Stocking stuffers redefined

Now that Gustaf Anders has closed and its Scandinavian Christmas buffet is no longer with us, where’s a merrymaker to go to get in the Christmas spirit?

Mistletoe and sugarplums aside, some friends and I have decided to instigate a new annual tradition and order up a suckling pig banquet from Ocean Star. So on a recent weekday night, seven lovers of the pig united and took their places in one of the private rooms at this sprawling Cantonese restaurant in Monterey Park.

One of our group, a fellow who previously had organized several such dinners, called Ocean Star owner-manager Peter Lee several days ahead to reserve a private room and pre-order a whole suckling pig.

When I got there, I walked past the row of private rooms, looking for my friends. Every room was stuffed with people eating at big round tables under mega-wattage chandeliers. You may want to consider bringing sunglasses in addition to the usual sweater or shawl needed to counteract the chilly air-conditioning. Brrr, it really did feel like Christmas.

Experience reminded us to limit the number of dishes we ordered; the last time we indulged in a similar banquet we were so full by the time the pig arrived in its golden glory, we couldn’t really do it justice.

Here’s the menu we decided on with the waiter. We started with meaty live shrimp, two per person, boiled in the shell with their delicious sticky red roe still clinging to their bellies. You have to wait until they’re just cool enough to peel off the heads and shells. The kitchen provides a dipping sauce, but the shrimp are so flavorful they’re almost better without.

We also wanted lobster, which the waiter suggested cooked two ways. He brought us a feisty live one, weighing in at more than five pounds, for our approval. Back he went to the kitchen, and the lobster shortly reappeared, cooked with ginger and Chinese vegetables along with a few slices of slippery mushroom. Part two was lobster deep-fried in the shell.

Then came squabs, half a bird per person. Braised in light soy sauce, these are incredibly juicy and delicious. The only way to eat them is to pick them up and suck on the bones.

We needed some vegetables to balance things out, so we ordered pea shoots (which the waiter called snow pea leaves) and shiitake mushrooms, along with some steamed rice.

And now, the piece de resistance: suckling pig, carved and put back together again so that it resembles a golden pig with maraschino cherries for eyes, flattened out like a map on a silver platter with silver pig’s feet. Beneath that gold, wonderfully crisp skin, the pork is moist and flavorful. We ate and ate, setting pieces of meat on top of steamed buns or just eating it plain. In the end, the bill with tax and tip came to $80 per person, well worth it for such a feast, especially since we had the private room for the evening. And there was still pig left to take home.

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Ocean Star

Where: 145 N. Atlantic Blvd., Monterey Park

When: Dinner 5 to 10 p.m. daily; dim sum 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday

Cost: Suckling pig (available by reservation only) is $140 and requires a $100 deposit; feeds 6-10 people. Banquet menu, $60 per person and up.

Info: Beer and wine. Lot parking.

Contact: (626) 308-2128