MAY your year be wonderful

RECENTLY A FRIEND kindly invited us to dinner at a little Chinese restaurant in town called the May Garden. It's the sort of place which serves traditional Cantonese food, and it was also nice to see they have something available there which not that plentiful anymore: private rooms. This is a real shame, because for a special occasion it's quite nice to be able to eat in a relaxed environment with friends, and there's nothing nicer than a private room in which to do it.

DURING THE DAY they are quite well-known for their Char Siew and Siew Yoke, and the Roast Ducks which hang from the front of the shop. However, unfortunately that evening they'd already run out, and anyway it was a typical course dinner. One can hardly request extras when the host has already put a lot of trouble and thought, not to mention money, into planning the meal can one!

The food was quite tasty, prettily presented in conventional style, and the steamed fish was fresh, as was the noodles with crab. But surprisingly for a Cantonese restaurant part of their Four Season starters included sashimi - yes, fresh salmon and tuna with wasabi and soya sauce for dipping in. The dessert was pretty good too.

I also like the fact that there's plenty of parking available either at the back (not many people know this) or opposite (expensive) or a short walk away in the Red Garden Hawker Centre.