That’s right! I ate a whole duck. Or rather, I ate about half a duck, since my husband gets credit for sharing the duck with me. I think this vastly improves my street cred. Above is a shot of us as we were heading in to dinner from Parasol Down (a gorgeous spot for a drink) at The Wynn.

What is she talking about? I’m talking about Wing Lei, Las Vegas, located in The Wynn Hotel, which is the first Michelin-rated Chinese restaurant in the country. They offer a chef’s tasting (with wine pairing, if you like) menu that features several courses made with – you guessed it! – one perfectly-roasted Peking duck. But who wants to eat that much duck? I didn’t. In fact, when Damian suggested we embark on this culinary adventure, I said, “That’s a lot of duck.” But adventure is the right word for it, and it was absolutely amazing.

When we sat down, I was struck by the lovely decor, and then taken completely by surprise when I tried to hang my purse off the side of my chair only to be offered a chair for my purse. And this was no extra chair they had lying around. It was a gorgeous little mini affair that looked like it would be really comfortable if I were either a two-year-old or a purse. This is the kind of luxurious detail that I never would have anticipated, but really appreciated. Who wants to put their purse on the dirty floor? I need a purse chair!

We were greeted, confirmed that we wanted the Peking duck tasting with the wine pairing, and then our adventure began! First, our duck was brought to the table, looking perfectly roasted and whole, with a white towel wrapped discreetly around its head. This nearly sent me into a fit of giggles, but I guess the alternatives were not great. Either they wave a headless duck in front of your face, at which point maybe you decide to bail or potentially become a vegetarian, or they offer Daffy with his dead eyes staring at you and his beak sadly flopping open with his tongue lolling out the side. “I’ll just have the fish. Thanks.” We approved our duck (I wonder what happens if you say, “I don’t like that duck.”), and we began our adventure.

Out came the sommelier with our first wine, which was a lovely port. The first course of duck was served table side. Bits of crispy and tender duck were sliced off in neat, thin strips and served on delicate pancakes with thinly sliced cucumbers and spring onions, topped with a hoison sauce. The richness of the meat was perfect with the crispness and slight sweetness of the port. This was my favorite course, though I enjoyed them all.

Next we were presented with a duck salad, perfectly plated, and a Chardonnay. It was not overdressed, and I’d never had duck as part of a salad before. Delicious.

After the salad came duck soup. This was paired with a white wine made from a grape that I am completely unfamiliar with, and sadly I can’t remember what it was, but it was once again the perfect choice with the soup. Bite-sized pieces of duck, along with noodles and some other flavorful items were brought to us in the bowls, and then the server poured a thin, not-too-salty broth over top of this at the table. I love that kind of a presentation with soup.

Then it was the main course, which was a wok-fried duck, served with a rich and delicious rice full of exotic mushrooms on the side. I could not finish this part, but each bite I took was delectable. This was paired with a German red wine. The fact that it was German and red took me by surprise, as I’m more familiar with the white wines from that country, but it was quite good and matched up with the course very well.

Finally, as I was considering waving my white flag of surrender, dessert appeared along with a dessert wine. The dessert was some kind of a mousse topped with a hard white and dark chocolate domed shell served over a chewy brownie. The brownie portion was a little dry, but the mousse was light, smooth and creamy – a nice way to end a very rich meal. We were also brought little truffles and mini pineapple upside down cupcakes to go.

It was a fantastic experience, and I’m so glad we went. The sommelier was knowledgeable, friendly, and attentive, and while I am often disappointed in the small pours that come with a wine pouring, I was not at all disappointed at Wing Lei. There was enough wine in my glass to have a sip with each bite, if I wanted to, and a bit left at the end of each course to linger over. The meal was perfectly paced, also. I really can’t say enough good things about it. It’s crazy expensive, but worth it. Just don’t shoot craps after you’re full of everything the sommelier offers you – if you’re like us, you’ll have a great time, but it won’t go well…….

We did not take any pictures of our food. What were we thinking? Clearly, we weren’t. But here are a couple of shots of us dressed for dinner, once again at Parasol Down, and then one of me at the end of the meal at Wing Lei, with my eyes closed, holding up not a white flag of surrender but a little “happy anniversary” chocolate, since this was our (belated) anniversary celebration.

You can see the restaurant’s decor in the background of this last shot. I had a great time taunting Damian for his pink drink in the previous shot. It had lavender in it. If you asked me the very last drink I’d think Damian would ever order, I might say, “A pink fruity drink with a purple flower in it.” Guess I was wrong about that. After I took his picture with the foo-foo drink, I then managed to take about 15 shots of my own drink (a glass of Trefethen Chardonnay) on the table. Oops.

And finally, this is the view from our hotel room at The Wynn:

Not too shabby. We had a marvelous breakfast at the lovely Terrace Cafe the next morning, but that is a story for another day….