Sydney Eat Street: Lunar New Year 2022 brings on a feast of flavours
Food is a massive part of the Lunar New Year celebrations and Sydneysiders get to enjoy a variety of delicacies to bring in the Year of the Tiger.
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The Lunar New Year starts on February 1 and concludes with the Lantern Festival on February 15 so get out and about to enjoy a feast of flavours.
Take a tour of Sydney’s best eateries right here with The Sunday Telegraph’s Eat Street. Are you hungry for more inspiration? Follow us on Instagram or Twitter. #SydneyEatStreet
BLACK STAR PASTRY
It takes one cool cat to continually create sweet treats on par with Black Star Pastry’s Insta-famous Strawberry Watermelon cake but with his latest Lunar New Year selection of ruby red and creamy white macarons, handpainted with gold gilding, head chef Arnaud Vodounou has proven once again, that he’s the person for the job.
Each year, Black Star Pastry releases a pair of limited-edition macarons delicately adorned with designs themed to the year’s zodiac animal.
“Being Year of the Tiger, we’ve created an intricate tiger-striped macaron to sit alongside a red plaque message of good fortune,” Vodounou says.
“The macaron shells are almond flavoured and filled with vanilla buttercream, cumquat, and yuzu compote. The cumquat plant is native to China, its literal meaning is ‘golden orange’, while yuzu is also believed to have originated from China’s Yangtze River over 1000 years ago.
“These native Chinese ingredients combine beautifully, with the yuzu’s sweet notes and punch of acidity combating the citrus flavours of the cumquat and the sweetness of the macaron.”
These masterful creations come in packs of three ($15) and are available through to February 6, but even though the plan is to make 5000 of these beauties, they’re bound to go fast, so no pussyfooting to get your share.
NEW SHANGHAI
Eight is the luckiest number in Chinese culture. So, it’s no coincidence New Shanghai is putting on an eight-course banquet created especially for the Lunar New Year.
Each dish has a distinct meaning or blessing for the coming year.
On the menu is ‘Welcome New Year Duck’ pancakes, ‘Prawn of Happiness’ Siracha Crispy Prawns, ‘Lettuce Cups of Prosperity’ San Choy Bao, ‘Fish of Fortune’ Sweet & Sour Whole Barramundi, ‘Good Luck Tofu & Mushrooms’ braised with spinach, Wok Fried ‘Longevity Noodles’, and ‘Boundless New Year’ of Lucky Koi Mango Pudding.
As New Shanghai’s is renowned for its Xiao Long Bao (soup dumplings), it goes without saying that a highlight of the meal is the ‘Wealth Pork Dumplings’, so named as their twisted knot on top resembles a money purse.
For added luck, beetroot juice gives the dough a vibrant red colour, symbolising happiness, success, and good fortune.
They’ll also be giving away lucky scratchies and hosting lion dances (see website for schedule).
The banquet is $49.90pp. It’s available online and dine-in at Westfield Sydney through to February 13 and at Chatswood Chase through 8 February (dine-in only).
THE DOLAR SHOP
Sometimes sharing is overrated. The Dolar Shop’s individual hot pot is one of those times, especially when your table is loaded up with a bounty of top tier meats and seafood just waiting to be dropped in boiling broth.
There’s a selection of premium meats for the discriminating carnivore, such as A5 Miyazaki beef, thick-cut Wagyu short rib, and Karobuta pork belly.
Fans of the open waters will appreciate the seafood platter full of Sydney rock oysters, Moreton Bay bugs, live greenlip baby abalone, Australian scallops, and blue swimmer crabs.
The live seafood offering is particularly lavish (though not for the squeamish), such as Australian king crab, coral trout, and blacklip abalone. (Abalone is a revered species in Chinese culture, representing good fortune).
The restaurant itself is rather chic with bespoke artwork and leather benches and chairs. In front of each seat is your personal heating element with a bowl of soup ensconced in a large ceramic casing instead of the typical outlet with one communal pot.
