By now, you would’ve seen all the dog motifs, soft toys, knick-knacks, and embellishments interspersed with blasts of in-your-face red hues across shops, malls, and neighborhoods in Singapore. Sure, some are adorbs, but others… let’s just assume their budget for decorations did not include hiring someone who knows a thing or two about design.
So yeah, everyone on this island probably knows we’re ushering in the Year of the Dog for Chinese New Year 2018. But apparently, our love for man’s best friend has caused excitement levels to go a little overboard with dog-shaped yusheng dishes.
Yep, it seems restaurants and hotels everywhere want a piece of the furry action, and they’re not afraid to charge extra for these “special” creations. Granted, a couple of ’em have plated elegant works of art, but the rest probably shouldn’t have carved up their yusheng items into odd-shaped canines simply to stay on-trend. Just because it’s the dog’s turn in the spotlight doesn’t mean we have to butcher our “Prosperity Toss”.
Anyway, tickled by the strange creations spotted on social media, we scoured the web and came up with this list of eight dog-shaped yusheng designs, ranked from impressive to LOL. Enjoy.
Jade at The Fullerton Hotel
As one of our favorite dim sum restaurants in town (you gotta check out the weekend buffet), Jade is pretty up there in our hearts when it comes to Chinese cuisine in Singapore. So we weren’t surprised that this year’s limited edition yusheng is quite the masterpiece.
Inspired by Pekingese dogs and their resemblance to Chinese guardian lions, the carefully plated showpiece looks like a cross between the two, with intricate details that surely require a humongous amount of time and effort.
That’s probably why it comes with a S$999 price tag and has to be ordered three days in advance. Damn.
Min Jiang at Goodwood Park Hotel
Okay, so this one’s not actually a plate of yusheng molded into the silhouette of a canine. But it is a subtle, tasteful take on the Year of the Dog celebrations, with a painting of a Pekingese on the foothills of a mountain illustrated by the master chef of Min Jiang himself. Glistening slices of raw salmon, abalone pieces topped with tobiko, edible viola petals, and wasabi tobiko complete the Prosperity Yusheng (S$168).
After you’re done photographing it for the ‘gram, go ahead and toss in the veggies, pine nuts, fried sweet potato and yam, pomelo, and sesame seeds, followed by a drizzle of lime juice, lemongrass, and plum sauce dressing.
Food Capital at Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel
Messy as it may appear, at least this one’s shaped like an adorable (albeit confused-looking) little puppy who just wants to play ball. Served with raw salmon, it’s a pretty standard yusheng dish that families can order (with a three-day advance notice) for S$108 to add a little pizzazz to this year’s reunion dinner.
Golden Peony at Conrad Centennial Singapore
Aside from the peculiar color combination of white, green, and orange for the dogs, Golden Peony’s festive plate is as endearing as they come (just check out those two tiny furballs in the corner). Although we have to confess we’re not entirely sure what’s going on with the top dog’s eyebrows — if that’s what those are — unless “permanently stunned professor” was the look the chef was going for.
But seeing as how one order can serve at least 30 people, you’d better arrive with a huge family in tow (or your entire company department) before you attempt to chow down on the mix of abalone, salmon, crispy fish, turnip, carrots, and yam.
Hai Tien Lo at Pan Pacific Hotel Singapore
Who can resist a cheery doggo who looks like its sole happiness in life stems from you? With its tongue playfully peeking out, this furry friend from Hai Tien Lo grins at you so gleefully that you’d be hard-pressed to actually start tossing the ingredients for fear of messing it up. At S$128, the platter includes servings of baby abalone, Imperial bird’s nest, and Boston lobster. Just don’t look at it from another angle — it might look more like a pig’s face than a dog’s.
Si Chuan Dou Hua Restaurant
Made for those who crave the thrill of living on the edge, this is touted as Singapore’s first fugu (pufferfish) yusheng. It apparently comes in the shape of a dog for S$198, but we’re having a hard time picturing it as anything other than sheep. Nonetheless, if you prefer to stay on the safe side, regular salmon sashimi is available, and it can be presented (more beautifully) in the shape of a crane for S$178.
Amara Hotel Grand Ballroom
A one-off creation just for families dining at Amara Hotel’s Grand Ballroom on Feb 15, this dog looks like it’s just having a really bad day. From its peculiar-shaped head to those bright orange ears shooting out its sides to the green contraption that looks like a misplaced mustache, let’s just say it’s a good thing the dish comes with so many sides.
Because you can quickly toss ’em in, shout “huat ah!” and forget your 2018 yusheng ever looked like that.
Ellenborough Market Café at Swissôtel Merchant Court
Sometimes, variety can be a good thing. But unfortunately for Ellenborough Market Café, the more permutations the kitchen experiments on its customized dog-shaped yusheng creations, the more tragic it gets.
Just click through the five yusheng platters made with ingredients such as leek, pomelo, and purple cabbage. It starts off admittedly cute, then descends into what looks like an unfortunate (and perpetually shocked) dog’s head on a platter, followed by a three-legged creature from an unknown species, and then… Goofy, is that you?!
Last but not least, a canine that means serious business — it’s either wearing sunglasses indoors or it just underwent a lasik op and can’t look into the light. Whatever the case, if you choose to throw in an extra S$20 for these designs, they’ll certainly make for one very amusing reunion dinner.
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