Dorothy So rounds up the best meals and deals for Chinese New Year.

With the first day of the Chinese New Year overlapping with Valentine’s Day this year, there’s double the reason to celebrate and—more importantly—double the reason to stuff your face. Whether you’re looking for a spot to ogle the CNY fireworks, or for a place to hold a giant family reunion dinner, ready your appetites and bring on the food... it’s time to ring in the Year of the Tiger.

Yan Toh Heen
Celebrate the Year of the Tiger with award-winning Cantonese food and an equally impressive fireworks-perfect harbor view at Yan Toh Heen at the InterContinental. On February 15, chef Lau Yiu-fai presents an eight-course fireworks menu ($1,588), which will feature dish after dish of pure indulgence, including braised whole abalone with sun-dried oyster, and wok-fried lobster with Iberico ham. But don’t worry if you can’t make it for the one-night-only fireworks menu—there are still some other fantastic menu choices for the festive season. Start with barbecued suckling pig paired with sea bass and honey glazed pumpkin and end with sweetened bird’s nest and traditional sesame dumplings in the five-course “Fat Choy” menu ($988), which runs from February 11-28 (excluding Fireworks Menu night on February 15).
G/F, InterContinental Hong Kong, 18 Salisbury Rd., Tsim Sha Tsui, 2313-2323

Man Wah
The ever-classy Mandarin Oriental has some of the best seats for the Chinese New Year fireworks show and—of course—also some of the best celebration menus. The obvious choice for your Year of the Tiger feast has got to be Man Wah Chinese restaurant. Go à la carte (minimum spending of $1,288 per person) for dinner with New Year specialties, such as barbecued suckling pig layered with thousand year egg and pancake, or the warm and fluffy fried glutinous rice with preserved meat. But for a truly unforgettable CNY eat-fest, go straight for the celebratory set dinner menu, which offers up eight courses of Canto-cuisine favorites.
25/F, Mandarin Oriental, 5 Connaught Rd. Central, Central, 2825-4003

One Harbour Road
Drop by the Grand Hyatt’s One Harbour Road Chinese restaurant to sample chef Li Shu-tim’s new à la carte menu designed especially for the Chinese New Year. The new menu is available from February 9 to 28, and features several season-perfect Chinese dishes, such as an innovative baked abalone with sea cucumber in puff pastry, fork-tender slow-cooked pork knuckle with veggies, and the popular auspicious CNY classic of deep-fried turnip cake with assorted preserved meats. The new menu, paired with the hotel’s harborside location, makes One Harbour Road a great dinner option for the February 15 fireworks show (minimum spending of $700). And if you don’t want to choose between all the fantastic à la carte offerings, go for chef Li’s super-special Chinese New Year set menu, priced at—you guessed it—$888 per person.
7-8/F, Grand Hyatt Hong Kong, 1 Harbour Rd., Wan Chai, 2584-7722

Cuisine Cuisine
The food at this Miramar Group Chinese restaurant has always been exciting and the team have stepped it up even more with two nine-course deluxe menus to celebrate the Year of the Tiger. The Spring Dinner ($8,888 for 10-12 persons) kicks off with the absolutely stunning dish of shredded abalone, duck and melon juliennes topped with crystalline flecks of bird’s nest. The other, equally mouth-watering option is the Fortune Dinner ($9,888 for 10-12 persons), which offers well-known Canto menu items served with a creative, contemporary edge, such as the sautéed prawns, which are flavored with lemongrass and roses, or chicken prepared with tea leaves and served on lotus leaves. Both menus are available until the end of February. And if you plan to take advantage of Cuisine Cuisine’s awesome harbor view by booking a table for the fireworks display on February 15, you’ll be spoiled with yet another menu option. The Fireworks Set Dinner ($838 per person, minimum two person order) promises seven courses of delicious Cantonese gourmet dishes. An easy choice if you want to celebrate Chinese New Year on a food high.
Shop 3101, 3/F, IFC Mall, 8 Finance St., Central, 2393-3933

Santa Lucia
Take advantage of the panoramic harbor view at Santa Lucia Restaurant & Lounge. Chef Ken Kam and Mike Boyle have prepared a creative Chinese New Year Specialties menu for fireworks night, priced at $1,005 per person. The five-course feast kicks off with an Asian-style mille-feuille of Alaskan king crabmeat, papaya, mango and avocado. Entrée choices include the not-to-be-missed “Fresh Grouper Duo” of house-made dumplings with steamed grouper in saffron cream and soy sauce.
38/F, Hotel Panorama, 8A Hart Ave., Tsim Sha Tsui, 3550-0262
 

Loong Toh Yuen
It’s east-meets-west, old-meets-new at super stylish Hullett House’s Loong Toh Yuen Cantonese restaurant. Restaurant exec chef Sam Sham will be serving up a special dinner menu to celebrate this year’s Lunar New Year and Valentine’s Day overlap. Available on February 13 and 14, the New Year menu fuses together classic Chinese dishes with modern flavors in six fantastic courses, priced at a very-reasonable $999 per couple, inclusive of two glasses of champagne cocktails. Dishes such as the crispy deep-fried shrimp rolled with buttery avocado, and steamed lobster with egg whites and hua tiao (Chinese rice wine) should more than satisfy. But the main attraction is really the beautiful Hullett House space. After all, what other restaurant in Hong Kong boasts such a gorgeous colonial-style garden?
3/F, 1881 Heritage, 2A Canton Rd., Tsim Sha Tsui, 3988-0107

Shang Palace
Do the big friends-and-family New Year’s dinner at two Michelin star Shang Palace at Kowloon Shangri-La. Executive chef Ip Chi-cheung presents a fantastic feast in his 10-course Reunion set menu (priced at $6,888 for 12), which features Cantonese banquet classics, such as crispy-skinned roasted whole suckling pig and the ubiquitous braised dried oyster and whole conpoy with sea moss. Also available is an indulgent Spring set dinner menu, which is priced at a very auspicious $8,888 for every table of 12. Think king prawns, braised abalone, sea cucumber and other sorts of absolute extravagance. Both the Reunion and Spring set menus are available from now all the way until the end of next month.
LG/F, Kowloon Shangri-La, 64 Mody Rd., Tsim Sha Tsui, 2733-8754

Man Ho
Want to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city center for your Lunar New Year celebration? Man Ho Chinese restaurant at SkyCity Marriott is serving up New Year specialties tailor-made for giant family reunion or spring dinners. Chef Ricky Wu brings a great lineup of comforting Chinese dishes to the table, such as sautéed prawns and scallops in a crispy “nest,” and winter melon soup with seafood. The CNY specialties are available from February 5 to 28 and are offered in an à la carte menu as well as set dinner and lunch menus.
M/F, Hong Kong SkyCity Marriott Hotel, 1 Sky City Rd. East, Chek Lap Kok, 3969-1888