Dining out during the festive season is a relatively new concept for mainland China. Traditionally, the eve and first two days of the Lunar New Year were reserved for family, eating large meals prepared by an army of relatives, like a Thanksgiving or Christmas feast in the West. Restaurants were often closed during the period as well。

　　在中国大陆，春节期间下馆子吃饭是一种相对时新的概念。在过去，除夕和正月头两天都要和家人一起过，享用亲戚们一起烹制的大餐，就像西方的感恩节或圣诞节盛宴。期间饭店通常也不开张。

　　But in recent years, restaurateurs say the festivities -- and the luxurious dishes that have become a staple for many wealthy Chinese -- are now taking place in their dining rooms。

　　但饭店经营者说，近几年人们都在饭店过节了，点的都是那些已成中国很多富人家常菜的奢侈菜肴。

　　In Hong Kong, affluent locals have been feasting on shark's fin and abalone in gilded restaurants during the New Year for some time -- the result partly of tiny apartments that are unable to host dinner parties。

　　在香港，有钱人会在春节期间前往豪华饭店吃鱼翅和鲍鱼，这种现象已经有了一段时间。部分原因是香港狭窄的公寓房里无法举办宴席。

　　At Fook Lam Moon in Hong Kong, pricey signature dishes for the festive season include a braised turtle number that costs 1,000 Hong Kong dollars (US$129). Reservations have bounced back this year after a dip in 2009, said Michelle Chui, a manager at Fook Lam Moon, which operates nine high-end Cantonese restaurants across Asia。

　　在香港的福临门，节日期间的高价招牌菜包括售价1,000港元(合129美元)的炖甲鱼。福临门一位经理Michelle Chui说，预订数量经过2009年的下滑后，今年已经回升。福临门在全亚洲开有九家高端粤菜馆。

　　The chain's two Hong Kong restaurants are booked solid over the New Year season, and Ms. Chui says demand is largely fueled by mainland Chinese diners holidaying in the city. 'This is a new phenomenon for us, only in the past two years' said Ms. Chui. 'The mainlanders have a lot more money these days.'

　　在春节期间，福临门香港两家酒楼的订餐情况都很不错，而据Chui表示，需求在很大程度上是由到香港过节的大陆食客推动的。她说：这对我们来说是一种新的现象，仅仅发生在过去两年;现在大陆人很有钱。

　　Some wonder if the rush to the restaurants is killing the true spirit of new year. Chen Hangfeng, a 35 year-old artist in Shanghai, loathes the obligation to eat numerous new year's meals at large banquet halls around the city and the fact that the new dining procession has replaced the family feast of years gone past。

　　一些人在想，都跑到饭店去吃饭是不是失去了过春节的真谛。上海35岁的艺术家陈航峰就不喜欢春节期间在城市的各个大型宴会厅里海吃海喝，也不满于这种新的赴宴方式已经取代过去那种家庭聚餐的事实。

　　'I don't like it at all,' said Mr. Chen who recalls large spreads that were hosted at the homes of relatives, where everything was made from scratch by the family -- even the grinding of the flour to make sticky rice balls for desserts。

　　他说：我一点也不喜欢。陈航峰回忆起在亲戚家里开宴的那种大场面，什么都是从头做起，就连做汤圆也是先要磨面。

　　'People try to order the expensive things to try to impress you and it just doesn't taste very good,' he said. 'By eating in restaurants, we're losing our authenticity.'

　　他说：人们总是想点那些昂贵的东西来给你留下深刻印象，而吃起来又并不怎么样;在饭店里吃饭，我们失去了本真。

　　Mr. Chen, however, is fighting a losing battle。

　　但陈航峰无法挽回这种趋势。