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11 places to get your roast meat fix

SINGAPORE — Hong Kong 88 is just the latest addition to a slew of establishments selling the “holy trinity” of roast meats done Hong Kong-style: Roast pork belly, roast duck and char siew.

SINGAPORE — Hong Kong 88 is just the latest addition to a slew of establishments selling the “holy trinity” of roast meats done Hong Kong-style: Roast pork belly, roast duck and char siew.

Although these dishes may have had their origins in Hong Kong, this style of roast meats has pretty much been a popular staple here, whether it’s the offerings from Imperial Treasure Chinese Cuisine, London Fat Duck or the super popular Foong Kee Coffee Shop at Keong Saik Road. Here are some of our other favourite haunts

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1. HIANG JI ROASTED MEAT & NOODLE HOUSE (Block 190, Lorong 6 Toa Payoh, next to Toa Payoh Hub). This has long been a favourite with anyone who likes their roast duck with a little bit of fat. The skin of the duck is suitably crispy, and the meat is juicy. Our suggestion though, is to ask for the gravy to be served separately, especially if you order the roast pork rice, as they have a tendency to smother the dish with gravy, making the crackling a bit soggy.

2. KAY LEE ROAST (125 Upper Paya Lebar Road). You can’t talk about Hong Kong-style roast meat without talking about this establishment, which has set mouths watering just thinking of their roast pork, char siew and roast duck. Even though there are now several branches all over Singapore (including the recent Changi Village addition), fans say the outlet at Upper Paya Lebar Road is still the one to go to.

3. CHAR (363 Jalan Besar). It may have moved from its Guillemard Road address, but fans still rave about this place because you can get roast pork and craft beer under one roof. Great for those who like their roast with some brew.

4. SUM’S KITCHEN AND HONG KONG ROASTED MEAT (5 Jalan Legundi)

Located opposite the famous Sembawang White Bee Hoon coffee shop, it’s more of a zi char place. But it is still known for its roast duck, which is not fatty at all — so you don’t get that layer of oil sitting at the bottom of the plate (although this means that the meat may come across as too dry for some). Sum’s Kitchen is pretty nondescript and unless you look up from a few metres away, you’re likely to miss the sign. The plus point is that it’s air-conditioned, so you won’t break a sweat here.

5. KIM HENG ROASTED MEAT (Block 214, Serangoon Avenue 4, #01-88). Ask anyone living in the area and they’ll rank this highly on their list of great places to get char siew, roasted pork and duck. They’re not wrong. Also, the place doesn’t serve just white rice but “you fan”, the same type of rice used for chicken rice, which goes really well with the meat. They also have pork ribs (although that may be a little too sweet for some) and a selection of soups.

6. HONG KONG JIN TIAN (55 Zion Road). The duck here is a little fattier than at other places, but that means the meat doesn’t quite dry out as quickly if you do a takeaway. The eating house is pretty no-frills, but you don’t need much else when you have such meats to sink your teeth into.

7. CHAN KWONG KEE (S’PORE) ROAST SHOP (64+4 Food Court, 4A Loyang Lane #01-06). Food blogger Dr Leslie Tay rates this as one of his favourite stops for roast duck and roast pork. And we agree — it’s worth the drive all the way to this stall tucked in the industrial estate opposite the Loyang Tua Pek Kong Temple. According to Tay, if this were located in a more central location, it would be more famous. He’s probably right, but then we’d have to fight with even bigger crowds to get our fill of these tasty morsels of meat, so we like it where it is now, thank you very much.

8. WAH LOK (Carlton Hotel, Level 2). Order the roast meat trio of crispy roast pork, succulent roast duck and scrumptious char siew, all of which go really well with the servings of mustard and chilli.

9. FU SHI TRADITIONAL ROASTED + WANTON NOODLES (Block 320, Shunfu Road Hawker Centre #02-25). There is one rule for this place: Go early. Preferably in the morning, because they’ll probably run out by early afternoon. Yes, it’s that popular. Yes, you’ll have to queue up for a while (so bring something to entertain yourself with). And yes, it’s worth the wait.

10. RONG LIANG RESTAURANT (Block 725, Clementi West Street 2, #01-190/192). Westies will vouch for this eatery, mainly because it is cheap and good. The star offering is the roast duck, which isn’t gamey and isn’t too fatty. The portions are pretty hefty for those prices (an average of S$3 per plate, depending on what you order), and yes, it can get crowded at meal times. Rong Liang also serves soups, which are a good complement to the meal.

11. LEGENDARY HONG KONG (#03-80 Jurong Point 2 Shopping Centre). The latest roast duck establishment in the west is said to go through about 50 birds a day — all roasted by Chef Siu Chin Ho, who used to work at the famous Yung Kee restaurant in Hong Kong. Here, the duck is plump and flavourful without being gamey. It also serves other goodies such as the cloud-like custard bo lo buns and smooth rice-flour rolls wrapped around a deep-fried shrimp spring roll.

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