In the front window of Sun Wah BBQ, glistening barbecued ducks dangle by their necks like so many succulent victims of avian suicide. Provided you were smart and ordered in advance, one of them belongs to you. Sun Wah has a really great, extensive menu, but their Beijing Duck Dinner makes it a destination. A barbecued duck is wheeled to your table on a little gurney to be carved, and the neat little disks of meat are placed on a platter. Then the man with the cart and the knives absconds to the kitchen with the duck’s carcass, where the remainder of the meat is plucked away and divided between a huge serving of duck fried rice and a big bowl of duck soup with crunchy, fresh slices of winter melon. I’ve really buried the lead here, but the duck itself is amazing: crispy skin attached to a thin, savory layer of fat, and juicy, only slightly gamy meat. The meat’s intended to be tucked into bao, the squishy, memory foam mattresses of the bread world, topped with pickled veggies and hoisin sauce. Considering they serve whole birds, Sun Wah is built to accommodate larger parties at big, round tables where you can see and interact with everyone you’re dining with. And everyone gets a pretty decent view of the carving in progress.
