Yeni Wong is best known as a restaurateur and business tycoon in Chinatown. She’s a tireless philanthropist, and she is also incredibly passionate about wine.
In Washington, DC, local chefs have capitalized on the Washingtonian taste for festive tapas. In 2015, Yeni took that spirit of entrepreneurship to the world of wine, reaching out to serve upscale Chinese cuisine at its best, with the in-house mixologist creating ingenious cocktails for the drink list, which includes an extensive wine menu that won awards for excellence.
Given the city’s smash-up of cultures, Yeni’s Chinatown Garden extends beyond traditional Chinese delicacies to include a supreme drink menu with choice cocktails, tequila, wine selections, and other savory global influences. I recently spoke with Yeni about her new wine venture, which reflects this diverse capital city.
When did you first start falling in love with wine?
I’ve been drinking wine for quite a long time—since I started drinking—and I’ve always loved wine, always loved the memories I’ve had with great wine, the great meals, the great experiences, the great conversations. I’ve always associated my personality, my music with those good feelings, and I’ve always thought it would be great to develop something like this—a new wine brand that would tie all those emotions and sensibilities together.
Are there memorable bottles that spoke to you early on? Regions you prefer?
I’ve always loved a good Cabernet, and that’s why I’ve always been interested in doing that. I love the Napa Valley area, but also I’ve traveled around the world, gone to some of the best restaurants in the world, visited some great vineyards around the world, from the Bordeaux region in France to Tuscany in Italy, and I’ve had great wines. So many of my good memories— so many of my good trips— I associate with great wines.
How do you incorporate wine into your lifestyle?
Well, wine’s a part of my lifestyle pretty much all the time [laughs]. I have at least a glass a day—they say that’s healthy anyway, right? And it really puts me in a good mood. It kind of settles me, and relaxes me, and it’s a big part of my life.
What are some of your favorite dishes in Chinatown Garden, and do you usually pair wines with food?
Chinatown has made some really wonderful meals for customers—some of them are in the book, and some of them aren’t. I’ve pretty much tasted everything in the book, and some of my favorites, it’s just simple stuff like a great Peking duck and triple delight with asparagus. And the author does some other great seafood dishes like spicy scallops, Szechuan style, which is really wonderful, and some great hearty chow mein and noodles. I love all of that stuff. And almost all of it goes really well with wine, and I’ve had my Cabernet with quite a few of the recipes.
Would it be safe to say wine played a part in your seduction?
Absolutely. Wine was certainly a part of my romance and has been part of my romance ever since.
What was the first wine you had? Or the most memorable wine?
How do you incorporate wine when you entertain?
When I entertain, I almost always serve wine, and it’s usually the main drink. I serve everything else, liquor and beer, but it seems like everyone gravitates to the wine. I think it goes with the whole experience. I make a playlist, and I make food, and all these things go together. I try to shape the whole experience of the night. I think that’s part of why I wanted to develop the wine in the first place—because I’m in the experience-making business. People come to my restaurant because they want to feel a certain way; they want to connect with each other; they want to feel romantic, feel close to their loved ones; and they want a sensual experience that goes with the music. I think the wine really fits with that.
You’ve said that you wanted to make a series of rich, soulful, complex notes inspired by true love, that the three words most evocative of the wines were seduction, rich, and complex. Is wine ultimately romantic to you?
Oh, yes. Wine is definitely romantic. I’ve always associated wine with romance, and a lot of my folks associate my restaurant with wine and my menu with romance, and I feel they all go together. This is the perfect thing for pairing with my music, and I’m glad we were able to create it.
What’s the restaurateur world like in terms of food and wine? Do other restaurateurs at your level take the time to enjoy life, to enjoy wine?
I think I do, especially if you’ve been in this business for a long time. I think I earn a certain amount of success that gives me the chance to travel just for fun. I get the chance to go to so many great restaurants and other places around the world, and if I choose to, I can really enjoy those things, give myself a moment to enjoy the fruits of my labor, and that’s what I’ve done. I especially started to do it once I was in the right mood. That connection of being in the right mood and having someone to share it with makes me want to explore the world a bit more, all the senses, and connect with the person I like over great wine, over great food, over beautiful places around the world.
A lot of my peers probably do the same thing. But you know, we wanted this to not just be a celebrity wine; we wanted it to be something that we took the taste of very seriously,— took the blending process very seriously— and wanted to build credibility in the wine world for making something special that wine lovers would love.
There are so many vintners and winemakers in the Napa Valley, and elsewhere, who are serious about cuisine. What, in your mind, is the connection?
Cuisine and wine go perfectly together. You want to create a great experience. You want to connect with your loved ones romantically, and cuisine and wine are both there to help that happen. They’re social lubricants; they’re ways of bringing us together. There’s something about that sensual experience of great cuisine, great music, great wine all coming together. I run a lot of businesses, but a lot of businesses I run are more intimate. I especially think of those businesses when I think about the kind of cuisine and the kind of wine that go together really well.
In a city with more than 160 embassies and consulates, this is where to sip your way around the world. You’re going to set up a most sophisticated wine bar in Chinatown Garden. What does it mean to you?
The meaning of wine and culture is very deep…I found it very insightful to think about something, that is so important for the future and the next generation in America: wine and culture. Wine is culture; wine is the catalyst of architecture, art, nature, gardening, design, painting, music, and acting—everything we can think of. Wine is the beginning of culture, and often those cultures become greater cultures. This tapas restaurant hands each guest a menu with hundreds of options and pairing suggestions. There are twenty-five sparkling wines by the glass alone from Italy, Spain, Austria, Germany, and, mais oui, France. You’ll find dozens of small plates as well as charcuterie and cheese selections designed to embolden top notes. I am very proud of this H Street Tapas because it means a lot to the city at large.