Local restaurants to be filled to the rim for Chinese New Year's Eve
Sunya Cantonese Restaurant on the Nanjing Road Pedestrian Mall is filled with Chinese Lunar New Year flavor.
A couple shops for nianhuo (New Year's goods) at Sunya Cantonese Restaurant on the Nanjing Road Pedestrian Mall.
The festive flavor of the 2021 Chinese Lunar New Year is ramping up at time-honored restaurants across the city.
Many restaurateurs said their private dining compartments and tables for nianyefan (Chinese New Year's Eve dinner), the most important family reunion dinner of the year for Chinese, are fully reserved even though Spring Festival is almost two months away.
Next year's Chinese Lunar New Year's Day falls on February 12, so nianyefan will take place on February 11.
Nianyefan at Sunya Cantonese Restaurant on the Nanjing Road Pedestrian Mall — with a history dating back to 1926 — has been fully booked since late August.
"About 20 percent of those booking next year's nianyefan are people who cancelled their reservations this year due to COVID-19," said Zhu Hong, Sunya's deputy executive chef. "We offered full refunds for this year's cancellations, but instead of taking the refund they put that money toward next year's dinner."
The restaurant has 18 private dining compartments and more than 80 tables for nianyefan.
A worker arranges goods at Xing Hua Lou.
Chefs prepare food at Sunya Cantonese Restaurant.
"We've removed some tables in the interest of social distancing, and will ask diners to show their health QR code and have their temperatures checked for the New Year's Eve dinner," Zhu said. "Disinfection will also be stepped up."
"I want to save my parents the trouble of cooking nianyefan, as many relatives will visit our home on New Year's Eve and it usually takes a whole day or even two to prepare all the dishes," said Zhong Yu, a Shanghai resident who booked a table for nine at Sunya.
Many families who normally travel during Chinese New Year are staying put this year due to the pandemic.
Zhu said his restaurant will serve small family groups of five or six for the first time due to high demand.
Sunya's semi-cooked foods can be purchased for takeaway at the restaurant and online.
"Sales are projected to be better this year and should peak around January 10," Zhu said. Preparation times for semi-cooked foods such as chicken soup with fungus and duck soup with dried bamboo shoots are significantly shorter this year. In the past, people needed to stew the chicken and duck soup themselves with prepared ingredients, which took four to five hours. Now, the entire cooking process takes only 30 minutes."
The restaurant will host a nianhuo (New Year goods) bazaar in late January for Spring Festival banquets, featuring 300 different varieties of food — including semi-cooked foods, cured meat, babaofan (steamed sweetened glutinous rice with eight different ingredients), niangao (glutinous rice cake) and songgao (soft and fluffy rice cakes filled with red bean paste).
Danjiao, or egg dumplings, and tangyuan (glutinous rice balls with sweet or salty fillings) will also be available. Danjiao is a must-eat food during the festival, as its golden color and ingot shape are said to bring wealth and happiness.
Residents survey the range of food at Xing Hua Lou.
Nianyefan sets on sale at Xing Hua Lou
People buy food at Sunya's delicatessen.
Opened in 1851, Xing Hua Lou has been fully booked for next year's nianyefan since October.
"Many of those making reservations are loyal fans of Xing Hua Lou, and some have had nianyefan at our restaurant for 20 years," said Wan Xiaping, catering manager of Xing Hua Lou.
Half of the restaurant's 18 private dining compartments were reserved as early as last Chinese New Year's Eve.
"It's a tradition for many loyal diners to make reservations for next year's dinner right after finishing this year's nianyefan, and they book the same private dining compartment," Wang said.
All private dining compartments at the restaurant are fully booked for the entire seven-day Spring Festival holiday, she said, and only a few tables are left.
Strict measures will be taken to prevent large gatherings and the spread of COVID-19.
"We take every diner's temperature before their entry and make thorough disinfections every hour," Wang said.
One floor can accommodate 24 tables, but nine have been removed to keep parties spread apart.
Diners are reminded to use one set of chopsticks to take food from communal dishes and another set for eating.
"Having nianyefan at a time-honored restaurant makes it feel like a ritual, and I like the festive atmosphere," said Zhang Quan, a Shanghai resident in his 60s who has dined at Xing Hua Lou on New Year's Eve three times.
The restaurant is also selling semi-cooked foods for people to prepare in their homes.
People read about semi-cooked nianyefan dishes at Sunya.
Semi-cooked nianyefan sets at Sunya
Lu Bo Lang in Yuyuan Garden, one of the city's most highly regarded restaurants, is also fully booked for nianyefan.
"There were customers making reservations as early as July, before we even set our nianyefan menu," said Wang Shijia, deputy general manager of Lu Bo Lang. "Some are old patrons who have had nianyefan here for more than 10 years."
With a history dating back to 1875, Shanghai Classical Restaurant serves traditional Shanghai-style cuisine like babaoya, eight-treasure duck and fried river shrimp. It's about 90 percent booked for nianyefan.
A local resident surnamed Xu reserved a private dining compartment called "Zhao Fu" for New Year's Eve dinner at the restaurant.
"The private dining compartment is popular because the Chinese character “fu” means blessings or good luck," he said. "In the past, having a nianyefan banquet at the restaurant was mianzi (face) gaining when living conditions in Shanghai weren't very good."
