On December 22, countless Chinese families will gather for a hearty winter solstice dinner which serves up many delicious dishes, each bearing a different lucky meaning to its name. The winter solstice is the shortest day, or the longest night of the year. Falling in the 11th month of the lunar calendar, either on December 21, 22 or 23 of the Gregorian calendar depending on the year, this day marks one of the most significant festivals among Chinese communities worldwide. Since the Han dynasty, winter solstice has been celebrated by the Chinese with a festival named 冬至 (dungzi in Cantonese, dongzhi in Mandarin), which literally translates into “winter’s peak”. Traditionally, the winter solstice festival signified the time when farmers and ...
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Happy Birthday to the Buddha! Not only do we celebrate Buddha’s birthday today, this week is also the time for the annual Cheung Chau Bun Festival! History & Background of Cheung Chau Bun Festival The Cheung Chau Bun Festival dates back to Qing Dynasty, more than a century ago. At that time, Cheung Chau was badly affected by a big plague. Hoping to drive evil spirits away, villagers prayed to the gods and performed a parade along the island’s narrow streets, holding the statues of the deities. Miraculously, the plague ended shortly after the parade. Since then, Cheung Chau residents have come together as a strong community to celebrate the Bun Festival every year from the firth to the ninth ...
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*For an updated list of best things to do in Hong Kong during Chinese New Year, check out our updated blog here.* Are you wondering things to do in Hong Kong during Chinese New Year in 2016? February 8th marks the first day of the Year of the Monkey. If you are planning to visit Hong Kong before or during Chinese New Year, unfortunately, our Foodie Tours will be closed during this time, but there are still plenty of activities to do in Hong Kong to celebrate this festive occasion! 1. Eat Lots of Good Food! Do we need to say more? All Chinese festivals centers around their traditional foods. For sure, Chinese New Year is associated with the most food you can ...
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The Year of the Horse has quickly flown by. As we wrap up another fruitful year, we take time to celebrate with our families. On Chinese New Year’s Eve, it is our tradition to gather together with our family members to feast on a big Reunion Dinner or Tuen Neen Fan (團年飯). This year, our menu included items not typically served as a Chinese Year-End dinner. Hong Kong Foodie thought we would share with our Foodie Friends our sumptuous dinner in order to make you salivate! To start, we tasted some vegetarian “goose” as appetizer (see photo above). A great vegetarian option, mushroom and other veggie fillings are wrapped with this bean curd sheet and fried. Dip this in some ...
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There are a lot of different celebrations for Chinese New Year. On the streets of Hong Kong during Chinese New Year, you may have seen lions and dragons dancing to clanging gongs and beating drums as part of the new year celebrations. So what is this lion dance and dragon dance all about? What is the difference between the two? A lion dance (舞狮) is believed to bring good fortune. Many businesses arrange a team of lion dancers for a performance at the beginning of the new year hoping for a prosperous year ahead. Lions are also believed to be able to chase away evil spirits and protect the community. There are two types of lion dances. Northern lion dance, common ...
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What else do we have as Chinese New Year Dish? Black Moss? Hair Vegetable? Get Rich? As mentioned in our previous blog post, homonyms are prevalent in Cantonese, especially with Chinese New Year festive greetings and with names of food served during this time of the year. This evening, we had one such dish — 發財好事 — literally translates as Be Prosperous, Great Things. Or more generally, it means great fortune. The dish features two main ingredients. One is 髮菜, literally translated as “hair vegetable” is black moss, but it is phonetically pronounced like 發財 (Be Prosperous). Another ingredient is 蠔豉, or dried oysters, which sounds like 好事, or great things. It is believed that having this dish will bring lots ...
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Chinese New Year is the most important time of the year for Chinese. Not only does it signify the beginning of a new year, it is also the season for traditional food indulgence with the your loved ones. Before we welcome the new year, Chinese families always gather today on New Year’s Eve to feast and reunite at a Chinese Year-End Dinner before another year of hard work kick starts. So what do we eat for this Chinese Year-End dinner? The beauty of Chinese culture is the remarkable styles of regional cuisine which vary across the country. Every region has its own customs to celebrate Chinese New Year. Situated in the Guangdong province, Cantonese food which often features steamed fresh ...
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Happy Year of the Horse! Hong Kong Foodie wishes everyone a very healthy and prosperous year! Today is the first day of Chinese New Year. Have you visited any relatives or friends to send your well wishes? If so, perhaps you might have been greeted with lots of festive sayings, given (or asked for) some lai sees (red pockets with money) and served some steamed cakes? Word puns are common in Chinese. Many of them were developed from the practice of greeting each other with festive wishes towards wealth and health during Chinese New Year. It is also the cultural root for giving out “Lai Sees” (red pockets with money). Lai Sees are blessings of fortune and prosperity. Traditionally, Lai Sees are given by married, older ...
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Winter Solstice is an important Chinese festival. Some Chinese will tell you it is a bigger festival than Chinese New Year. When I lived in the US, I used to explain it to my friends as the Chinese Thanksgiving. As with all Chinese festivals, Winter Solstice dinner also revolves around food and family. This year, some of the food my family picked is somewhat untraditional. No Chinese festival is celebrated without chicken. It is a bit like turkey is a must for Thanksgiving. Instead of the usual poached chicken or crispy chicken, this year, we had Szechuan Pepper Chicken. The chicken is marinated with lots of flavors. The pepper leaves on the side are crispy and fragrant. Next comes some perfectly ...
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Hong Kong Foodie has just launched our annual sale event. 20% discount off! From Black Friday to Cyber Monday, including the Saturday and Sunday in between, you can purchase tickets to Hong Kong Foodie tours with a special discount. For four days, you can buy tickets to our Central & Sheung Wan Foodie Tour or our Sham Shui Po Foodie Tour at a special discount. Our tours are perfect excursions in Hong Kong. What else could be better than combining a great morning or afternoon of tasting different Hong Kong classic foods and drinks while strolling around different neighborhoods? Our walking tours on Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon provide an unique experience combining culinary tastings, history and culture. This year, you will also be able to ...
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