There’s nothing wrong with those lunch and dinner specials a lot of Chinese restaurants offer. Solid stuff and variety at a great price. But, with Chinese New Year’s on Friday, how about we kick it up a notch?

What if I could put together a full meal of favorites from various places around town? A fantasy team of dishes melding into a dream team of cuisine? The ultimate Chinese takeout meal?

Before we go any further:

>> This is not a declaration of the absolute best in the state, on the island, in town, or wherever. There was no scientific method. I did what most people do to put together a special meal: Picked my own brain, then consulted with trusted friends, family and perhaps a few social media reviews.

>> We chose variety that would go together well — five items from five restaurants. Four of the places can be described as holes-in-the wall; the fifth, Little Village, is a bit more formal, but not opulent. We didn’t avoid those giant dining rooms where you’d have a lavish 10-course party, it just turned out that way. Nor did we pick restaurants that offer just one style of Chinese food. That wasn’t intended either.

>> This combination is not specific to Chinese New Year traditions (no jai or whole fresh fish among our five items), so everything is normally available year round.

>> You could do something like this yourself if you’re OK with driving around town picking up everything. You could have some delivered, but your final tab would be higher.

With pandemic restrictions in place this new year, a large gathering for a feast at a big, round table in a bustling restaurant is an unlikely option for most of us. But it’s still possible to have a celebration.

These dishes could be part of a smaller gathering at a restaurant, or a festive menu at home, surrounded by your own family’s all-star plates.

KAU YUK WITH TARO

Duk Kee Restaurant ($12.50)

1146 12th Ave., 734-1337

This wonderfully savory dish is Pat Gee’s second favorite item at Duk Kee, an old-school mainstay amid the multitude of trendy eateries within a three-block radius in Kaimuki.

The top spot will always belong to the picture behind the counter of Pat’s late mother, Harriet. “She had a standing reservation there every week,” said Pat, my fellow Crave writer.

I had the good fortune to work with Harriet, too. She was the Star-Bulletin’s “Kokua Line” columnist in the 1980s; Pat’s dad and Harriet’s husband, Bill Gee, had already retiredas the paper’s associate sports editor.

Pat also recalled stuffed duck as a family favorite, and quickly rattled off four or five other Duk Kee dishes that still get her thumbs up. But she’s clearly most enthusiastic about the kau yuk and taro.

“The kau yuk sauce is the best. I could drink it by itself. But the taro absorbs the flavor, and it’s so good, so I could even skip the pork belly. And it’s not dyed red. And the pork is not all fat layers.”

The red dye is a reference to another dish, char siu kau yuk, which is quite tasty, too. But cutting the pork with taro makes for a healthier dish, and adds a different texture.

The more people I talked to, the more I heard about the excellence of even more dishes at Duk Kee, which celebrates its 40th anniversary next year.

“Mostly it’s really good food, for a good price,” Pat said.

SHANGHAI PORK MEAT BUNS

Dew Drop Inn ($17.95, 10 pieces)

1088 S. Beretania St., 526-9522

Can you imagine something combining the best elements of pork hash and manapua? I could not, before getting a taste of this delight (No. 16 on the 102-item menu, No. 1 in my heart). It’s even better than those dumplings with soup inside them (xiaolongbao).

Crave columnist Lynette Lo Tom reminded me about this spot nestled in that picturesque part of Beretania Street near Pensacola, a restaurant hybrid of Northern Chinese and Taiwanese influences.

And that name. It may seem like every city and town in America has a place called “Dew Drop Inn,” but as far as I can tell, this is the only one that serves Chinese food.

Jimmy Tsai laughed when I asked if they have any vacancies. It’s not really an “inn,” in fact the dining area is small so they’re doing just takeout now. Jimmy also chuckled at the quizzical look on my face when she told me her first name. She’s the manager, her husband, Charlie, is the chef and owner, and they’ve been in business since the 1990s.

Lynette said the shaobing (stuffed sesame bread) is a must-try, too.