This way, everyone can have their own flavours (plus Covid safety before its time).
You have a choice of six broths, including truffle-infused mushroom, tomato and oxtail, and Szechuan hot and spicy. In addition to meats, seafood, and live seafood, there are other Asian favourites such as beef tripe, seaweed knots, duck blood).
Vegetables include veggie and mushroom baskets and greens brought out in planters. Lastly, the starch … almost an afterthought, but they are famous for their handcrafted noodles, a must for Lunar New Year.
Just be sure to slurp and not chew for a long life.
While the plethora of different ingredients laid out may seem grandiose, that’s actually part of the occasion as the large variety of food on the table symbolises current success being carried over into the new year.
— Market City, Level 3, 9/13 Hay St, Haymarket; dolarshop.com
SOKYO
The Opulent Sashimi Platter puts ‘OMG’ on the menu. It’s no surprise given its price tag of nearly $700, but fans of this sleek and stylish modern Japanese restaurant have come to expect nothing less from renowned executive chef Chase Kojima.
On the platter, he has curated a selection of Tasmanian live lobster, caviar, toro, Japanese tuna belly, ocean trout, scampi, scallop, kingfish, snapper, caviar, and assorted sashimi.
For more good fortune, he also recommends adding the fried half snapper with Nanban Sauce for just under $99.
“Our fried half Snapper in Nanban Sauce has been designed for family and friends to gather around and share together during Lunar New Year, symbolising great fortune for the year ahead,” Kojima says.
“With a crispy layer coating the outer of the fish, we suggest pouring a generous helping of the sauce over the fish for a deliciously luxurious burst of flavours and textures when eating together.”
If your stomach’s growling for something other than raw fish, The Star’s two other signature restaurants will offer their own Lunar New Year menus.
BLACK Bar & Grill has a 1.5kg Wagyu Tomahawk MBS7 with Bone Marrow and Saw Tooth Coriander Gremolata ($498.90) alongside Black Lip Abalone with Canopy Butter ($88.80), while Flying Fish continues to showcase the best local seafood, including 1kg BBQ Whole Eastern Rock Lobster, Wakame Butter, Lime ($338.80) and Miso Baked Aquna Murray cod, Pickled Ginger & Turmeric ($68.80).
The limited-edition Lunar New Year menu items are available for lunch and dinner through to February 15.
LUCKY FOODS
For cultures that celebrate Lunar New Year, the festivities actually start the night before, as that’s when family members gather from near and far for what is appropriately enough called “Reunion Dinner”. It’s equal parts celebration and tradition.
Centuries ago, migrant workers would head home for a break; fast forward to the 21st century, and it’s still the same with people moving away from home for work, studies, or adventure. But this year, the family reunion holds special significance as for many, it’s the first time they’ve seen one another in two years.
At the table and throughout the festive period, much emphasis is put on lucky foods, so determined by what the name for the food sounds like when said aloud, what it resembles, how it’s prepared and even how it’s presented. Here’re just a few.
Fish: Sounds like “leftover”, meaning you’re going into the new year with a surplus; the head is always placed towards the eldest person at the table who commences the feast. It’s essential to leave the dish unfinished to represent abundance in the new year. Ideally, it should be the top and tail of the fish, as removing them would cut life short.
Dumplings: Half-moon shapes can look like ingots, soup dumplings look like money pouches, the fillings have meanings all their own as well.
Tangerines: Sounds like “good fortune”, plus they also look like piles of gold, and being round, they can represent “fullness”. They’re also a popular gift during Lunar New Year festivities.
Longevity noodles: “Long noodle, long life;” don’t bite or cut, but can slurp.
Leafy Greens: Long leafy greens represent a long healthy life, traditionally eaten in the morning to represent a fresh start.
Prosperity Toss / Yee Sang: More as an entree, Yee Sang is traditionally served on the seventh day of the new year, but time constraints, travels, scheduling, school, etc.; so any time during the festive season is fine.
