René Lenger

Wynn/Encore

Switch Steakhouse at Encore

Executive Chef

René Lenger is the Executive Chef of Switch at Encore, the new signature resort in the Wynn collection, where he serves modern seafood and steakhouse fare with an emphasis on the finest market ingredients. Lenger joined Wynn Resorts in 2005 as executive chef of The Country Club, A New American Steakhouse.

“At Switch, I hope to provide my guests with a truly unique dining experience,” says Lenger. “The seasonally-inspired cuisine combined with the restaurant’s theatrics offers an event that’s in a class of its own. There’s nothing like Switch in Las Vegas.”

Previously, Lenger spent seven years working alongside David Walzog, (former executive chef of The Country Club, now executive chef of SW Steakhouse, also at Wynn Las Vegas) at Strip House, Michael Jordan’s and Monkey Bar, where they were both key members of the Glazier Group, a prominent restaurant company based in New York.

Born in Vienna, Austria, Lenger grew up in a home where food played a major role. The chef’s father was a professor at the esteemed Culinary Institute of Vienna and taught Lenger at an early age how to make Austrian specialties such as taffelspitz and gulasch. By the time Lenger graduated from high school, he was hooked on cooking and applied to the Culinary Institute of Vienna where he graduated at the top of his class.

Upon graduation Lenger trained at Zu den drei Husaren under three-toque chef Ewald Plachutta. While working under Plachutta, he would set off daily for the market, choosing items for that evening’s menu.

By the early 90’s, Lenger seized the opportunity to come to New York to work at the Rhiga Royal Hotel. To build upon his already impressive culinary background, he decided to master pastry arts and accepted a position as assistant pastry chef at the hotel. Lenger returned to Vienna in 1993 where he worked at another three-toque restaurant, Altwienerhof, and then became an executive chef at Da’ Marcello. By 1996, the chef was ready to move to the U.S. and was hired as executive chef at Theodore Restaurant, a critically acclaimed Austrian-American brasserie in New York’s flatiron district.

In 1999 Lenger was introduced to restaurateur Peter Glazier of The Glazier Group and was immediately asked to helm the kitchen at the Glazier Group’s Strip House restaurant in New York City (in addition, he later helmed the kitchens of Strip House Houston and Palm Beach Gardens).

Under Lenger’s supervision, Forbes magazine named Strip House as one of the “Forbes 2003 All-Star Eateries in New York.” In addition, Time Out New York’s Eating and Drinking Guide 2001 nominated Strip House as one of the year’s “Best New Steakhouses.” Lenger is also a published author in Austria and has written several books on culinary arts used at many schools throughout Eastern Europe.

Lenger incorporates his love for quality products at Switch, where he brings his trademark flair to this dynamic dining destination.