Chinese restaurant in Charlottetown taking a New Year's tradition to a new level

It's New Year's Eve, the clock's struck midnight, you've kissed your sweetie, and another year has begun.

Now what?

For many on P.E.I., it's time to tuck into some Chinese food.

"We always had Chinese food on New Year's Eve," said Patrick Ross. "It's a comfort food and it's part of that tradition. It just went hand in hand with New Year's Eve or New Year's Day."

Ross is now the owner of China Garden restaurant in Charlottetown. And instead of ordering Chinese food for himself, he'll be dishing it out to hundreds of customers during the restaurant's first official New Year's Eve party.

"We decided if we're going to do it, we're gonna go big," he said. "We want people to feel like they're in their own kitchen and having a party."

They have three sets of musical entertainers, ending with Joey Kitson and Marvin Burt from 11 p.m to 1 a.m.

There will be prizes, drink specials and a tutorial on how to play the spoons. And, of course, there will be egg rolls and sweet and sour chicken balls. As of Tuesday afternoon, Ross said the restaurant had prepared about 4,500 egg rolls.

The restaurant had already received about 170 take-out orders as of midday, Ross said, and he expects the dining area to fill up quickly. There's a first-come, first-served policy in place.

There are also other options for Chinese food in the city, including The Noodle House, Kings BBQ & Chinese Food, Splendid Essence, Canton Cafe, Unique Wok and Mad Wok.