KOTA KINABALU: For the past 24 years, an Indian Muslim restaurant at Lintas Plaza has been celebrating Chinese New Year with free buffet, lion dance performance and ang pows for its customers.

Restoran Salim prepares complimentary buffet for its patrons on Sunday night.

By 9 pm, the restaurant was already packed with patrons and crowd waiting for the lion dance performance scheduled at 11 pm.

Salim, the restaurant owner, and his family were dressed in Chinese costumes distributing ang pows and watching the lion dance performance.

Salim says he used to work with the Chinese and has many Chinese friends as well as customers.

The entire family loves Chinese New Year, he added.

Since the restaurant was established in 2000, Salim has been inviting lion dance troupes to perform at his restaurant during Chinese New Year, except for two years during the pandemic lockdown.

In recent years, he has also included a buffet to treat his patrons as a way to celebrate Chinese New Year with all Malaysians.

Since then, the celebration has become one of the restaurant’s activities on the second day of Chinese New Year.

Patrons never fail to ask whether there will a be lion dance performance before the Chinese New Year, he said.

“Patrons are looking forward to the performance since we started celebrating CNY 24 years ago,” he explained.

Close to a thousand people gathered around the restaurant to watch the performance.

Many Malay patrons even reserved their seats in advance with the restaurant to celebrate Chinese New Year.

Salim hopes his children will continue the practice of celebrating Chinese New Year with all Malaysians after they take over the shop from him.

“Malaysia is a multiracial country and festive seasons should be celebrated by all,” he said.