The upcoming 2019 Lunar New Year welcomes the Year of the Pig, which symbolises wealth and good fortune. With celebrations beginning on the 5th of February and lasting all the way until the lantern festival on the 19th, there’s more than enough time to dance with the dragons and toast to your loved ones.
When it comes to Chinese New Year traditions, the focus is on family and feasting. The grand Reunion dinner on New Year’s Eve is a time to gather together at the table and send wishes for a prosperous and happy year to come. To ensure you have a proper luxury feast fit for the emperors, we’ve picked the best restaurants in London for you to ring in the Year of the Pig in style.
China Tang
When it comes to pure opulence, China Tang, the art deco Shanghai-inspired restaurant at The Dorchester, does not disappoint. To welcome the new lunar year, the Mayfair gem will play host to two weeks’ worth of special menus along with a one-off “Whistling Pig” cocktail.
On the 4th and 5th of February, a 10-course tasting menu featuring dishes such as deep-fried lobster claw, siu mai dumplings with preserved oyster and sea moss, and bird’s nest soup will be served. Lucky Tangs fortune cookies with prizes, lantern decorations, and lion dance performers will ensure guests are entertained throughout the event.
Address: China Tang at the Dorchester, 53 Park Lane, Mayfair, London W1K 1QA
For bookings: 0207 6299988 or e-mail Nadine.barcelona@chinatanglondon.co.uk
XU
Evocative of the original social clubs and luxury dining rooms of 1930s Taipei, a visit to Xu Teahouse and Restaurant is like stepping into a bygone era. Their Year of the Pig festivities were created to introduce a new take on Taiwanese and Chinese traditions, highlighted by their collaboration with gastronomic masterminds Fergus and Margot Henderson of St. John and Rochelle Canteen.
Together with Xu chef and co-founder Erchen Chang, the Hendersons will create a nose-to-tail tasting menu with dishes like yellow-bean trotter pie and blood cake wonton on the 19th of February. On the 5th, a special Chinese New Year Menu will be available with two new menu items: seabass in fermented pineapple sauce and poached goose.
Address: 30 Rupert Street, London W1D 6DL
For bookings: xulondon.com
Duddell’s
After the success of its two-Michelin-starred flagship restaurant in Hong Kong, the opening of Duddell’s London was graciously embraced by connoisseurs of both food and art. Set within the spectacular St. Thomas Church, the Cantonese restaurant and art gallery is offering a modern Lunar New Year menu from the 1st to 13th of February.
Innovative options such as truffle-roasted black cod with lily bulb and Nameko mushroom, tea-smoked Cantonese soya chicken, and sea cucumber with abalone and shimeji mushroom will be served family-style for all to enjoy. A special lion dance performance will take place on the 5th of February amidst the traditional architecture of the listed building.
Address: 9a St Thomas St, London SE1 9RY
For bookings: duddells.co
Yauatcha
Yauatcha has been synonymous with excellent Chinese dim sum since its Michelin-starred Soho branch opened in 2004. This year, both the Soho and City restaurants will be paying homage to the Year of the Pig from the 28th of January to the 24th of February, beginning with a zodiac art installation designed by the Isabel and Helen Studio.
A limited-edition 8-course menu featuring items such as crispy monkfish cheek, enoki mushroom and salsify, Peking-style pulled pork with golden mantou, and homemade prawn tofu with seaweed and water chestnut will be presented along with a festive Nagami Fortune cocktail with Beefeater 24 gin, kumquat marmalade, raspberry cordial, and lime juice.
Address: Yauatcha Soho, 15-17 Broadwick St, Soho, London W1F 0DL and Yauatcha City, 1 Broadgate Cir, London EC2M 2QS
For bookings: yauatcha.com
Imperial Treasure
Though it may be a newcomer to the London dining scene, Imperial Treasure is ensuring its Chinese New Year debut is one not to be missed. The fine dining establishment is inviting diners to enjoy flavours from the East with an exclusive Cantonese-style menu from the 1st to 19th of February.
Dishes will include chilled abalone, steamed whole turbot with soya crumble, golden fresh oysters with salted egg yolk, and a unique Chinese New Year cake topped with a golden leaf. The menu can be enjoyed with their Golden Piggy cocktail, which blends Whistlepig rye whiskey with plum sake, sow chrysanthemum, and orange bitters.
Address: 9 Waterloo Pl, St. James’s, London SW1Y 4BE
For bookings: 020 3011 1328 or on the imperialtreasure.com
