As the Year of the Tiger gets ready to roar, its advent is being marked by festivities in Dublin celebrating the arrival of the Lunar New Year.
Previously known as the Dublin Chinese New Year Festival, the festival’s recent rebranding as the Dublin Lunar New Year Festival reflects a desire to foster stronger engagement with all communities who celebrate the Lunar New Year, including China, Vietnam, South Korea, North Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Brunei.
The festival is run under the auspices of the City Arts Office of Dublin City Council and aims to celebrate, promote and deepen the understanding of the East Asian-Irish relationship through an annual festival of arts, culture and exchange, promising to bring traditional and contemporary ideas together in innovative and exciting ways.
From a food perspective there are plenty of online and live events to look forward to, including a special Spice Bags Podcast on Wed January 26th which delves into the world of kitchens to explore Lunar New Year traditions such as hong bao, jiaozi and yusheng and the prosperity toss. As an added bonus the Spice Baggers promise plenty of advice and tips on how to craft your own Lunar New Year dinner at home.
Guinness too has a long history in Asia, dating back to its first recorded export to Singapore in 1869, and to celebrate this longstanding association the exterior of The Guinness Storehouse is currently shining red to celebrate the Year of the Tiger.
Inside the building, visitors can enjoy Mandarin audio guided tours and special Year of the Tiger themed STOUTies. In addition, the home of the black stuff has also put together a special collaboration with Hakkahan, Dublin’s newest Chinese restaurant in Stoneybatter, where the food focus is “purely Sichuan”.
Hakkahan’s head chef Terry has devised an exclusive Guinness X Hakkahan inspired dish, which is exclusively available in the Storehouse restaurant 1837, until the end of February.
Meanwhile the Chester Beatty also hosts a number of online events, including a drawing class for the year that’s in it at 11am on Tuesday, February 1st where participants can learn how to draw a tiger’s face with artist Jen O’Brian.
Full programme details are available at dublinlunarnewyear.ie with opportunities to watch events on their You Tube Channel.
The Dublin Lunar New Year Festival takes place from Friday Jan 23rd to Sunday Feb 6th.
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Feature Image: Sasko Lazarov, Photocall Ireland
