Chinese New Year, the year of the horse, begins Jan. 31.
Golden Gate Restaurant 1427 E Racine Ave, Waukesha, will be ringing in the Chinese New Year from 2 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 1.
The celebration will feature a free Lion Dance Show with music, firecrackers and lucky money. Activities will be held in the parking lot and inside the restaurant. There will be five lions outside and two lions inside the restaurant. State Sen. Paul Farrow will speak at the opening of the event and lighting of the firecrackers.
The Lion Dance show will be performed by members of the Shaolin Center.
Traditionally, the Chinese New Year is celebrated with fireworks, lion dancing, drums and cultural performances on the streets. The dancing and drums help scare away the evils from the pass and bring in the good for the new year. Since horses can run fast and provide transportation for people, Chinese treat horses as a symbol for speedy success. Some celebrities born under the sign of the horse are Rembrandt, Teddy Roosevelt, Clint Eastwood, Sean Connery and John Travolta.
Golden Gate Restaurant has been in Waukesha for over 34 years, moving from downtown Milwaukee where it was known as Lotus Restaurant from 1939 to 1979. Golden Gate has won many awards including the Top 10 Chinese Restaurant in America in 2010, AList 2007-2013 and CitySearch 2010-2011
For more information, call (262) 547-2171 or email ggr@prodigy.net