Where To Celebrate Lunar New Year 2022 In Miami

Almost two billion people celebrate the Lunar New Year across the globe. It is an important cultural celebration in Asia and among the Chinese, Vietnamese and Korean diasporas who live in different parts of the world. (I count myself as one of them, my family tracing ancestry to Fujian province in southern China.) Also known as Chinese New Year, Tết in Vietnam and Seollal in Korea, it is filled with customs and traditions centered around family and loved ones.

This year’s Lunar New Year, which follows the first new moon of the lunisolar calendar, falls on February 1. While in Miami there is a very small Asian population—less than 2% of the county’s 2.7 million residents are of Asian descent— it doesn’t mean the city is short of Lunar New Year celebrations!

From multi-course meals and lion and dragon dances to musical performances and fun cocktails, here’s a list of places to ring in the Year of the Tiger in Miami:

Mandarin Oriental Miami

From February 1 through 6, Mandarin Oriental Miami will celebrate Chinese New Year throughout the property, beginning in the lobby, which will be decorated with red lanterns and a giant lucky tree with red envelopes. MO Bar + Lounge will feature a special cocktail, Easy Tiger ($18), made with ginger liqueur, ginger, sparkling sake, Miyagawa mandarin, shiso green, artisanal bitters, and soda water; and will also be serving pork and shrimp shumai ($18) and dan dan noodles ($23).

At La Mar by Gastón Acurio, executive chef Diego Oka will showcase specialties like tiradito Tusán ($29) a 24-hour marinated duck magret in soy sauce and spices, rocoto daikon, and chives; a dim sum basket ($19) which includes pork and shrimp siu mai and seared steam bao with BBQ pork and scallions; and chili duck ragu noodles ($35), where egg noodles are topped with Chinese inspired ragu with water chestnut, sesame butter, poached egg.

Diners will also be treated to a lion dance performance on February 5 at 8PM.

Hakkasan

Hakkasan Miami at the Fontainebleau Hotel and Resort in Miami Beach will kick-off the Year of the Tiger with a lion dance on Tuesday, February 1. The lion troupes will make their way from the hotel’s Bleau Bar all the way to the restaurant where the lion will dance through the latticed woodwork cages, offering symbolic expressions of luck, fortune, wisdom and joy.

From January 28 to February 6, the restaurant will feature a limited-edition menu created by international chef de cuisine, Jian Loo. The prix fixe menu will be set at $138 per person (excluding tax and gratuity) for parties of two or more. Specialty dishes will include xingfu dim sum trio (baked truffle duck puff, tiger prawn dumpling, wild mushroom puff), salt-crusted fortune baked chicken, wok-fry wild sea bass, and XO sauce lobster egg fried rice.

1-800-Lucky

At the Asian food hall 1-800-Lucky, dim sum concept Yip will offer an assortment of dumplings ($6.90 for a basket of four), an extra-large pork soup dumping ($15), served with chili oil and black vinegar, alongside a specialty Tiger Boba Tea. The food hall has also created a specialty cocktail for the evening of February 1, Crouching Tiger ($14) made with gin, activated charcoal, passion fruit puree, lemon juice and simple syrup. Jairobi White from A Tribe Called Quest will spin at 7PM.

Phuc Yea

On February 1, Vietnamese-Cajun restaurant Phuc Yea will celebrate the Year of the Tiger with an interactive dine-around priced at $65 per person. Five stations will be scattered around the restaurant offering signatures dishes like smacked cucumbers, veggie peanut noodles, bun bo hue and char siu roasted cod. There will be two seating options, 7PM to 8PM; and 8PM to 9PM. They will also be hosting a three-hour open bar with specialty cocktails for $55 per person. There will be a dragon dance at 8:45PM, a DJ and take-home surprises.

Komodo

Komodo will offer live entertainment with a traditional dragon dance and drummers. The menu will be offered a-la-carte with a a number of off-menu specials.  

Tanuki

The restaurant in Miami Beach that serves both Chinese and Japanese fare, will launch a special sushi roll, Lobster Tiger Roll ($24), by chef Jason Acoba. The roll, which features shrimp tempura and kanikama, topped with lobster and drizzled with eel sauce and chipotle aioli, will be available from February 1 to 6. Additionally, on the 1^st, each guest will receive a special red envelope filled with various gifts including vouchers for free cocktails, appetizers and desserts. 

Coconut Grove

On Saturday, February 5 , from 6 to 9 PM, Coconut Grove will host a Chinese New Year celebration on Fuller Street, in collaboration with Wok Star founder and content creator Eleanor Hoh. A symbolic lion dance performance by Master Li of Lee Koon Hung Kung Fu will preface multi-cultural musical performances on Commodore Plaza featuring Taiwanese violinist Agnes Lin, Cuban sitar Arsenio Diaz, Japanese shinobue player Yukako Beatty, Vietnamese shamisen player Doanh Nguyen, and Thai dancer Nipawan Root. At any time, guests can opt to dine at any of the neighboring restaurants— there are eight—with an option to order takeout and enjoy on the benches of Fuller Street. These restaurants include: Minty Z, Atchana’s Homegrown Thai, Planta Queen, Duck & Sum, Bombay Darbar, Saffron at Grove and Varsol by Akashi.

Temple Street Eatery

In Fort Lauderdale, well-loved Temple Street Eatery will be offering a multi-course menu ($75 per person, inclusive of drinks) on January 31 at 6:45 PM. Dishes will include Taiwanese fried chicken, pork gyoza, Hong Kong borscht and lo han chai, also known as Buddha’s delight. The dining experience will also feature a lion dance show by members of the John Wai Martial Arts School, which will begin at 8 PM.