CHRISTMAS is barely over and I have already had the Joyful Dragon Feast at The Emperor Chinese Restaurant in Dorsett Grand Subang.

It started on an auspicious note with the yee sang ,or raw fish salad. Ours had both the raw salmon and abalone in a rousing toss, assuring us of good, luck, prosperity and happiness throughout the Dragon Year. We liked the smoothness of the salmon, the sweet marine flavour of abalone, the crunch of crackers, the freshness of the different vegetables, the aroma of crushed peanuts and sesame, and lastly the sweet plum sauce that brought everything together.

Braised dried seafood with crabmeat soup was served next. There’s nothing like hot soup to warm you up after a salad. The soup delivered slivers of dried fish, while the dried scallops, squid, prawns and crabmeat contributed to the natural sweetness of the clear soup. Eat this and your night just gains fame and recognition.

Roasted crispy duck and steamed chicken with ginger paste might seem like a strange match. But the roasted duck did not have a tasty, crispy skin and meat, and the ginger paste for the steamed kampung chicken was zesty, aromatic and generously covered the chicken. I had half a mind to ask: where is the chilli sauce and the chicken rice? Still, I enjoyed it.

Then it was the steamed dragon grouper with superior soya sauce. It was slightly overdone but fish is always my favourite, and this was a good, meaty one that promised abundant blessings for the new year.

If you have not tasted wok fried tiger prawns with marmite sauce for a while, here is a happy encountert. The prawns were cooked just night and glistened with the dark Marmite sauce, which was a little sweet. Prawns are a must-have for Chinese New Year, signifying laughter and happiness.

And who would miss the “extravagant fortune” to be delivered in the braised oysters, black moss, black mushrooms and fish maw with kai lan? It’s a good dish where you can savour each ingredient. What I liked most in this dish was the fish maw, oysters and crunchy green kai lan.

Steamed lotus leaf rice with smoked duck, mushrooms and cubed yam was delicious. How I wished it could be served earlier! 

There also dried prawns in the rice which unveiled the little flavourful treasures in it the more you dived into it.

To wrap it all up was the double-boiled longan, sea coconut and snow fungus, together with deep-fried crispy nian oao and osmanthus jelly. The sweet soup soothed and revitalised us, while crispy Nian Gao (rice cake) and the refreshing jelly made it all worthwhile.

The menu costs RM2288 nett per table of 10. Two other menus are at RM1688 and RM1288 nett.

The yee sang is available a la carte for dining in or takeaway. The price ranges from RM238 for half portion of sliced abalone and crystal pear to RM328 for a full portion. There are two vegetarian options.

The enus are available at the Emperor Chinese Restaurant at Dorsett Subang from now till the end of Chinese New Year. To book, call 03-5031 6060 extension 1912 or email bookfnb.subang@dorsetthotels.com. – January 6, 2024.

* Eu Hooi-Khaw has been writing about food for the longest time, covering all aspects, from restaurant reviews to cooking and recipes, as well as the healthy side of it. She has written for major newspapers and magazines, published the cookbook Fresh Ingredients, and also writes for her website hooikhawandsu.com.