A couple of friends of mine and I walked into China Tang at The MGM Grand in Las Vegas the other day, honestly not knowing what to expect. I didn’t know much at all about the restaurant that opened earlier this year. I’d spoken to some Vegas locals, no one knew about the place, and in general, surprisingly, no one could really recommend a great Chinese restaurant to me, so I am thrilled now to tell you all about the excellent China Tang.
Named after Sir David Tang, a larger-than-life Hong Kong socialite, businessman, and flamboyant entrepreneur, who died last year at the age of 63, and who also had restaurants in both London and Hong Kong, you are immediately struck by the decor: Traditional, opulent and refined. You can tell, clearly, that you’re in for some fine dining.
We were seated by a very courteous staff at a beautiful table, and the first thing we noticed were the two sets of beautiful silver chopsticks, one set for taking the food off the serving platter, and the other set for eating. We ordered our cocktails, and because I just had to, I ordered the Madame Shin, a delightful mixture of champagne, vodka, ginger liqueur, Italicus Rosolio Di Bergamotto and homemade pear sorbet, citrus-y and refreshing. My one friend, Broadway sensation Lorinda Lisitza, in town for the poker tournament at The Rio, ordered the Tiki Five Spice, a seriously complex cocktail with many layers of flavor, a little nutty and a little fruity, made with baijiu, which has a high alcohol content, and rum, and my other friend, Los Angeles actress and event-planner Pamela Silverman, had the General Wu, with whiskey, plum wine, ginger ale, and a cherry liqueur. WOW!
Now we meet our handsome and very knowledgeable waiter, Anson, who I flirted with the entire evening. He started to tell us about the appetizers, and listening to him was a mini-education in Cantonese cooking. I’d been to China last year, and what Americans think of as Chinese food is not Chinese food, and Anson clearly knew what he was talking about. We began with a cucumber salad, spicy with a real kick, but clean and warm. Next was a very generous portion of thick cut barbecue pork, rich and tasty, with a delicious layer of fat on the top, that we could not get enough of, and steamed pork siu mai, a type of traditional Chinese dumpling, which was moist and wonderful. We followed that up with some braised noodles with pork and bok-choy, over which you pour a light garlic soup, amazing, and we ended the appetizer round with ridiculously delicious large seared butterfly shrimp, quite possibly the second best shrimp I’ve ever had, short of just one meal that I had once in Rome.
Already overwhelmed, and not sure how we could possibly continue, the entree showed up, and we nearly fell off our seats: a large duck that is eaten in four separate “courses.” First course, they cut the skin off at the table, in small pieces, which you then dip in sugar. How do I describe the orgasmic pleasure that I experienced? The juicy fat of the skin mixed with the sweetness of the sugar makes for a crispy, butter-y burst of flavor in your mouth that had my eyes rolling up into my head. For the second course, they then cut meat off the bone in thick slices, which you dip into a garlic sauce, or a thick, fragrant hoisin paste, that is absolutely mouth-watering. Third, the meat is wrapped in a small pancake, like a taco, with garlic, onions, the hoisin sauce, and melon, which I found surprisingly smart and flavorful. Then finally, course number four, what is left of the duck is chopped up with corn, onion, pork sausage, water chestnuts and a ginger hoisin sauce, and served in a lettuce cup.
We could not stuff another thing into our mouths, but we did have an after-dinner sweet wine, a perfectly-balanced Royal Tokaji from Hungary.
Let me just end by saying we had excellent service. I highly recommend you go, immediately, to China Tang. Bring some money, because it’s not Panda Express, but you will not regret it, I guarantee. If you go, make sure you listen to Anson, and please tell him that I said hello.
How to get there:
FROM THE MGM GRAND FRONT DESK:
Walk into the casino and turn on your second right towards concierge. Continue past Concierge towards KA Box Office. Pass Wolfgang Puck and turn right, towards the District. Continue to pass Morimoto and Fiamma then China Tang will be towards your left across from Starbucks.
FROM THE STRIP
Enter the resort from Las Vegas Boulevard. Walk towards Centrifuge and stay to the left passing The Buffet. Continue through the Casino, passing Jabbawockeez Theater. Walk towards Avenue Café. Continue past CRUSH. Turn right when you reach L’atelier and continue through the Casino towards the District. Continue to pass Morimoto and Fiamma then China Tang will be towards your left across from Starbucks.