Celebration dance: A performance of the Lion dance highlighted last year’s celebration of Chinese New Year at a hotel in town. Many top hotels will present the same dance in this year to welcome the Year of the Tiger. Courtesy of Borobudur Hotel Jakarta
There’s no doubt that this year’s Chinese New Year celebrations will be special. Falling conveniently on Valentine’s Day on Feb. 14, celebrants may be finding it hard to decide between going for a Chinese feast with the family and a romantic candlelit dinner with their loved one.
Luckily, both love and lion dances are on the menu this year courtesy of the city’s finest hotels and eateries. There’s also no denying the romantic undertone of red lanterns and intricate oriental adornments, both of which are sure to dominate many venues in the weeks leading up to the main event.
At the Shangri-La Hotel, Jakarta, Year of the Tiger celebrations are starting early this year with the hotel’s lobby decorated with the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac. Lantern decorations beautify its F&B outlets, while red packets hanging from pussy willow are placed in public areas of the hotel to add bliss to the festival.
Shangri-La’s signature Cantonese restaurant Shang Palace makes the heart of the celebrations with servings of 10 special auspicious dishes believed to bring good fortune in the seasons to come. Spring dishes such as seafood roll with chilled crabmeat jelly, stir fried scallops and prawns, and braised three headed abalone with sea cucumber are being served all through the month of February.
The hotel will also set up a Wheel of Fortune raffle for its special guests on Feb. 13 and 14, giving diners the chance to win attractive prizes like free stays, Platinum Club memberships and various vouchers.
Not too far away in the buzzing Mega Kuningan complex, JW Marriott Hotel Jakarta is serving up delicacies such as shark’s fin soup, special Hainan chicken rice, Singapore chili crab and roasted pork belly at Sailendra Restaurant from Feb. 5.
JW Marriott’s Pearl Chinese Restaurant also promises an intriguing eating experience with menu items such as “Buddha Jumps over the Wall”, fried lobster with turnip cake and ginger sauce and pan-fried wagyu with Chinese barbecue sauce. The menu is available from Chinese New Year’s Eve on Feb. 13 through the end of the month.
All through February, Lai Ching on the second floor of Four Seasons Hotel Jakarta is offering a variety of exotic Cantonese set menus complemented with beautiful decorations and Dragon dance performances. Yet another New Year’s fare is served at Sari Pan Pacific Jakarta, whose Prosperous Oriental Buffet at Fiesta Restaurant comprises a menu of assorted dim sums, snapper moon tofu, kung pao chicken, lo mien, Peking Duck and delicious lychee bean curd dessert available from Feb. 8 to 19.
Situated on Central Jakarta’s famed Jl. Pecenongan, Alila Jakarta is set to bring the prosperity of love into your abode this season, feng shui style. On the night on Feb. 13, enjoy set menu options with succulent grubs such as Yee Sang salad, braised mini abalone and shark’s fin and crab meat soup at Shanghai Storm, while a fortune teller visits each table to reveal what’s to come in the year 2010.
The restaurant is also having a buffet dim sum brunch offering 25 types of dim sum plus entrees, main courses and desserts on Feb. 14.
Courtesy of JW Marriott Hotel Jakarta
Whatever your palate craves, Hotel Borobudur Jakarta is sure to deliver with its array of F&B offerings: Festive set menus are offered at Teratai Chinese Restaurant on Feb. 13 and 14; a Lion dance will be performing at the lobby area and restaurants at noon on Feb. 14, while Bogor Café’s buffet dinner on the night marries the best of Chinese and Valentine’s-inspired menus especially designed for couples from 6:30 p.m. onwards.
Last but not least, those searching for a more “boutique” oriental celebration should look no farther than Sperta, grandkemang Hotel Jakarta’s all-day fine dining restaurant.
On Feb. 14, Sperta is inviting families to enjoy its Chinese food stall and live stations of Peking Duck, dim sum and Hong Kong noodles on top of other international selections from cheese, pasta and fresh seafood to main course, waffles and heavenly ice creams. The Color Your Lunar Brunch at Sperta is priced at Rp 158,000++ per person; children dine for free and special packages are available for larger groups.
Feeling overwhelmed with all the delights Chinese New Year’s about to offer? Crowne Plaza Jakarta reckons it is equally important for celebrants to rest and relax during the holiday. The hotel has prepared a number of special packages for stays in its newly refurbished Grand Deluxe rooms and suites on top of buffet promotions at Beranda Café.
Furthermore, it’s not only in Jakarta that celebrants get to revel in all those celebratory red packets and tangerines — Santika Indonesia Hotels & Resorts is welcoming travelers and families trying to make the best of their time this Chinese New Year with its portfolio of hotels scattered across the country.
Hotel Santika Premiere Semarang, for one, has prepared an oriental feast of roast duck, prawn and dragon fruit salad and rabbit in ginger sauce for the Lampion (Lantern) Dinner on Feb. 14. Expect vivid Lion dances, lucky draws and other entertainment set at the Borobudur Ballroom from 7 p.m. onwards.
Various other Chinese and Valentine’s-related programs are currently running at the Hotel Santika Premiere Jogja and Hotel Santika Pontianak and Bangka, both on F&B and accommodation.
For those in the mood for some scrumptious snacking before a hearty meal, nian gaos are abundant to purchase this time of year particularly in hotels like JW Marriott and Shangri-La. Made from sticky rice flour and sugar, these cakes are eaten before meals on both New Year’s Eve and Day to symbolize hope and luck in the coming year. They also double as ideal gifts when visiting family and friends.
With all these and much more in store, this year’s lunar celebration makes the perfect occasion to bond with both family and loved ones. Make sure to book early to roll in the Year of the Tiger in comfort and style!
