Celebrate the Lunar New Year in Chicago! With Chinese New Year just around the corner, there are many wonderful ways to join in the festivities. Enjoy colorful parades, cultural celebrations, delicious dinners, and engaging crafts. Lunar New Year begins on January 29th and continues until February 16th, 2025. This year marks the Year of the Snake, which symbolizes being “enigmatic, intelligent, and wise.” Make this Lunar Chinese New Year in Chicago an unforgettable experience during this significant 15-day holiday!
Ring in the year of the rabbit at Chinatown’s Lunar New Year Parade
Celebrate the ‘Year of the Snake’ by joining in on Chinatown’s annual Lunar New Year parade festivities. The Chicago Lunar New Year parade will take place on Sunday, February 9, 2025. The neighborhood is set to celebrate the official Lunar New Year with a massive parade featuring floats, decorations, and plenty of revelry. Grab a good spot in the crowd and see lively marching band performances, decked-out parade floats, and the traditional lion dancers group performance.
📍Address: S Wentworth Ave & W 24th St, Chicago, IL 60616
Celebrate at Sunda with a Chinese New Year Menu
One of our favorite Southeast Asian restaurants is celebrating the Lunar New Year in Chicago by adding delicious menu items. The limited-time menu offerings and festive experiences are available from January 22 through February 9, 2025, at both the Fulton Market and River North locations. To kick off the celebrations, each location will host a traditional Lion Dance performance, a vibrant cultural tradition symbolizing good fortune and prosperity.
📍Address: 110 W Illinois St, Chicago, IL 60654
📍Address: 333 N Green St, Chicago, IL 60607
Make a dragon or lantern with your kids
Head to McKinley Park, drop in, and make a dragon or a lantern to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year in Chicago!
Address: 1915 W. 35th Street, Chicago, IL 60609
📍 Location: 651 W. Washington Blvd. Chicago, IL 60661
🗓️ Dates: January 26th – 31st and February 2nd – 6th, 2025
Chinese New Year Dumpling-Making Dinner
Celebrate the Lunar New Year in Chicago with a dumpling-making dinner hosted by the Chicago Chinese Cultural Institute. The event will feature storytelling, lion dances, dumpling making, and a delicious feast. Tickets are priced at $55.
📍Address: 2140 South Archer Avenue Chicago, IL 60616
🗓️ Dates: February 1-2
Attend a parade in Uptown at the Argyle Lunar New Year Celebration
This Lunar New Year in Chicago annual tradition goes back 40+ years and is one of the quintessential ways to celebrate the Chinese New Year in Chicago. Join Uptown United and Argyle Street’s local businesses, nonprofits, and cultural organizations for the 2025 Lunar New Year.
They’ll host the Lunar New Parade on February 8th, 2025, to welcome the Year of the Snaker. Kick-off begins at 1:00 pm sharp and will feature 20+ local community groups, cultural institutions, dancers, and performers. In addition, some local organizations are planning pop-ups with family-friendly activities between 10:00 am and 4:00 pm.
📍Address: W Argyle St and N Winthrop Ave, Chicago, IL, 60640
Lunar New Year Feast at Maxwells Trading
To celebrate the Lunar New Year in Chicago, Maxwells Trading is hosting a special collaborative feast featuring chefs Erling Wu-Bower and Chris Jung of Maxwells Trading alongside chefs Thai Dang (HaiSous) and Gene Kato (Momotaro & Itoko). Enjoy a family-style prix-fixe menu showcasing the chefs’ favorite family traditions and recipes. Menu highlights include:
- Five Spice Braised Short Rib with Stir Fried Water Spinach
- Càri Cá, monkfish cooked in fragrant coconut broth with tía tô
- Osechi Box, a New Year sushi box
- Gỏi mực khô – dried Saigon squid, banana blossom, and Vietnamese herbs
📍Address: Maxwells Trading, 1516 West Carroll Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60607
🗓️ Date: January 29, with seatings at 5:30 pm and 8:00 pm
Fashion Outlets of Chicago Chinese Lunar New Year Celebration
Fashion Outlets of Chicago will be hosting its annual Chinese Lunar New Year celebration. Taking place from Friday, Jan. 24 through Sunday, Feb. 16, 2025, this initiative will feature a lineup of cultural programming, free activities, and more! On Saturday, Jan. 25, Fashion Outlets of Chicago will ring in the Year of the Snake with a Lunar New Year kickoff event in the shopping center’s Food Court beginning at 1 p.m. Guests can enjoy lantern crafting, dumpling making, Chinese calligraphy, Chopstick Challenge and more. Special cultural performances presented by Huaxing Arts Group will also take place from 2 to 2:30 p.m. and will feature Kung Fu, Gu Zheng, Chinese yo-yo, a children’s choir, and a dance program.
📍Address: 5220 Fashion Outlets Way, Rosemont, IL 60018
Celebrate the Chinese New Year with the Snake Cocktail
Casa Chi, the innovative Nikkei lounge concept by Chef Richard Sandoval, is introducing a specialty cocktail to its menu in honor of the Lunar New Year in Chicago. The new Snake Cocktail features a delightful combination of pisco, Midori, kumquat, ube extract, coconut liqueur, and lychee soda and is finished with an edamame foam and a pink tuile. This cocktail captures the essence and flavors of the region, creating a bold and vibrant taste perfect for the celebration.
📍Address: 505 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611
Celebrate Lunar New Year with Urbanbelly’s Exclusive prix fixe menu, “Best of the Belly”
From January 24th-February 9th, Urbanbelly is offering their “Best of the Belly” Week menu, an exclusive prix fixe menu for just $30 in honor of the Lunar New Year in Chicago. This limited-time menu features selections curated by award-winning Chef Bill Kim and the return of the iconic Marinated Chinese Eggplant with Thai Basil.
The menu will include Marinated Chinese Eggplant with Thai Basil, 2 pcs Chicken Dumplings with Soy Ginger, 2 pcs Sesame Gochujang Glazed Chicken Wings, any choice of Noodle, Fried Rice, or Ramen from the menu, and a new Solato Vanilla Gelato with Vietnamese Cinnamon Caramel.
📍Address: 1542 N Damen Ave, Chicago, IL 60622
Explore Chicago’s Largest Asian Supermarket
Celebrate the Chinese New Year by visiting 88 Marketplace, the country’s largest Asian supermarket. Spanning an impressive 80,000 square feet, this multi-level shopping destination offers diverse restaurants, shops, and services. 88 Marketplace guarantees a unique and comprehensive shopping experience, from Chinese herbs to kitchenware and traditional snacks. The food court features popular eateries like Qiao Lin Hotpot and 312 Fishmarket, making it a must-visit for food enthusiasts.
📍 Location: 2105 S. Jefferson Street, Chicago, Illinois 60616
🗓️ Hours: Monday through Sunday, 8:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m.
See also: Searching For the Best Chinese Restaurant in Chicago? Here Are Must-Hit Spots