Every year, we celebrate Chinese New Year with our business associates to wish each other a prosperous year ahead, and this means more binge eating.

Firstly, the meal has even number of courses. Secondly, they must all sound prosperous and happy even if it is just tofu. And then, it must always start with Lohei 撈起 and end with sweet rice cake 年糕

花開富貴套餐 The Blooming Prosperity Set Menu (CNY 2020)

Okay, adhering to the guiding principle, there were 8 courses (even better, 8 is the prosperity number), and each course had a really auspicious sounding name. But Sichuan Dou Hua did a really subpar job in naming their courses.

1/8 風生水起 Wind always be at your back – the Lohei Dish

金銀煙薰三文魚撈生 Prosperity Smoked Salmon Yusheng with Crispy Fish Skin

「撈起」Lohei has the connotation of rising above the rest, taken from the Cantonese phrase “撈得風生水起”. Cue soundtrack by Bette Midler.

2/8 鴻圖大展 Looking forward great success

紅燒蟹肉魚鰾羹 Braised Fish Maw Soup with Crab Meat in Brown Sauce

Dried fish maw is a tiny object but by soaking and rehydrating, it can expand to 20-30 times its original size. I guess that’s where the chef got the inspiration.

3/8 年年有餘 Surplus Year after Year

泡椒醬蒸筍殼魚 Steamed ‘Soon Hock’ Fish with Preserved Chilli

「魚」 “fish” and 「余」 “excess” sound the same. It is actually very rarely a spicy dish like this one was served for Chinese New Year.

4/8 如意吉祥 Felicity and luck

XO 醬西蘭花蝦球 Stir-fried Prawns with Broccoli in Homemade XO Sauce

「蝦」 “prawn” and 「哈」 “laughter” sounded the same in Cantonese. Usually this course would be called 「嘻嘻哈哈」 “filled with laughter”, but because broccoli is often compared to jade, which is a semi-precious stone for Chinese that represented good luck.

5/8 錦繡前程 Bright future

紅湯八頭鮑魚冬菇燜元蹄 Braised Pork Knuckle with Eight-head Abalone and Flower Mushrooms in Sichuan Bean Paste Sauce

I cannot associate the name and the dish, except that pork knuckles, abalones and flower mushrooms are common CNY food.

6/8 好事連連 Good things happening

羊肚菌瑤柱扒津白 Fried Tientsin Cabbage with Morels Mushroom in Conpoy Sauce

I cannot associate the name and the dish.

7/8 和氣團圓 Harmony and reunion

[Sorry forgot to take picture as I skipped this dish, but we had this course here before.]

臘味炒飯 Fried Rice with Waxed Meat

I cannot associate the name and the dish.

8/8 福星高照 Lucky stars above you – the Niangao dish

蓮子紅豆沙、香煎年糕 Dessert Duo: Sweetened Red Bean Paste with Lotus Seeds, Pan-fried New Year Sticky Rice Cake

年糕 has the connotation of 「年年高昇」 (rising every year) and because they were cut in the shape fo stars, it was even more auspicious.

Dining at Si Chuan Dou Hua Restaurant is complemented with skilled Tea Masters who combine martial arts, dance and showmanship in the traditional art of tea pouring.

Si Chuan Dou Hua Restaurant (Beach Road) 四川豆花飯莊
7500 Beach Rd, PARKROYAL on Beach Road, Singapore 199591
Tel : 6505 5722

https://www.sichuandouhua.com/en/restaurant

Date Visited : Feb 2020