The food is placed in the centre of the family table with a round platter filled with neatly divided sections of shredded vegetables, portions of salmon sashimi, and sides of salad dressing.
It’s beautifully portioned until Nana gives the go-ahead, at which point everyone dives in with their chopsticks, “tosses” the salad into the air, all while calling out New Year’s wishes, be it health, wealth, happiness … or a PlayStation.
Ho Jiak
Family is everything to chef/co-owner Junda Khoo and cooking for them has always been a way of showing love, something he learned from his beloved grandmother, Amah.
So, it goes without saying that during Lunar New Year celebrations, he pulls out all the stops creating meals that are both delicious and auspicious, including the traditional Yee Sang (Prosperity Toss), which this year has the option to add a whole lobster, which, after the past two years, you and your family deserve it.
— Haymarket, Town Hall, and Amah in Chatswood; hojiak.com.au
Nanyang Tea Club and Nanyang Malaya Cafe
This year’s celebrations mix things up a bit with two auspicious feasts featuring Malaysian/Singaporean-inspired dishes.
Both menus start with the ever-popular Yee Sang (Prosperity Toss). Nanyang has switched that out for a decadent whole Australian lobster traditionally served with raw salmon.
The Golden Tiger Lunar New Year banquet includes such dishes as Singapore chilli mud crab, the Fiery Tiger Lunar New, the requisite whole fish, Hainanese chicken, sambal calamari, beef rendang, and more, while the Fiery Tiger Lunar New Year banquet favours the spicy side.
Both meals come with Nanyang Tea and a bottle of wine and are available for dine-in or delivery. Available through to February 20. ($388, serves four to six; $788, serves eight to ten people and includes Kam Heong pipis and an additional bottle of wine.)
— Nanyang Tea Club, Market City, 3/9-13 Hay St, Haymarket; Nanyang Malaya Cafe, Marrickville Metro, Unit #G001/20 Smidmore St, Marrickville; nanyanghome.com.au
Dr Dough Donuts
A delivery of donuts is pretty special any day of the year, but you’ll feel extra lucky with The Prosperous Donut Collection — a limited-release of 10 giant pillowy-soft donuts artfully decorated with red and gold glitter, gilding, and icing.
There are even a few topped with a crunchy fortune cookie ($54.95). For added prosperity, there’s also the option to include a tipple with your order, such as a bottle of Moët & Chandon or Negroni cocktails (starting from $154.85). Sydney Metro delivery is a mere $5.
— 1/233 Harris St, Pyrmont; drdoughdonuts.com.au
Spice Temple
Sydney is blessed with an array of restaurants that offer a modern take on traditional Chinese dishes, but at Spice Temple, the featured flavours stray from the mainstream towards lesser-known regions, many of which are featured in their auspicious Lunar New Year feasts.
Each dish on the menu also has symbolic significance, such as the purse-shaped pipis for fortune, fish for life and abundance, eggs that signify fertility, and red ingredients that represent prosperity.
The regional Chinese banquet menus cost $139pp, including a Tiger cocktail on arrival. An optional wine pairing is available for $85pp. Available, Tuesday, February 1 to Sunday, February 13 for lunch and dinner sittings.
— 10 Bligh St, Sydney; spicetemple.com.au
Din Tai Fung
The innovative team at Din Tai Fung have done it again, celebrating this year’s zodiac animal with molten chocolate and Lotus Biscoff filled tiger-shaped bun; they’re the perfect complement to the gold ingot-shaped pastry filled with scallops and pork, the Gold Fortune Dumplings. (Available at all store locations and for frozen delivery.).
They’ve also created a 15-ingredient Din Tai Fung Prosperity Toss Salad, which includes
Smoked Salmon, Lettuce, Purple Cabbage, White Radish, Carrot, Wakame Seaweed,
Red Pickled Ginger, Pickled Ginger, Mandarin Orange, Toasted Sesame Seeds, Chopped Peanuts, Oil, Lemon Juice, Fried Crackers, special plum Sauce. (Select locations and for frozen delivery).
