It is no secret by now – Seasonal Tastes at The Westin Singapore is one classy restaurant we always love and frequent, and no matter how many times we dine there, there is always something new to look out for, and something different to try.

The buffet spread is one sumptuous one. Fresh seafood aplenty, sushi and sashimi selection, ala minute stations with varying cuisines, and our all-time favourite dessert shrine. They have the best desserts among the many buffet lines in Singapore. If you haven’t tried the spread, you are missing out – big time.

More reasons to visit Seasonal Tastes is the upcoming festivity, Lunar New Year. We already did, and as always, our taste buds were so spoilt by the team of chefs. This is one place to bring your family to for celebrations. The spread is wide and there will surely be something for everyone. More importantly, their lunar menu is a fair mix of traditional goodies and improvised recipes that is sure to please.

Here are the dishes to love at Seasonal Tastes’ Lunar New Year Buffet Spread:

MINI BUDDHA JUMPS OVER THE WALL

Buddha Jumps Over The Wall, for the uninitiated, is a prized Chinese delicacy. It is a soup dish, double-boiled over long hours with the most premium ingredients. It is flavoursome and very nutritious.

Every paying adult who dines at Seasonal Tastes’ during Lunar New Year’s Eve and Lunar New Year will get to enjoy a serving of this delicacy that comes with abalone, mushroom, sea cucumber, scallop and chicken. What a treat! This alone is reason enough to swing by for dinner, because it is such a value-add to the buffet!

GOLDEN FRIED FISH WITH TRIO OF SAUCE

Traditionally, fish symbolises ‘surplus’. Chinese like to believe that with surplus from the year, they will have better luck in the coming year to make more money.

And this fish dish is our favourite from Seasonal Tastes’ Lunar New Year buffet lineup. White fish slices fried to a crisp perfection, eat them with the three special homemade sauces – black pepper cheese, Thai sweet & spicy dip, and herbs & vinegar. Black pepper cheese sounds just about right. Who would have thought cheddar would blend so well with fresh black pepper? The creamy goodness complements the flaky white fish like peanut butter and jelly. But of course, a sweet and spicy kick is always good, that’s why we loved the Thai dip a lot too!

It may sound simple. Heck, it does not even look that pretty! But you need to try this yourself to experience that explosion of flavours in your mouth.

BRAISED PORK BELLY, TARO AND GOLDEN PUMPKIN

This dish has a very catchy Chinese name – jin(1) yin(2) man(3) wu(1). If your hanyu pinyin is as good as our Chemistry, this literally means your house is filled with gold and silver. In other words, wealth in abundance.

Metaphorically, the richness of this braised pork belly dish is a symbol of wealth. Slabs of prime fatty meat braised with heart and soul, then slathered with a sweet taro and pumpkin sauce. The end result is a melt-in-your-mouth meat dish that is so good on its own, we couldn’t help but have multiple servings. Even if you are not a fan of taro and/ or pumpkin, you will fall in love because the sweetness of the sauce is akin to that of BBQ-ed pork, or what we know as char siew.

MUSHROOM, BLACK MOSS, DRIED OYSTER & SEA CUCUMBER

This is a pot of auspicious ingredients, the Chinese would believe.

Black moss sounds and looks gross, but it is a popular ingredient that every household will use for their Lunar cookings. When dried, it resembles hair, hence its Chinese name (fa cai) – figuratively, it means striking it rich. Sea cucumber’s Cantonese name sounds like happiness, hence making it a prized ingredient for Chinese New Year too. And of course, dried oysters and mushrooms are ever popular among Chinese.

So, imagine having this dish free flow. Eat all you can! Eat all the auspiciousness, and enjoy a ‘surplus’ for the coming year!

GOLDEN PROSPERITY WATER CHESTNUT CAKE

The pastry chef and her team has come up with two creations for the Lunar feasting. Please do not stuff yourself silly with the savoury food, because you need room for desserts! Start your sweet indulgence with the prosperity cake.

Water chestnut cake is well-loved by the Cantonese, and it is a translucent beauty that has a tender texture and light sweetness – usually served chilled.

CHOCOLATE RED DATES GATEAUX

We’ve had many chocolate gateaux before, but a chocolate gateaux with red dates? This has ought to be the first.

SUPERFOODS FORTUNE YUSHENG

For Lunar New Year this year, The Westin Singapore is offering a Superfoods Fortune Yusheng that is made up of 28 ingredients and sauces. including apricot, raisins, pine nuts and dried berries. Not only does it come with healthier ingredients, it is also photogenic and is one of the prettiest yusheng that we’ve had in recent years. If you are in a group of 6 guests or more, the chefs will prep a full serving of yusheng for your tossing pleasure. For smaller groups, create your own yusheng. It is part of the buffet and you can have fun matching and matching the different ingredients for your DIY yusheng.

The Superfoods Fortune Yusheng (S$78+ for small, S$138+ for large) is also available for takeaway (from 1 Feb to 5 Mar) at Daily Treats, which is located at level 1 of The Westin Singapore. To order, email restaurant.reservation@westin.com, advance order of 3 days is required.

Lunar New Year’s Eve Buffet (18 Feb 2015)
Dinner: Adult S$98++, Child (aged 5 – 12) S$49++

Lunar New Year Buffet (19 Feb 2015 – 5 Mar 2015)
Lunch: Adult S$52++, Child (aged 5 – 12) S$26++
Dinner: Adult S$72++, Child (aged 5 – 12) S$36++

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Seasonal Tastes
32/F The Westin Singapore
Asia Square Tower 2
12 Marina View
Tel: +65 6922 6968
Email: seasonaltastes.singapore@westin.com
Nearest Station: Downtown/Marina Bay

This post is brought to you by The Westin Singapore.