Chinese New Year, also known as Spring Festival or Lunar New Year in Chinese and East Asian culture, marks the beginning of a new year on the lunar calendar. It’s a festival celebrating the passage of seasons: the end of winter and the beginning of spring.
While cash-filled red envelopes, crimson lanterns, firecrackers and plum blossoms are strongly associated with Chinese New Year, the foods eaten during this time also hold a symbolic place within the festivities. A traditional Lunar New Year meal is quite elaborate and involves several symbolic dishes that are meant to bring happiness and good fortune in the new year. Long noodles for longevity (the longer the noodle, the better!), steamed whole fish for abundance, dumplings and spring rolls for wealth, and citrus fruit, served at the end of the meal, for good luck.
If you’re celebrating Chinese New Year this February and are looking to ring in the year of the Ox from the comfort of your home, here are 6 Toronto restaurants that are offering specially curated meal kits, festive takeaway menus and New Year themed treats.
Kojin x Alma
A special collaboration featuring the culinary creations of Chef Eva Chin of Kōjin and Chef Anna Chen of Alma, Momofuku’s first-ever Chinese New Year to-go feast comes with 8 festive dishes (each one symbolizing happiness and prosperity) and includes steamed buns, wonton soup, stuffed roast duck, fried whole BC rockfish, and sweets. There’s an option to add on special pantry items, sommelier selected wines and Chinese New Year themed cocktails. Pre-order now for pick up on February 10-13 & February 17-20, from 5pm-9pm.
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Hong Shing
Hong Shing’s Lunar New Year Meal Kit, created in partnership with local Asian-owned businesses based in Toronto, aims to celebrate the culture and traditions of Chinese New Year and promote the importance of supporting local, small businesses. This festive meal kit includes an 8-course meal curated by Hong Shing and Trevor Lui, Trevor Lui’s Double Happiness cookbook, Hong Shing/Hometown Brew’s “Red Pocket” Pilsner beer, sauces from Yeuh Tung, a cocktail tea kit from Evelyn Chick, and custom designed chopsticks from Tap Phong. Pick-up is available, starting February 5.
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GEORGE Restaurant
GEORGE Restaurant is offering a range of new fine-dining takeout experiences curated by Executive Chef Lorenzo Loseto. The George-To-Go Chinese New Year takeaway menu features a 5-course tasting menu that includes dishes such as black cod with saffron panna cotta and roasted brussels sprouts, pork belly with honey mustard miso, bison ribeye and Kahlua chocolate cake. There’s also a curated wine and cocktail list and a selection of house made gelato and sorbets from Chef Loseto’s kitchen. Pre-order now for pickup or delivery between February 11-12.
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Sunnys Chinese
Update: SOLD OUT
The team behind popular Chinese food pop-up Sunnys Chinese have created a very special menu available for pick-up February 12-14 in celebration of Lunar New Year. The menu features house made char sui with wild flower honey, stir-fried rice rolls, bolo bao with coconut and more! These pop-ups sell out in mere minutes, so sign up for the newsletter to stay ahead of the crowd. You can also snag an order of newly launched ice cream company, Good Behaviour Ice Cream with each order. Toronto made, small batch, and super delicious – they’ve created a spiced pineapple ice cream with ginger curd and fresh pineapple exclusively for the Lunar New Year Sunny’s menu. The perfect final accompaniment to your meal.
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Patois
Patoi, the well-known Asian-Caribbean eatery in Toronto, has come up with an exciting heat-and-serve takeout menu for Lunar New Year. The Patoi Dim Sum series features dumplings, Tiger shrimp spring rolls, vegan potstickers, pork & crab siu mai, duck confit foie gras eggrolls, crispy prawn toast and comes with a trio of dipping sauces. The Dim Sum series is available for a limited time for pickup or delivery.
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Daan Go Cake Lab
MasterChef Canada contestant and pastry chef Christopher Siu and his team of bakers at Daan Go Cake Lab have come up with some stunning sweet creations especially for Chinese New Year. The Lucky Citrus cake, an orange butter sponge layered with cognac gel, vanilla yoghurt mousse and almond crunch, resembles a mandarin which symbolizes wealth and good luck in Chinese culture. And their lunar zodiac macarons that come in 18 different flavours are almost too pretty to eat! Pre-order these decadent desserts online for pick-up between February 1-14.
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