My Chinese New Year Reunion Dinner

Terengganu....beautiful Terengganu! I was home for the Chinese New Year (CNY) and just got back today. To be honest with you, the CNY mood was rather subdued. I was more excited about spending time with my parents, my brothers, my sister-in-law, my nephew and niece. And of course the eating frenzy heh....heh...even though my waistline was already very prosperous ahead of CNY. Had to wear my "fiat piants" (fat pants), the one with rubberized waistband which comes in handy when you want to eat a lot. Automatic expansion. Hah! Hah!

Good diet food.

Back in the old days we had our reunion dinner at my maternal grandparent's home. On the morning of the eve, my mum and I would go to my grandma's and help her. Well, it was my mum who did most of the helping of course. I was still quite useless in the kitchen then, more interested in how many eggs I could eat in the Kay Hong. The other standard dishes that would grace the dining table were Kay Kutuk, Kay Khong Eam, Chim Koay, Nonya Acar, Kiam Chye Ark, Bakwan Thng and a few more. Those were the days when CNY was a lot more exciting, when all of us got together under one roof and it was truly "lau juak" (full of merriment). I am a lot older now and the family unit is getting smaller as some members are overseas and others unable to come home due to ill health or other circumstances.

I wonder how many of you still cook at home as it is now a trend (not really a trend but more for convenience) for families to organize their reunions dinners at hotels and restaurants. It is no different for my family as we have been eating out for the past few years. With the exception of the times when my parents came over to PJ to celebrate and yours truly was the cook. Ahem!

I could have eaten just this and be satisfied.

Since I have not been cooking for the last few days, I have nothing to show you hah..hah.... I didn't even have time to bake cookies. But you can take a look at my family reunion dinner at The Grand Continental Kuala Terengganu.

I usually attack the yam. Not so interested in the filling.

My cousin and his family came back from Australia way before CNY and they were able to join us. But sadly they had to leave on the first day of new year as the kids had to go back to school. My mum was not present because she had to look after my grandma who is very frail and is in advanced stage of Alzheimer.

Let's look at the menu.

I have not been back to KT for what, 4 or 5 years already. The last few times I was home, I remember the menu and modus operandi at the Grand Continental was the same. Same menu, same lounge singer and same songs. Apparently this year there was a revamp. The dishes are different and were very tasty save for two which I felt could have been better executed. Since it was a Thursday night, there was no singer and it was fine by me. You know me, I like rock and that's not what the guy would be singing :) Besides us, there was only one other table booked. I heard that business had gone to another competitor nearby.

The first dish was of course Yee Sang. There were generous slices of salmon but not enough to go around.

But I was not complaining as the Yee Sang was very tasty.

I would prefer more fresh vegetables but this is the version with those colorful crunchies which I do not really fancy.

My first helping. Not a piece of salmon in sight.

But still, I had three helpings because it was good.

Spilled prosperity.

Next was my favorite of night, the Golden Lotus Five Seasons Platter.

Look at that, very generous portions.

The star of the platter for me was the Chicken Feet Kerabu.

I overheard my uncle telling his friend (Uncle Yong was alone for the CNY and hence joined us) that in Thailand, the pretty Thai girls use their teeth to remove the bones from the chicken feet. Or something like that. I did see some photos circulating on the internet on how chicken feet bones are removed by mouth. Don't know how true that is but it didn't stop me from scooping seconds.

Next up was Steamed Chicken Herbal Soup. Initially I thought it would come in a big bowl with the waiter serving the soup in individual bowls. But no, the soup came in individual servings. The herbs were quite mild and I would have preferred more robust flavors.

The Steamed Garoupa in Soya Sauce was of a good size but it was slightly overcooked. I guess it is tricky and takes a lot of skill to steam a fish just right.

It was looking right at me.

The flesh was a bit hard and therefore not as tasty as it should have been. I am becoming quite the critic am I not? Just like Arthur hee...hee....

The Golden Prawns with Salted Egg came next and they were excellent.

I am not a fan of prawns but I had three.

Next dish was one of my old favorites, Fried Yam Ring. But oh no, I exercised self-restraint and stayed away from the yam as it is high in carbohydrates. I only took a bit of the filling.

The Broccoli with Mushrooms and Sea Cucumber came after that. I sort of expected this dish. I love broccoli and this dish did not disappoint. By this time, I was already very full or else I would have taken extra helpings.

The last dish was Steamed Rice in Lotus Leaf which came in individual parcels. And again, self-restraint. No carbo for me!

But after seeing what it looked like inside, I don't think I missed out much. The rice was overcooked and very mushy.

The White Fungus and Sea Coconut dessert came right after and I was pleased that it was not too sweet. Very refreshing and cooling.

Can one really abstain from carbo during all the festivities? I caved in when the pancakes arrived. How could anyone resist Chinese pancakes with crispy skin and soft sweet filling? I had one small piece. That's right, just one and I thought I was doing well.

Chinese pancakes. Love the crispy skin.

But no. Guess what came after that? Banana Pancakes with Vanilla Ice Cream. I was seriously twitching in my seat. How to say no? Aiyah, just eat lah! After my first bite, I have to say that the banana pancake could be improved in terms of texture (it was too thick and tough) and taste (very bland except for the bananas). I was so excited I forgot to snap photos. But luckily I spotted Amelia's (my cousin's cute daughter) uneaten ice-cream and managed a shot.

Too late. The ice-cream melted and was not so presentable.

That was not the end of our eating session. Back home, we still had enough space in our tanks for beer and tidbits. After that it was bedtime.

I spotted some nice breads. Wish I can eat.

Oops! Not real bread.

And just a quick one before I sign off. The first day of new year after visiting my uncle, we had lunch. Banana leaf curry lunch, a family favorite. We are a fan of Indian curry and we had to have our curry fix even if it was CNY. But we were disappointed as the cooking was not up to par. Though the dishes looked good, they lacked punch and the spicy flavors that we have come to expect of good Indian fare.