If you’re thinking about great Cantonese, you can’t look past Flower Drum – it’s an institution! A generous menu with classics as well as elevated new takes on what we think of as Chinese food. When I come here, I let Flower Drum head chef Anthony Liu take the lead with his chef’s menu – which basically means “surprise me”. Rest assured, you will be wowed by the food, no matter what is served. And don’t worry, you won’t miss out on the signature Peking duck with plum sauce. If you’re after a little more control, I suggest going all out and ordering a roast duck, pearl meat, mud crab noodles and the wagyu striploin. 17 Market Lane, Melbourne; flowerdrum.melbourne.

Gold Leaf Chinese Restaurant has been a staple for my family for almost two decades. It’s my go-to for yum cha on a Sunday morning, but it’s also the perfect place to celebrate LNY if you want a casual get-together with friends. After all, the secret to a good yum cha experience is to go with a big group so there’s more variety. If my family doesn’t spend the night of Lunar New Year cooking at home, we find there are different levels of banquets available here to fit all budgets, all centred around seafood, which is always spot-on for a late lunch or dinner. Various locations; goldleafrestaurant.com.au.

MoonHouse is a new one for me. It’s the perfect date-night spot or trendy place for catching up with friends. Think delicious crowd-pleasers like pork buns with char sui, supreme fried rice and crispy pork paired with an extensive cocktail list and wine list. For Lunar New Year, they also have a special banquet menu, and offer longevity noodles and yee sang (raw fish salad) that you can all sit around and toss into the air for some LNY fun. With yee sang, you mix the salad by using chopsticks to throw the ingredients into the air – the higher the toss, the better your year. 282 Carlisle Street, Balaclava; moonhouse.com.au.

Yūgen South Yarra has fast become one of my favourite places to dine in Melbourne. The prawn toast is done on super-indulgent gio chao quay, which is like a savoury doughnut. The bò lá lốt skewers are a must-have; this dish is a beautifully fatty mince wrapped in betel leaf, and can be found at every LNY event we hold at home. For LNY, they have two special banquets. The first costs $188 (8 being very lucky in a lot of Asian cultures), with matching $88 drinks. If you’re feeling extra flush, they also have a mind-blowing $888pp banquet, with the likes of toothfish with ginger and spring onion, marron with XO butter sauce and A5 Wagyu. 605 Chapel Street, South Yarra; yugendining.com.au.

Two sister restaurants that have amazing vibes and even better dumplings. Oriental Teahouse in South Yarra and the CBD are both perfect for a more casual atmosphere. The crispy squid tentacles and crispy fried steak at Oriental live rent-free in my mind, but it’s the mixed Asian greens that are, surprisingly, my stand-out dish. If you’re after something a little more intimate, little brother restaurant David’s is perfect for dinner. The iron Buddha beef, ginger and duck dumplings and XO pipis are truly a must. Also, leave room for the white chocolate dumplings. They have a special lunch on February 10 for LNY with lion dancers. Various locations; orientalteahouse.com.au.