I'm not a big red meat eater, but when it comes to duck I make an exception. It's the one red meat that I merrily indulge in to quell any carnivorous urges. And, I'm impartial to duck in any sauce, shape or form - Peking duck, Pipa duck, Duck L'Orange, roast duck, braised duck, you name it.

So it was with flared glands that I went to sample the All-Duck Menu to celebrate Min Jiang at One-North's 1st Anniversary.

Talk about swimming in duck heaven! The 6-course menu comprised 5 duck dishes and one pretender - a dessert masquerading as duck. We started with the Min Jiang Duck Trio Platter (main pic) that featured the restaurant's signature wood-fired Beijing duck, duck liver and spicy duck tongue.

Now, I must say that tongue is not to everyone's taste. It hardly looks attractive nor palatable, so my hesitance was understandable. In hindsight, I should have stuck with my instincts. One tentative little nibble made me reach straight for the lime juice, which took more than one gulp to kill any lingering taste on the tongue!

A touch of French with the inclusion of foie gras in the mix was quite welcome, a nod to Min Jiang's new Executive Chef, Frenchman Philip Egalon. I'm sure there are many creative ways to cook duck liver Asian style, but seriously, the only way to eat liver as refined cuisine is as foie gras.

Foie gras is, of course, a guilty pleasure. But I believe that if you're going to commit any gastronomic sin, you might as well do it gloriously with a cholesterol buster like this semi-solid ambrosia. The serving was more than generous, which gleefully compounded the transgression.

Part three of the trio was Min Jiang's famous Beijing Duck, which came wrapped in Traditional Beijing Wrap & Savoury Tientsin Wrap. It's what most diners usually look forward to but unfortunately, for me personally, this duck stalwart was eclipsed by the Crispy Duck Thigh with Duck Confit (right), another dish that was given a little French twist. Now, excuse my raging enthusiasm, but THIS is exactly how duck should be done. The 'gongfu' that went into the making of this dish is impressive. The raw duck is cured in salt, sugar and herbs, and allowed to marinade for 12 hours before it is slow-cooked for 2 1/2 hours. The result - a crispy and fragrant skin encasing a delicate, flavourful meat that melts off the bone. Forget the thigh, give me the whole duck!

Another stunning dish was the Golden Duck "Wanton" Soup, a double boiled soup with a mind blowing variation on the common wanton. This one was filled with tasty duck meat that made me wish my local wanton mee seller would start making duck-filled wantons so I could gorge on them by the bowl.

Braised Duck Roll with Homemade Tofu in Spicy Sichuan Dressing and Braised "Yuan Yang" Vermicelli with Shredded Duck and Preserved Vegetables rounded off the menu, which ended with a dessert called the Chinese Sweet Duo (left) - a duck-shaped baked pastry filled with red bean paste served alongside fresh mango cream with sago and pomelo.

This was where I felt slightly cheated, like the menu came up one course short. But come to think of it, I'd rather the bitter-sweet ending as I don't relish duck compromised as a sweet dessert.

Min Jiang at One-North's 1 st Anniversary All-Duck Set Menu costs $60+++, with a minimum of 2 persons required. It is available from 1-29 July, 2007.

Min Jiang At One North
No. 5 Rochester Park
(S) 139216
Tel: 6774-0122
Opening hours: Noon to 2.30pm, 6 to 10.30pm.