Hundreds flocked to the New Zealand Chinese Food and Culture Festival in the West Auckland suburb of Henderson on Sunday.
A lively dragon dance kicked off proceedings at the Corban Estate Arts Center, followed by a wide range of dancing, singing and musical performances.
The festival showcased a wide selection of culinary Asian delicacies, including grilled sausages from Taiwan, Chinese burgers from Xi'an, barbecued pork from Guangdong, pancakes from Tianjin, salted duck from Nanjing, fried chicken steak, grilled squid, fried dough sticks, dragon beard desserts, taro cakes, egg waffles and candied hawthorn.
A selection of dishes on offer at the 2024 New Zealand Chinese Food and Culture Festival in Auckland on 17 November. Photo: RNZ / Yiting Lin
Rende Zhu, chairperson of Chinese Association of West Auckland that organised the event, said he hoped to bring people together to enjoy Chinese food.
"We started this festival because we want to spread traditional Chinese culture and share Chinese food and culture with (New Zealand) society, as well as contribute to this country's rich culture," Zhu said.
Mike Dawson, president of the New Zealand-China Friendship Society's Auckland branch, made his second trip to the festival after enjoying last year's inaugural event.
Dawson said Chinese food was among the best in the world, adding that the festival provided different ethnic groups an opportunity to enhance mutual understanding between each other.
Chinese people often sat around a large table of food when eating, which contrasted to Western custom, he said.
"It showed me the collective or togetherness side of Chinese culture," he said. "It's very important. Lots of cultures like ours could do with that kind of togetherness and connectivity.
"These things are very important for the Chinese community as well, especially young Chinese. We don't want them to lose their culture."