Coming face to face with a fire breathing dragon was the reward for Chinese food fans at one primary school.
Pupils at Thomas Arnold school in Dagenham also won a Cantonese cooking class led by chef Darren Tinkler after coming top in a competition to get the highest uptake of school meals on dragon and Chinese cooking day.
Staff and students alike at the Rowdowns Road school marvelled at the visit from the animatronic Epico the dragon.
Forty pupils in years five and six learnt how to cook a fresh Chinese stir fry and the whole school tucked into a healthy vegetable or chicken noodle taster pot at lunch.
Cllr Lynda Rice, who is also a teacher, said: “Not only did the children at Thomas Arnold have a magical experience but thousands more children in the borough were able to enjoy a delicious healthy school meal because of the competition.”
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