Today were were at Fairmont Hotel Vancouver for the launch of their annual Lunar New Year High Tea. This is one of my favourite sets for the decor, coupled with the fact that Lunar New Year is my favourite holiday.
The room drips with red and gold. Paper lanterns, red rope woven charms, and bushels of white and red faux florals accented with red pockets themed to the year of the horse.
The wall shelves are outfitted with Chinese inspired accoutrements like wooden fans, blue and white porcelain vases and urns, as well as Chinese chess boards. It all adds to the robust theme.
The tea room is also adorned with a custom Year of the Horse illustration by Vancouver-based artist Justine Crawford. This is hung as the backdrop to their feature wall and available as a handheld on each of the menus. Enjoying the tea service here will grant five lucky guests the chance to paint with Justine through one of Foo Hung Curios’ prize bundles. This includes a Sip & Paint experience hosted by the artist herself.
This limited-time Lunar New Year Afternoon Tea will be available Thursday to Sunday from January 9th to February 22nd, 2026. Reservations are highly recommended and can be made online. Patrons can also expect extra seatings for the actual week of Lunar New Year.
The return of the high tea also renews Fairmont Hotel Vancouver’s partnership with the Chinatown Storytelling Centre, and its goal of celebrating the rich cultural heritage of Vancouver’s Chinatown. The partnership includes the incorporation of the Chinatown Storytelling Centre’s house tea blend into the high tea. This in itself is a collaboration done with local tea connoisseurs: Tealeaves. This is their Gold Mountain Tea, a blend of jasmine and earl grey. It can be enjoyed as is with the high tea set, or in a scone, and/or cocktail. Each tea service also includes a free admission to the Chinatown Storytelling as a parting gift.
As always Fairmont Vancouver tea services come with drink options, and this time around they have partnered with Hennessy for their “Horse” themed cocktail with Hennessy VS, jasmine green tea, and a lemon twist.
Whereas the “Horse” was described as “energetic, independent, impatient”; the “Love & Peace” was the opposite described as “mild-mannered, shy, kind, and peace-loving”. The latter is a mix of Hennessy VSOP privilege, green tea, basil leaf, and strawberry.
The Golden Tea Sour is the cocktail featuring Gold Mountain Tea alongside Canadian Whisky rye, egg white, melon liquor, yuzu juice, and honey.
And the Lychee Rose Spritz is gin based with the flavours of rose, lychee, dragonfruit syrup, and Aperol.
For those who prefer something warmer and more traditional look to their seasonal teas instead, like the above mentioned Gold Mountain as intended. The Pu-erh Special is a three year old tea with toasted bread highlights and elemental earthy notes. The Oolong Goji Berry is a balance of sweet and tart goji berries infused with floral notes of oolong. And Lychee Congo’s is a leafy black tea infused with the flavour of lychee fruit.
As for the food, instead of being served on a typical three tier tray, it is presented in a special three level wooden caddy, chosen to fit the theme. At the very bottom are the Fairmont’s signature scones. The classic buttermilk served with an airy whipped tea cream and instead of jam it was a citrus preserve this season. The other scone is jasmine earl grey, made with the Gold Mountain Tea. As always, their scones are a happy sight, but if there is something to be too full to finish and have to take home, it is these.
Instead, I started with the savoury tray and the Soy Scallion Quiche. This is a butter-based pastry crust with baked egg centre, topped and flavoured with chilli crunch and truffle aioli. The toppings were what made this bite rich and a little on the oily side. I would also advise spreading the crunch over the top, as it is on the saltier side and fairly condensed.
I found the use of “Char Siu” in the description of the Salmon Mi-cuit misleading. I immediately expected a fatty and luscious slice of meat, whereas the name refers to the sweet sauce used in char siu, over salmon instead. This gave the fish a some what candied flavour without the tough texture that often accompanies it. With the tangy red onion jam and the refreshing yuzu aioli, it did remind me of the smoked salmon and lox combo, which you would find on such a tea set, but with an Asian inspired twist. So for that I thought this was pretty clever.
In terms of fattier cuts of meat, I did get that from their Shanghai Braised Pork Belly. Despite it being harder and dry, you were still able to make out its fattier bits thanks to the plum jam offering a nice contrast. Irregardless, the turnip cake was what I was most excited about, it was a shame that it was only such a thin slice and that it was hidden behind the pork belly. I could have eaten this as is, as its own item.
The Prawn Toast reminded me of shrimp dumplings in taste. A similar shrimp loaf, spread over toast and topped with Szechuan glaze, kewpie, and chives. It was salty, bold, and had me reaching for my tea. The others at my table enjoyed it the most.
The Smoked Duck Ham came stuffed into a steamed bao with hoisin, cucumber, and scallion ginger sauce. This was the most filling of all the bites, but I would have liked more sauces and veggies to best balance out the saltier ham and otherwise plain bun.
The top tier was the most visual, and I thought all the desserts cleverly done to theme.
The Green Tea Brownie was a wonderful take on a classic, topped with a decorative ivory chocolate shard. It was so soft that it almost had a mousse-like texture to it. Bitter to start from the matcha, but it ends on the sweetness of white chocolate.
My favourite sweet bite was the Sesame Miso Biscuit with savoury undertones and the fragrant essence of toasted black sesame.
Unexpected, and a happy surprise was the Mandarin Sago Pudding. Served in a shot glass with strawberry brunoise. This was an ideal, custard-like refreshing end.
A fun one was the Raspberry Macaron with dark chocolate ganache and gold flake. The two chocolate sticks positioned upright were meant to mimic incense for the auspicious occasion.
Not necessarily Lunar New Year inspired in flavour, but in look, was the Red Velvet Cake with vanilla cream cheese icing. A familiar flavour and tasty sight.
Overall, this was a fantastic way to celebrate the holiday. Other Lunar New Year inspired events to look out for within downtown Vancouver’s Castle are the lion dances and gift shop Popup on the actual Lunar New Year day: February 17, 2026. Fairmont Hotel Vancouver will treat guests to a vibrant Lion Dance performance by Hon Hsing Athletic Club, taking place throughout the lobby and Notch8 Restaurant at 2:30pm. Afternoon tea will also be available on this special day, for those who what to make an afternoon of it. There will also be a Foo Hung Curios pop-up, where guests are able to shop for souvenirs keepsakes of the occasion and celebration.
Notch 8
900 W Georgia Street, Vancouver, BC V6C 2W6
(604) 662-1900
fairmont-hotel-vancouver.com