DRIED STRING BEANS WITH MINCED BEEF

Mini Garden Orient Cuisine ($11.50)

2065 S. Beretania St., 946-3828

We needed something green, the question was what. Beef broccoli? Nah, too generic, too lunch-specialish. I’ve got no problem with choy sum, but my favorite Chinese vegetable dish is green beans — the crunchier and spicier the better. Usually it’s served with bits of pork, but we went with the version from Mini Garden with beef because we already had two pork dishes.

Some folks might find green beans more boring than broccoli. They probably grew up eating them out of cans — not fresh and quickly fried at high heat with liberal doses of garlic and chile. Chinese-style green beans done right, as they are here, are packed with flavor and not mushy.

Kana Zheng, who has owned Mini Garden with her family since 2012, said now is the best time of the year for beans. “When it’s rainy season we get better quality,” she said. “Locally grown, of course.”

Mini Garden is famed for its vegetarian food, including imitation meat. But they know what to do with the real thing, too, and they don’t skimp. The pieces of beef in this dish are not tiny or sparse, as they often are at other restaurants.

Another of my favorite things about this place is the parking. The lot it shares with other businesses in the building has always had spaces available whenever I’ve gone there. Also, there’s nothing mini about Mini Garden’s dining room; that’s an important consideration if you choose to sit down and eat at a restaurant these days.

HONEY WALNUT SHRIMP

Little Village Noodle House ($18.50)

1113 Smith St., 545-3008

I knew something from this downtown fave would make the fab five, I just didn’t know which dish.

My longtime buddy Ed Kalama said it’s gotta be the honey walnut shrimp. You will find this on plenty of menus, and plenty of places do it well. What separates Little Village?

The white sauce, Ed said. “I’ve tasted a lot of honey walnut shrimp, but the one at Little Village is so good I’ll risk a gout attack to have some.”

When my four siblings and I were kids, it seems there was always a bag of mixed nuts around. And the walnuts lasted the longest as we fought to not get stuck with them.

To this day I don’t like them, except in this. The contrast the bitterness of the nuts brings to the sweetness of the shrimp and its sauce is magical.

Actually, you can’t go wrong with anything at Little Village.

“That place really stands out to me,” Ed said. “When my mom (Loretta) was still alive we’d go there often. And it’s a great place to take guests from out of town. It’s nice, but low-key.”

CAKE NOODLE WITH MINUTE CHICKEN

Lee Ho Fook Restaurant, ($9.55)

Chinese Cultural Plaza, 100 N. Beretania St., 536-6077

Fried rice? Chow fun? They’re fine as a starch, but let’s go get cake noodle … the favorite of discerning Chinese food eaters in Hawaii. It mustbe fresh; if not, you might as well fry up a block of raw saimin yourself.

At first glance, there’s nothing to distinguish this hovel, known for its Hong Kong-style cuisine, from any other tiny Chinese joint.

It’s got the same name as a famous London restaurant with a Michelin star, cited in Warren Zevon’s song “Werewolves of London.”

The owner says there’s no connection, and I’m not walking through Soho in the rain, looking for a dish of beef chow mein. Just a guy wandering around the Chinese Cultural Plaza, on the prowl for cake noodle, and this Lee Ho Fook is among the best spots for it.

“Minute chicken” has a risky sound to it, but if the wok is hot enough and the pieces small enough, 60 seconds is plenty of time to cook it through. Plus, it’s what goes best with cake noodle, and at Lee Ho Fook they’re too busy to take much longer.

With the gravy, the confluence of flavors and textures will have you howling.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Picking just five favorite dishes from the dozens of Chinese restaurants on Oahuis challenging to da max. If it were a Sensational Six instead of a Fabulous Five, I might have added the new kid on the block, the Toothpick Lamb from Chengdu Taste featured in last week’s Crave.

Crave’s restaurant reviewer, Nadine Kam, and I both favor the signature item from Lobster King, and Lynette Lo Tom is right when she says Fook Yuen’s lobster is worthy of note, too.

Ed Kalama convinced me that the honey walnut shrimp at Little Village barely edges out the same dish from Golden Eagle.

Then there’s the oyster casserole from Happy Day, ma tai soo from Char Hung Sut and soft-shell crab from Mei Sum. And, of course, all kinds of other dim sum from all three. If I ever feel lacking for hate mail, I’ll try to choose the best pork hash in town.