Welcoming the dragon

FRIDAY, JAN. 27: Enter the dragon.

The Chinese New Year started on January 23 and Chopsticks restaurant is holding a food festival to celebrate it until February 6.

Operations manager Kim Ooi said: “This year is a Black Water Dragon year and we are having a traditional Chinese eight course meal.”

“We are using the lucky number eight and we’re not having just one, two or three days like we’ve had in the past, we’re celebrating the whole festival — 15 days.”

He said: “For the Orient, eight means prosperity as opposed to four which is the total opposite.

“Eight is always the lucky number so that’s why there’s eight courses and the price is $68.

“We kept the price down so we can have the number eight in it. There’s a bit of give and take so we can have the good luck.”

The meal starts with a Hoi Loong seafood soup, which includes crabmeat, shrimp and chunks of fish fillet in a nori broth, and ends with a Wong Lai tart — pineapple tart with a scoop of ice cream.

Along the way diners will be treated to smoked duck, marinated chicken, spicy prawns, stir fry vegetables, prosperity salad and pork, beef and shrimp flavoured meatballs on a green seaweed salad.

Mr Ooi said his favourite course is the prosperity salad.

“Usually you will get around with your close friends and family and do the tossing. It’s a very colourful salad with all the secret ingredients, spices and sauces.

“It’s a fun salad. Everybody tosses it. The higher you toss, the more you believe and the more prosperity, wealth and health it’s going to bring.

“You’ve been told don’t play with your food but this is one time a year you get to do that.”

Mr Ooi and new executive chef Kim Pak created the menu.

“We wanted to create something classical.”

The cost is $68 per person plus gratuity.