The arrival of the Chinese New Year, the Year of the Dragon, is just around the corner and across the globe the Chinese community is gearing up for their annual new year celebrations.

In Kota Kinabalu and Sabah too, the buzz is spreading and the good people at Hyatt Regency Kinabalu invited SabahBah and others over to sample what Chef Tay and his team at The Chinese Restaurant has in store.

Chef Tay has prepared a generous menu of deliciousness with which to have a memorable family celebration.

Salmon Yee Sang

Our taste safari kicked off with Yee Sang.  Vital to any Chinese New Year celebrations, these long life noodles represents longevity and it is said the higher you toss the noodles, the more abundant your returns.

The dish arrives as separate ingredients and was quickly assembled in front of our eyes. Shredded vegetables, fruits, pickles, flour crisps and plum sauce are just a few of the ingredients, which make up this visually pleasing dish.

Chef Tay himself was at the table to add the final touches, before leading the group in the customary tossing of the Yee Sang.

The Yee Sang is available from 16 January onwards at The Chinese Restaurant in the Hyatt Regency Kinabalu.

After the flurry of activity around the Yee Sang, we were treated to fatt choi (black moss) with veggies and chicken, Chef Tay’s signature XO Fortune prawns, Pacific clam with sea asparagus and, my personal favourite, the sweet, salmony taste of crispy friend honey salmon.

Also on the table was soft shell crab. “The soft-shell crab isn’t part of the Chinese New Year menu,” said our host, PR Manager Julia Chan, “but it’s the best in Kota Kinabalu, so a must try.”

The collection of Chinese New Year menus have been designed to incorporate the ingredients which, according to Chinese beliefs, symbolises wealth, health and prosperity.

2 set menus will help you make the most of your reunion dinner, but an ala-carte menu offers you additional choices of scallops. abolone, Pacific clams and silver cod.

Chinese New Year Activities at Hyatt Regency Kinabalu

From 21 – 25 January Hyatt Regency Kinabalu’s The Chinese Restaurant will cater to dim sum fans with an all-you-can-eat Prosperity Dim Sum promo, which is on offer from 9am – 2:30pm.

Other than food, the Hyatt Regency Kinabalu has plenty else going on during the Chinese New Year for those looking for some entertainment in Kota Kinabalu.

From 21 – 25 January Master Calligrapher Huang Poh Lo will entertain with demonstrations of ancient art.

During the 1st 2 days of Chinese New Year Choi San Yeh, the God of Fortune, will spread good wishes amongst hotel guests.

On the 2nd day of Chinese New Year, 24 January, the hotel’s parking lot will be the venue for a grand lion dance showcase.

Starting at 8:30am, the Sabah champion troupe of lion dancers will put on a show, which guarantees to thrill, entertain and have you gasping for breath at their seemingly impossible acrobatics, all staged on tiny platforms between 1m – 2m above the ground.

For additional information about Hyatt Regency Kinabalu’s Chinese New Year offerings, or to book your dinner, please contact the hotel in Kota Kinabalu on 088 22 1234.

Gong Xi Fatt Chai!

But please, don’t believe me.  Moon Bell Restaurant in Kota Kinabalu will provide you with all the proof that you need know that once you’ve eaten northern Chinese, sweet n sour anything from that Chinese takeaway back home will pale in comparison.

Moon Bell Restaurant shines on KK’s main road, opposite Wisma Merdeka, halfway between the Hyatt and Capital Hotel.  It’s open for lunch and dinner every day of the week, except Mondays, so plan your culinary itinerary accordingly.

The menu is not as elaborate as some of the Chinese eateries here in KK, but that’s a good thing, as they do a few things, and do them well.  And do they ever.

All the meats, except pork, are represented; duck, chicken, lamb, beef and seafood all feature with at least 4 dishes to choose from in each category.  Once you’ve made the difficult decision of choosing a mouthwatering dish, you’ll realise after tasting it that you will have to choose another, and another.

Is the spicy tastes? The rich aromas? The way seemingly ordinary potato sets the juices flowing like when Remy in Ratatouille pops different types of food in his mouth and imagines the flavours like fireworks on his palate?

Yes to all of them.  It’s true of Moon Bell’s food, you can’t go there just once.  It’s the type of food you crave. The type of food that makes you sit up in bed at 2am, smack your lips and say to yourself, “I can really do with big helping of Moon Bell’s Stir Fried Lazy Crab.”

It happens.

Ang’s Hotel Restaurant (Fatt Kee Coffee Shop)

Located opposite Wisma Merdeka is the famous Ang’s Hotel, and under it’s wing is Fatt Kee Coffee Shop, but known all around as Ang’s Hotel Restaurant.

Likely open throughout the day, this restaurant is a bustling hub of activity and is not only popular, but famous for a selection of key menu items and is a good place from where to start acquiring your Chinese food experiences in Kota Kinabalu.

Amongst the Chinese dishes that Ang’s Hotel Restaurant is known and loved for is the Oyster-sauce Chicken Wings, Sizzling Japanese Tofu, Minute Pork Steaks and any of their green veggies, prepared the way on Ang’s Hotel Restaurant can.

As a traveler, you might be hindered by the fact that the menu written on the wall-boards are in Chinese only, but have no fear, the staff taking your orders can speak English and, upon request, will even produce a English /Chinese menu for your perusal.

But take our word for it, the Tiny but Fiesty Lady who’ll likely take your oder knows her stuff, so do ask her to recommend something from the menu for you.

Ang’s Hotel Restaurant, although still very economical otherwise, provides the best value for money for groups of four to six people.

And whatever you order, do not miss the Oyster-sauce Chicken Wings at Ang’s Hotel Restaurant.