---By Ann Li Translated by Cara Steenstra

Homemakers no longer need to spend hours slaving over a hot stove preparing Chinese New Year dishes. Major hotels now provide a much-welcomed service by preparing exqusite dishes for you to serve at home and enjoy with your family and friends for a happy, warm and wonderful New Year.

Evergreen Chinese Garden (Chinese-style New Year Dinner)
Chevalier Teppanyaki & Steakhouse (Western-style New Year Dinner); (04) 2313-9988

Evergreen Laurel Hotel (Taichung)
Chinese New Year Dinner Take Away
The Evergreen Laurel Hotel is presenting both Western and Chinese style take-away new year dinners. The Chinese-style New Year Dinner is priced at NT$6,500 for six, or NT$12,000 for 12 people. Dishes include a selection of cold-food platters, Steamed Lobster with Garlic Sauce, Stir-fried Scallops and Clam Meat on Green Vegetable, Double-boiled Shark's Fin Soup with Chicken Slice and Bamboo Shoot and Mushroom Julienne, Braised Abalone with Mushroom in Oyster Sauce, Steamed Grouper with Soy Sauce, Braised Pork Shank in Curry Sauce, and Double-boiled Chicken Soup with Yam and Wolf Berry. The Western-style dinner is NT$4,800 for four, and dishes include Roasted Spring Chicken with Rosemary Sauce, a fragrant dish infused with the scent of rosemary. The Roasted Rack of Lamb with Garlic Sauce is roasted at a high temperature to medium rare for a delicious taste; Roasted Striploin of Beef with Pepper and Mushroom Sauce is made from imported Australian and New Zealand beef, roasted at high temperatures for tenderness and to lock in juices. Finally, the Pan-fried Cod Fish with Honey Mustard Sauce should not be missed if you are a seafood lover.

The Landis Taichung Chinese New Year Dinner Take Away
From now through January 25, Tien Hsiang Lo restaurant Head Chef Li Wen-Zhan is presenting a special Chinese New Year banquet with seven dishes, two soups, one dessert and one sweet soup, for NT$12,800 per 12-person table. This comes with a free bottle of French red wine. There are also other options: for six to eight people per table at NT$6,800 there is five dishes, one soup and one sweet soup. All dishes are specially designed and auspiciously named for the New Year celebration. La Mode restaurant also presents Western-style dishes on their a la carte menu, such as Pork Knuckle with Sauerkraut, Roasted Rib Eye Steak, Duck's Leg with Beans, Stewed Leg of Lamb with French Style Stewed Vegetables, and the chef's very own homemade Foie Gras Pudding. Dishes are priced between NT$320 and NT$2,000. For reservations, call (04) 2326-8008 for take away service at La Mode Restaurant or Tien Hsiang Lo.

Howard Prince Hotel Taichung: Chinese New Year Takeaway
Head Chef Lin Yu-Shu, of the Howard Prince Taichung's 16th-floor Ocean Reef restaurant, has combined his years of experience and the needs of customers to create wonderful new dishes like the Shark's Fin Stew with Chicken Soup, Goose Feet with Abalone, Abalone with Oyster Sauce, Ba Bao Rice with Crab, Lobster Salad and much more. All dishes are priced between NT$800 and NT$3,600. A set menu for six is NT$6,000, and NT$12,000 for 12. Yangtse River restaurant is also offering takeaway set menus for the same prices. For more information, call (04) 2463-2323, ext. 2301 Yangtse River, ext. 21601 Ocean Reef, or ext. 2017 Banquet Department.

The Splendor Taichung: Chinese New Year Takeaway
Splendor Garden (15F) Head Chef Yang Fu-Qiang says that this year's Chinese New Year Takeaway focuses on New Style Cantonese cuisine and Abalone and Shark's Fin cuisine. Dishes include ChaoZhou Stewed Goose with French Foie Gras, Golden Deep Fried Sea Tiger Prawns, Stewed Yi-Pin Shark's Fin, Whole Chicken Stewed with Abalone and Dried Scallops, Bamboo Shoots with Lotus, Smoked Rainbow Trout, and SuZhou Bamboo Shoots with DongPo Meat--a total of seven dishes. This takeaway menu is available for NT$8,800 if you pick it up yourself, or it can be delivered to your door for NT$9,280. According to your preference, you can also purchase selected dishes such as the ChaoZhou Stewed Goose Foie Gras (NT$980 per dish), made from specially selected ChaoZhou stewed goose, mixed with top-grade French-style foie gras. The Golden Deep Fried Sea Tiger Prawns are presented with their original flavors for NT$980. Definitely worth trying is the Stewed Yi-Pin Shark's Fin, prepared from a choice selection of six sets of top hook fins and priced at NT$3,600 per dish. There are many more a la carte dishes on the menu for you to choose from, each sure to add color and flavor to your new year's celebration. Reservations are accepted until Jan. 27, 2006. (Please reserve three days in advance; pick-ups are available on Jan. 27 and 28, 2006 between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m.) For reservations, call (04) 2328-8000 and ask for the Splendor Garden.