If New Year’s Eve 1996 didn’t prove festive enough, or if the evening was
particularly enjoyable and waiting until December 31 for the next party seems
like light years away, don’t despair. There’s reason to sing the Auld Lang
Syne again. Come midnight Februrary 6, the year of the Ox is upon us, and a
number of Austin’s Chinese restaurants have cooked up special celebrations to
usher in the beast.
Bamboo Garden
625 W. Ben White, 444-6022
This South Austin favorite, in business since 1976, will feature a special
menu on Thu-Fri,
Feb. 6-7. Among the offerings will be Good Luck Soup, a
rare treat exclusive to Bamboo Garden ordered from Taiwan especially for the
occasion. Complimentary champagne, photographs, and traditional Chinese New
Year’s music should set a festive tone. Each diner will also receive a blessed
coin and a sweet bean popover, the latter a Chinese take on Texas’ traditional
New Year’s dish of black-eyed peas.
Cafe Chino
12636 Research, 335-8888
In addition to its regular menu, Cafe Chino plans a New Year’s Eve meal
Thursday, February 6, featuring 2 Flavor Shrimp, a decorative shrimp dish
blanketed with both a white and spicy red sauce. A number of whole fish
specials are also planned, among them the popular Hunan crispy style fish and a
traditional Taiwanese fish preparation.
China on the Avenue
908 Congress, 474-0137
This popular downtown location plans to unveil a new menu in celebration of
the year of the Ox. Diners should look for the change beginning Friday,
February 7.
Chinois
215 E. Sixth Street, 320-8018
Austin’s newest Chinese restaurant, the latest venture of Ronald Cheng,
creator of the Chinatown restaurants on Bee Caves on MoPac, is celebrating
Saturday, February 8, by handing out plenty of “lucky money” and treating
diners to traditional New Year’s fare such as crispy whole fish with
jalape�o black bean sauce and stewed duck with Chinese black peppercorn
sauce. Both Chinatown locations will serve the New Year’s specials as well,
though Cheng notes that what sets the new Chinois restaurant apart from
Austin’s other Chinese establishments is its in-house grill. Diners should
expect a menu comprising contemporary, grilled, and pan-fried Chinese dishes
that are lower in fat than the standard Chinese preparations. Look forward to
garlic and rosemary lemon chicken, Sacha beef kabobs, and Thai fish with basil.
Formosa
2414 Exposition, 322-0344
To greet the year of the Ox, Formosa has created a list of New Year’s specials
that appropriately, emphasizes beef, although several fish dishes will be
featured as well. Formosa will celebrate Thu-Sat, Feb 6-8. Unique decoration is
planned for the five-year-old restaurant, and every customer will receive a
lucky red envelope. Specials include: grilled ribeye steak with ginger soy
sauce, beef stew Formosa with vegetables, roasted brisket with Formosa barbecue
sauce, beef a l’orange with ginger, garlic, and orange sauce, red snapper with
crawfish basil cream sauce, red snapper encrusted with almond and topped with
ginger avocado plum sauces, and baby bok choy and prawns with a white wine
garlic sauce.
Shanghai River Restaurant
2700 W. Anderson, 458-9598
Several authentic Chinese New Year preparations will be served at this north
Austin spot on Thu-Fri, Feb. 6-7. Shanghai River’s star entree will be roasted
pork, a whole pig marinated in special spices and roasted until its skin takes
on a tantalizing reddish-orange color. Also on the menu will be the traditional
Happy Family’s sticky rice, a copious steamed rice dish studded with dried
shrimp, Chinese mushrooms, sausage and ham. For dessert — sweet dumplings
filled with mung bean, coconut, and ginger.
Snowpeas
3706 Jefferson, 454-3228
Providing a unique twist on Chinese food with the incorporation of the
newly-popular wrap into its offerings, Snowpeas menu for the New Year
celebration features a more traditional mandarin stir fried rice noodle with
black mushrooms and chicken, pork, or beef (or a combination of all three). A
variety of wraps are available too — potato curry (plain or with chicken),
mandarin tofu and schezuan tofu, among others. Snowpeas will also give away
$500 in lucky money in demonitions ranging from .25 to $20.
Texas Asian Chamber of Commerce’s Gala New Year Celebration
The first annual black tie affair will be held at the Doubletree Hotel on
Sat., Feb. 8 and include a pre-dinner casino and reception followed by a
banquet featuring the cuisines of several Asian countries. Entertainment
includes Chinese and Lyric Opera samplers, a Vietnamese choir, and traditional
Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese dances. A raffle and auction will punctuate the
evening, with airline tickets, jewelry, art, and business equipment among the
prizes. Tickets are $35. Call 462-3883 for more information.
— Rebecca Chastenet de G�ry
This article appears in February 7 • 1997 and February 7 • 1997 (Cover).