsiew and kurobuta pork, the Wok Fried Auspicious Prawns, and the prosperous sounding Braised Mushrooms and Fa Cai in Abalone Sauce. Instead of regular Chinese tea, go for the refreshing Ong Lai Float ($5.50) of fermented pineapple soda and Yakult foam or head upstairs to Lucky Bar after your meal for special Chinese New Year cocktails!

Planning a get-together at home? You won’t go wrong with one of their Takeaway Bundles of Joy, which sees dishes like the Decadent Abalone Fortune Pot ($368 +). See the menu here.

Prices: $118++ for two pax (seven courses) to $628++ for 10 pax (10 courses)

Available: 1 February to 2 March 2018

Full of Luck Club is located at 243 Holland Ave, Singapore 278977, p. +65 6208 6845, e. [email protected].

Szechuan Court

For an indulgent prelude to the Year of the Dog, Szechuan Court’s Master Chef Mok Wan Lok has six menus for diners to choose from, depending on party size. Start the meal with a prosperity toss featuring plump snow crab and coconut pulp, followed by a soul-warming soup of Double Boiled Korean Ginseng, Fish Maw, and Sea Cucumber. Other dishes featured on the set menus that are available a la carte – if you’re keen on the premium ingredients of the festive season – include the Sautéed Australian Scallops and Maine Lobster in X.O Chili Sauce ($68) and the duo of Traditional Nian Gao, Golden Corn ($14.80) to end the meal on an extra sweet note.

Prices: from $498++ for four pax (eight courses) to $1380++ for a table of ten pax (nine courses)

Available: 1 February to 2 March 2018

Szechuan Court is located at Level 3, Fairmont Singapore, 80 Bras Basah Rd, Singapore 189560, p. +65 6431 6156, e. [email protected]. 

Summer Pavilion

One Michelin Star Summer Pavilion will be offering a series of set menus this Lunar New Year, courtesy of Executive Chef Cheung Siu Kong. Whether you choose to dine in the main hall or one of their six private dining rooms, look forward to dishes like an indulgent Abalone, Black Caviar Yu Sheng (available a la carte from $138), a nourishing Double-Boiled Japanese Geoduck Clam Superior Soup with bamboo pith, bean sprouts, and broccoli, a classic Steamed Soon Hock with soya sauce, and Braised E-Fu Noodle with mini lobster.

Prices: from $88 per person (five courses) for lunch and from $158++ per person (six courses) for dinner

Available: 29 January to 2 March 2018

Summer Pavilion is located at The Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore, 7 Raffles Ave, Singapore 039799, p. +65 6434 5286.

Cookyn Inc

It’s always said that food tastes better when you cook it yourself, which is why you should consider Cookyn Inc’s ‘Huat’s Cookyn 2018’ programme for your next festive gathering. This three-hour hands-on experience brings your party through the process of creating a complete Chinese banquet with favourites like Abalone Yusheng, Crispy Yam Ring With Scallops, and also more creative dishes like Bak Kwa Quiche and Hae Bi Hiam Roasted Chicken. When that’s done with, you get to sit down to enjoy the meal together, maintaining all the traditions of Chinese New Year. A fantastic new way to celebrate, if you ask us!

Prices: $88 to $128 per pax, minimum 8 pax

Cookyn Inc is located at 31 Ah Hood Rd #01-04, HometeamNS-JOM Clubhouse, Singapore 329979, p. +65 6748 4848, e. [email protected]. Quote “CityNomadsCookyn” when making your reservation to enjoy a free bottle of wine.

Folklore

When it comes to the Peranakan people, Chinese New Year is celebrated a tad differently. Rather than round tables, a tok panjang, or long table is more common due to the sheer number of dishes served. At Folklore, indulge in more than 15 heritage dishes prepared true to recipes by Chef Damian’s grandmother, including the hearty Fish Maw Soup brewed with pig stomach, intestines, fish maw stuffed with minced meat, fish, and prawn balls; all-time classic Babi Pongteh – slow-cooked braised pork with bamboo shoot and dried mushrooms; and Sambal Buah Keluak, an earthy dish of keluak meat cooked till perfection with sambal and minced pork. Remember, it’s a buffet, so don’t hesitate to pile up the plates.

Prices: $68++ per adult and $28++ per child for dinner, $18.80++ for lunch

Available: 15 February to 2 March 2018

Folklore is located at L2 Destination Singapore Beach Road, 700 Beach Rd, Singapore 199598, p. +65 6679 2900, e. [email protected].

Top Image: Szechuan Court & Kitchen