Celebrate Chinese New Year at Shang Palace

Shang Palace at the Makati Shangri-la ushers in the Year of the Wooden Horse with luxurious set menus and Yu Sheng. I got a chance to savor one of Shang Palace’s set menu including the Singapore/Malaysian tradition of having Yu Sheng to start the meal.

We started with a fun Salmon Fish Yu Sheng/Yee Sang,(P1,298) a tradition in Singapore, and Malaysia. It was my first time to try it out so I did not really know what to expect. A plate is piled with different ingredients each one with a corresponding Chinese wishes.
Once completed, each guest gets a pair of chopsticks and proceed to mix the ingredients by tossing it as high as they can. Everyone is encouraged to make a mess, in the spirit of luck. After the tossing, each person is given a serving of the salad.

The next dish in the Chinese New Year Set Menu E was the Suckling Pig Combination Platter. In the platter that was served, Roast duck was served in lieu of the Suckling Pig due to dietary restrictions of some of the guests.

To warm the tummy, a Dried Scallop, Shredded Chicken, Bamboo Pith and Crab Meat Soup was served. This soup reminded me of the flavors of the dreaded shark’s fins soup since the Shangri-la hotel group does not serve shark’s fin in any of their properties, something I fully support. No ingredient dominated, a medley of flavors and textures in this delicious soup.

The Stir Fried Scallops in XO Sauce caused quite a stir on our table because of the huge size of the scallops. The scallops were tender and cooked perfectly, retaining all the sweet flavors of the sea. The XO sauce added a bit of spice, nothing tongue burning, to enhance the flavors. The broccoli florets provided lots of crunch as well as added to the visual impact of the dish.

Braised Abalone, Dried Oyster,Mushroom in Bean Curd Skin was served next. Each beancurd skin pocket mimics the Chinese gold nugget. You’ll first taste the abalone, then the strong concentrated flavors of the dried oysters and finally the mushrooms, then finally the garlic infused bean curd skin. The greens come topped with moss, each ingredient is traditionally eaten for CNY.

Steamed Lapu Lapu in Light Soya Sauce. The fish was large sized with a nice Hong Kong style sauce that was really good.

Deep Fried Crispy Chicken was supposed to have been the next dish but Roast Duck replace it instead to the delight of everyone. This is one of the best roast ducks I’ve had in Manila, be sure to dip it with their house made plum sauce.

Wok Fried Glutinous Rice with Winter Meat in Lotus Leaf was the last savory dish of the lauriat. Rice or noodles are usually served at the end of the meal to allow the guests to savor each dish and only eat rice or noodle to fill up their stomachs. Sticky and with lots of diced Chinese sausage, this is one rice dish I would not mind eating at the start.

For dessert we had a unique Chilled Pumpkin Cream. Who would have thought pumpkin could be used as a dessert like this, there are strips of white fungus for some contrasting texture. The cream is nice and smooth with the pumpkin flavor present but tempered. Crispy Fried Nian Gao (Tikoy) was also served, made in house and in a nice bright orange color.

Other activities at Makati Shangri-la are the Lion and Dragon dance happening on Jan.30, 2014 at 11pm and Jan. 31, 2014 at 12:30pm. They also have a Prosperous Accommodation package for those looking for a nice and easy staycation for only P6,888 per night.

For more information on Makati Shangri-la’s Chinese New Year festivities you can call (632) 813-8888 or check out their website and Facebook page.