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This Saturday is the beginning of a very special Lunar New Year: the Year of the Dragon. The dragon is a symbol of prosperity, so a dragon year means plenty of good luck and fortune. 

Chef Tammy Wong is making sure the year gets off to a good start. She is serving up a dragon-worthy feast at her Rainbow Chinese Restaurant. It will be the first time in a long time that she’ll be able to treat guests to a special dine-in experience for the new year. She had to shut down the restaurant’s dining room during the pandemic. It reopened in July. 

“Giving people a chance to come back — they’re so happy,” she said.

Chef Tammy Wong's new year menu

Her multicourse Lunar New Year feast includes shrimp dumpling soup, good fortune oysters, temple noodles, crispy tangerine chicken and cardamom ginger cookies for dessert. 

A central ingredient across the menu: citrus.

“When you go to visit someone during the Chinese new year, it’s always welcome to bring citrus — orange, tangerine — mostly because it’s shaped like a nugget,” she explained.

Wong will offer her special dine-in only menu at Rainbow Chinese Restaurant Feb. 8-10 and again Feb. 14-17. 

For the full interview with Wong, click play on the player above.

Tom Crann

Host

Ngoc Bui

Author

Rainbow Chinese Restaurant in Minneapolis has a special menu for Lunar New Year. This will be the first time since the pandemic that chef Tammy Wong has been able to welcome guests in her dining room for the occasion. 

Rainbow Chinese Restaurant in Minneapolis has a special menu for lunar new year. It’ll be the first time since the pandemic chef Tammy Wong has been able to welcome guests in her dining room for the occasion. 

Rainbow Chinese Restaurant in Minneapolis has a special menu for Lunar New Year. It’ll be the first time since the pandemic chef Tammy Wong has been able to welcome guests in her dining room for the occasion. 

Chef Tammy Wong's Lunar New Year menu is worthy of the year of the dragon

A woman stands in front of a restaurant's storefront

Chef serves up special feast to welcome the Year of the Dragon

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