I sort of knew what to expect; auspicious dishes for wealth, health, happiness and prosperity; free flow of Chinese tea and alcohol; plate of peanuts and loud blasting karaoke singing.
We chatted, munched the peanuts and before long, the first and must have Yee Sang dish; also known as Properity Toss or Lo Hei arrived.
Everyone stood up and tossed it to the highest level with the chopsticks; for wishes to be granted and whatever it may be for the coming year. I enjoyed the tossing but I didn't feel comfortable with the mess; bits and pieces of the ingredients all over the table.
Nonetheless, Yee Sang is my all time fav because I love the contrasting textures of the melt in the mouth slivers of salmon with crunchy crackers and the blend of spices and condiments.
We paused and continued with the platter of five dishes; meat, seafood and veggies; seasoned with the ever popular Chinese ingredients of either soy sauce, Chinese wine, ginger, garlic, herbs, cornstarch etc etc.
For my taste, one or two of the dishes were slightly on the salty side. But the rest were almost faultless. I was trigger happy specifically with the veggie dish, stir fried with fish balls and chicken pieces. Up next was another customary dish; thick fish soup; gooey and aromatic served in individual ceramic bowls.
It was followed by Steamed soy sauce garlic dish; true freshness of the catch with flavored dark sauce.
The next dish was buttered prawns scented with curry leaves and a new addition of fried savory yam pancakes; another all time favorite of mine.
We also tucked into two more dishes; Braised broccoli and pork skin drenched in a thick sauce and
glutinous rice wrapped in lotus leaf; cooked with tiny pork pieces, generously flavored with soy sauce and topped with fresh spring onions.
Our dinner ended with a sweet note of peanut ice-cream; much loved for its soft and enticing pea-nutty flavor. At first we were apprehensive over the mumbo jumbo plating but once we tasted, our taste buds were uplifted further.
As we tucked into all these dishes, we couldn't stop admiring the vegetarian meals; specially prepared for two of our friends. The dishes were absolutely tempting; presented in gourmet style and beautifully plated and coordinated with veggies, tofu and other vegetarian ingredients
As we left the restaurant, we were contemplating if we should opt for vegetarian meals for the next year.
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