The Best Places to Eat With Kids on Chinese New Year

By: Phoebe Ackland, ellaslist

Celebrate Lunar New Year with the whole family this year and make the most of Sydney’s vibrant cultural diversity, and all the delicious food that goes with it!

Whether you like the excitement of food delivered on trolleys for your picking with Yum Cha, set menus offering Lunar Feasts and banquets, the sensory experience of the Lunar Markets or even if you just love Asian food, there’s a way for every family to celebrate the Year of the Rooster.

The Best Yum Cha

Yum Cha, with trolleys of delicious food for picking and choosing is an exciting way to eat Chinese food for the whole family (especially when it’s time for the dessert cart to make its way around). Some of our favourite places include Marigold, in the heart of Sydney’s China Town, offering reasonably priced Yum Cha every day of the week. Last year, Zilver and The Eight in Chinatown literally sold more than a tonne of live lobster between them! Hint: try the lotus rice balls that taste like peanut butter, and the mango pudding! Also located in China Town, head to East Ocean for the best seafood dumplings around as well as a fantastic atmosphere. Check out ellaslist’s best local yum cha spots and our 6 top yum cha spots in Sydney for more options.

Lunar Feasts

Some of Sydney’s top restaurants are offering set price menus to ring in the Lunar New Year in delicious fashion. From dumpling specials to full banquets, there’s a Lunar Feast to suit every palate and pocket. For something a little glamorous, head to the Sydney Opera House where your eyes can feast on the glow of the Lunar Lanterns whilst your tastebuds enjoy dumplings at Opera Kitchen, oysters at Opera Bar and coconut ice cream at Portside! Neil Perry and Andy Evans have put together a special $95 per person feast menu at Spice Temple where you can enjoy stir-fried spanner crab, lucky money dumplings, and caramel ice cream with praline. Check out 15 more ways to eat this Lunar New Year here. 

Lunar Markets

Ignite all the senses at this year’s Lunar Markets – an explosion of food, entertainment, colour, art and music that will have the whole family well fed, entertained and excited about Asian culture. Held at Pyrmont Bay Park over 10 nights, there will be over 20 food stalls to enjoy, live music and performers of all sorts. Lit by lanterns, this glowing park is the perfect way to enjoy Thai, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Filipino and Vietnamese cuisine overlooking the gorgeous Darling Harbour. In 2017, N2 Gelato and Black Star Pastry will be back with their popular strawberry watermelon cake smash, and Chur Burger will make its first ever markets appearance with burgers called ‘Hoisin goin’ bro?’ and the ‘Lunar Chick’. You can also find a range of alcoholic and non-alcoholic ‘bubble teas’ at the brand new Bubble Bar. Catch the markets from 27 January- 5 February 2017.

Our Favourite Asian Spots

Calling all dumpling lovers! Din Tai Fung (located in the CBD, Chatswood, Broadway and Miranda) are offering a sweet and cute treat the kids will go crazy for-rooster dumplings! Each is made fresh to order and filled generously with blueberry cream cheese filling. Available from 28 January – 28 February. Din Tai Fung is also offering reasonably priced Lunar Feasts for $30, $35 and $45 per person which includes hot and sour soup, steamed pork dumplings (they are the dumpling experts!) and kung pao chicken. Image via Charlie Sugiri. 

If you need a loud, lively place your kids can rambunctiously ring in the New Year, then head to Mr Wong’s! Their 5 piece menu includes king crab puffs, abalone and mushroom dumplings, longevity noodles, snowcrab, and deboned ‘8 treasure’ chicken. Available 26 January – 2 February.

For a traditional Chinese food experience, check out Hong Kong Restaurant Newport, for a family friendly dining experience. Start with prawn crackers (always a hit with kids) and let them spin around the lazy Susan full of spring rolls and prawn cutlets, topped off with fresh fruit and fortune cookies. They have $33 and $35 per heard banquet menus available.

Are you and the kids Asian food lovers? Check out some of our favourite Asian food spots around Sydney here.

For more activities and the low-down on events across Sydney, check out our Chinese New Year guide here.