The 2010 Chinese New Year Festival in Honolulu spans two weekends: Friday and Saturday, January 22 & 23 and January 29 & 30. All that fun? It’s free. Presented by the United Chinese Coalition at the Chinatown Cultural Plaza from 10 am – 10 pm the event features plenty of great food vendors with a variety of Chinese and other Asian cuisine favorites, as well as exhibits and entertainment. You’ll find feng shui presentations, arts and crafts vendors, martial arts demonstrations, Chinese fortune readings, and Chinese dancing and singing.

Plus, here’s a bonus. Through the end of February, 2010 you can get a 10% discount on dining at many Chinatown restaurants and businesses. Simply wear your Year of the Tiger Ribbon or bring in your “Month-in- Chinatown” booklet. Here’s a list of participating restaurants:

Chin’s Kahala
4230 Waialae Ave., 737-7188

Duck Yun
Aina Haina Shopping Center, 373-1303

Eastern Food Center
118 N. King St., 536-4121 (restaurant menu only)

Empress Restaurant
Chinatown Cultural Plaza, 521-5055

Fook Lam Seafood Restaurant
Chinatown Cultural Plaza, 523-9168

Golden Palace Seafood Restaurant
111 N. King St., 521-8268
(Mon.-Fri. only)

Good Luck Chinese Restaurant
Chinatown Cultural Plaza, 524-9988

Harbor Village Cuisine
Hawaii Kai Shopping Center, 395-2311

Kit n Kitchen
1010 University Ave., Varsity Center, 942-7622

Lung Fung Chinese Restaurant
Niu Valley Shopping Center, 377-5555

Pah Ke’s
46-018 Kamehameha Hwy., Kaneohe, 235-4505 (Mon.-Fri. only)

Panda Cuisine
641 Keeaumoku St., 947-1688

Waikiki Lau Yee Chai
Waikiki Shopping Plaza, 5th Fl., 923-1112

Won Kee Seafood Restaurant
Chinatown Cultural Plaza, 524-6877

Yen King – Maple Garden
909 Isenberg St., McCully, 941-6641

For a complete list of participating businesses, click over to the Chinese New Year site.

~Kris Bordessa

(photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/geishabot/ / CC BY 2.0)