Lunar New Year’s Day When Hong Kong Is Most Gorgeous Various events and attractions will be presented until February 13th. From Michelin restaurants to Asia’s best bars,
It is also said that Hong Kong cannot distinguish between day and night. Even if the sun is up or down, it is an expression created because everywhere in the city is gorgeous. There is a time when such splendor rises to a brilliant level. The most spectacular time of the year is the Lunar New Year, and the Chinese New Year is in that period in Hong Kong.
In particular, this year’s Lunar New Year holiday is drawing keen attention to overseas travel as it allows people to take up to nine days off if they use annual leave on temporary holidays. Among them, Hong Kong can spend a long holiday more special with various Chinese New Year festivals and gastronomic delights that combine tradition and modernity.
In Hong Kong, the representative Spring Festival event Cathay International Chinese New Year Night Parade will be held in the Tsim Sha Tsui area at 8 p.m. on January 29 (January 1 of the lunar calendar), the first day of the blue snake year.
The event is a large-scale cultural festival held every year in the Tsim Sha Tsui area in celebration of Hong Kong’s Spring Festival, with performance teams from around the world and colorful floats (parade-decorated vehicles). Marking the 23rd anniversary this year, performance teams from 14 countries participated, boasting the largest scale ever.
Before the parade officially begins at 6 p.m., 18 performance teams will perform various performances, including juggling, magic, dance and music, for visitors waiting for the parade. The parade, which begins in earnest at 8 p.m., opens with a spectacular opening stage for K-pop girl group Kep1er.
The performances of 14 performing teams from around the world and 12 from Hong Kong will start at Hong Kong’s Hong Kong Cultural Centre and run to Canton Road, Haipong Road, Nathan Road, and Sheraton Hong Kong Hotel & Towers. It symbolically reveals Hong Kong’s charm with a total of nine parade-decorated vehicle floats decorated with various themes, including giant pandas, Hong Kong-style milk tea and Hong Kong’s skyline decorated with snake motifs.
In addition, visitors will be greeted by a variety of events, such as fireworks at Victoria Harbor, float displays at Wish Square, and Lunar New Year horse racing, during the festival, which runs through Feb. 13.
Hong Kong’s Spring Festival offers an impressive parade as well as the joy of gastronomy. Along with Hong Kong’s food, which is indispensable for the holiday, about 84 restaurants selected on the Michelin Guide and bars listed on the Asian Best Bar 50 make it a center of gastronomy.
Here are four unforgettable gastronomic experiences and recommended attractions that can be felt in this city that combines the taste and culture of the East and the West.
◆ A feast of truffles for gourmets…Oto, mezzo, Bombana.
Otto e Mezzo – Bombana, run by chef Umberto Bombana, called the “King of White Truffles,” is a leading Italian restaurant where you can experience the essence of Italian cuisine in Hong Kong. Having maintained three Michelin stars for 14 years since 2011, the place presents menus using fresh truffles that are airlifted seasonally. In particular, the flavor and depth of the menu with truffles, including white truffle pasta, are overwhelming.
◆ It contains more than 30 years of history, the essence of Cantonese cuisine…a soup coat
T’ang Court, located at The Langham Hong Kong Hotel, boasts a history of more than 30 years and is a gourmet place where you can taste the essence of Cantonese cuisine. Tang coat is characterized by the use of fresh seasonal ingredients to emphasize the variety of flavors of the dish while maintaining the deep taste of traditional Cantonese cuisine. Maintaining Hong Kong’s tradition and dignity, it has been selected as a three-star Michelin star for nine consecutive years since 2016, and has been consistently highly evaluated. Beijing Duck, the signature menu here, is a dish that combines traditional recipes and sophisticated techniques, and you can experience the best taste, crispy on the outside and moist on the inside.
◆ New Criteria for Fine Dining…Ta-bi.
Ta Vie, who has been honored with three Michelin stars, perfectly expresses the elegance of fine dining through sophisticated course dishes. Tabby means “your life” in French and “travel” in Japanese, and expresses a gourmet trip that combines various materials and cultures from each country through French-Japanese quizzes. One of the representative dishes here, duck brisket with sesame sauce, features a rich umami and soft texture, showing Tabi’s sophisticated cooking skills and the chef’s delicate sense. Tabby is not just a place to taste food, but also a space where you can get a glimpse of the future of Asian gastronomy.It is setting a new standard for innings.
◆ 1st place in Asia’s Best Bar 50 Awards after 1 year of opening…It’s Baro.
BAR LEONE is a creative place led by Italian Mixologist Lorenzo Antinori, where you can feel the essence of Italian-style hospitality and classical cocktails. It reinterpreted the traditional cocktail with a modern touch, setting a record for the first time in history to debut on the list at the Asia Best Bar 50 Awards a year after its opening. One of the signature cocktails, Il Leone Negroni, adds Italian herbs and spices to the classic Negroni, providing a deep, complex flavor.
Hong Eun-hye, director of public relations at the Hong Kong Tourism Authority, said, “Hong Kong is the best travel destination to enjoy colorful festivals and gourmet food at the same time during the Lunar New Year holiday, and the largest Cathay International Lunar New Year Parade and world-class restaurants will combine to provide an unforgettable experience,” adding, “You can feel special through Hong Kong’s unique charm where tradition and modernity coexist.”