If you’re after the full meal but can’t make it opt for the frozen New Year Hamper, which includes all the favourites as well as the Year of Tiger specials. ($108, serves three to four, available for contactless delivery).
Sydney Fish Market
One of the most essential foods to eat during the Lunar New Year celebration is fish, in that it sounds similar to the word for surplus.
With a vast array of premium fish and seafood brought in daily, it’s no wonder that Sydney Fish Market is the go-to destination for the freshest catch. Several retailers will also have some of their popular dishes to try on site or provide a list of ingredients for you to prepare at home.
Many will also have cooked to order whole fish, arguably the most essential part of Lunar New year Meals, and other lucky dishes, including abalone, chilli crab, and seafood noodles.
Shoppers will also be treated to a traditional lion dance on the first day of the Lunar New year, Tuesday, February 1.
— Sydney Fish Market, Pyrmont; sydneyfishmarket.com.au
Kitchens on Kent
Classic and contemporary Chinese flavours fill the buffet menu at the elegant Miller’s Point hotel, the Langham.
With dishes such as Byron Bay Berkshire BBQ pork with glazed greens, Salt and pepper squid and prawns with chilli and spring onion, Kinkawooka Mussels, and clams with XO sauce, as well as sustainably sourced Cone Bay Barramundi with ginger and shallot sauce, executive chef, Stephen Lech has curated a menu that is sure to satisfy both young and old, making it an ideal feast for the whole family.
But, of course, no meal at The Langham is complete without their popular patisserie section, featuring classic egg tarts, Lunar New Year cake and red bean buns, along with our Kitchens on Kent dessert favourites including a chocolate fountain, ice creamery, and cookies jars with traditional fortune cookies. (Dinner: $148 per adult, $79 per child, January 31-February 6; lunch: $130 per adult, $79 per child, February 1, 4, 5, and 6).
— The Langham Sydney, 89-111 Kent St, Millers Point; langhamhotels.com
Chef’s Gallery
It’s the culinary equivalent of a pot of gold – the Imperial Treasure Pot ($328) at award-winning modern Cantonese restaurant, Chef’s Gallery.
True to its name, this luxurious Lunar New Year offering is filled with coveted ingredients, including abalone, fish maw, arctic surf clams, quail eggs and all the lucky vegetables you’ll need for a healthy and prosperous new year.
There’s also the Celebratory Banquet Sets ($268, six courses, serves four to six people; $328, eight courses, serves eight to ten) – Available through to February 14, for dine-in, pick-up and delivery.
— 501 George St, Sydney; chefsgallery.com.au
Bodhi Restaurant and Bar
The forerunner of Sydney’s vegan scene, Bodhi Restaurant Bar, is at its finest form during Lunar New Year celebrations, with an auspicious menu with dishes to delight the palette and bring luck in the new year. Available for lunch and dinner through February 13. Book in for dinner on February 1 as the traditional lion dance will be performing from 6pm for added entertainment.
— 2-4 College St, Sydney; bodhirestaurant.com.au
Lucky Kwong
Welcome the new year at Sydney’s newest dining precinct, South Eveleigh, where you can enjoy specially curated dishes from Kylie Kwong’s Australian-Cantonese eatery Lucky Kwong.
Including ‘Lucky’s Lunar New Year long-life noodles with prawns, sticky pork and native bush mint, available for takeaway throughout the festival season.
Other eateries such as Eat Fuh and Pepperseeds will also have an array of traditional Lunar New Year dishes. (January 31-February 4; February 7-11).
Don’t miss the spectacular Lion Dance on February 1 at 1pm in Innovation Plaza, plus the traditional Plucking of the Greens on February 9 at 1pm along Locomotive St.
— 2 Locomotive St, Eveleigh; luckykwong.com.au
Originally published as Sydney Eat Street: Lunar New Year 2022 brings on a feast of flavours
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