Nan Xiang Chicken Rice

Eatery Review

Nan Xiang Chicken Rice

Renown for: 
Char Siew Rice, Roast Duck Rice, Roasted Pork Belly, Chicken Rice

Cuisine: 
Chinese (Cantonese); Local Fare

Getting there: 
Buses are aplenty from Paya Lebar MRT Station. Ample coupon parking lots in the rear. 

When to go: 
Expect it to be busy during the lunch and dinner hours, other than that, if you can fend off your hunger, then brunch or a mid-day tea session would mean a much shorter queue.

Time Seated: 1240
Waiting Time: 10 Mins

Time Left: 1305

Ambience: 
Coffee shop by the road. Don't expect air-conditioning.

Dishes ordered: 
Medley of roasted duck breast, roasted pork belly and char siew. 

First Impressions: 
I was brought here by a fellow foodie and good friend of mine who knows her stuff, lets call her ‘B’. Because of that I was expecting pretty high standards from this place, what with the long queue just to place your order; reminiscent of all good stalls in Singapore. Mind you, I’ve been told of longer lines at that hour. So with that in mind I humbly found 2 seats in the packed out corner coffee stall and allowed ‘B’ to take me into roast meat Nirvana.

The crux: 
The food came really quickly, would have been surprised if it had taken any longer, so this was definitely a plus point for anyone who wants something fast. At first glance, the food looked magnificent, I was actually quite bummed to remember to take a picture of it before eating just cause it looked so good. As I'm not the easiest person to please with duck - and according to ‘B’; “one of the best places to get roast duck” - inevitably, it had to be the first one to try. 

The duck breast was dry - expected as with most breast meat from poultry that has been roasted with its other parts attached to its body - but otherwise still tender. It went down well with their homemade chilli and ginger as it help cut through the gamy flavour of the duck with its sweet, spicy freshness. Flavour of the duck was atypical of most roast meats shops. Flavour from the spices worked well into the background of the duck to accentuate it's natural gaminess. Skin wasn't crispy, which was alright, as it wasn't meant to be Peking duck. ‘B’ noted that i shouldn't have taken the breast portion of the duck and that the leg portion would have been more moist and tender. 

Next to try was my favourite meat men have ever found! I loved how the roast pork belly’s fat was well integrated into the entire slab of pork, this made it moist and tender while still maintaining its structural integrity which is important when presenting/plating pork bellies. The chef was wise enough to cut nice, thick slices of belly instead of thin, shrivelled up scraps. Trust me, it feels good to have a chunky piece of pork going into your mouth, its a very heartwarming, sinful felling. That emotion, coupled together with the oh-so-crisp skin meant that you had contrast and textures being tossed together in this eruption of flavours. Mind you, some people might like pork skin really crispy, (I’m no different) but understand that a pig’s skin is thick, so the drier it becomes, the harder it will be; soon you’ll have an easier time trying to bite into rocks than that swine’s leather. As a result there is a limit to how crispy pork belly can or should go. In this case, it was just right. The main part of the meat was fresh tasting, minimal spiced taste; almost non-existent, which was alright because asian roasted pork belly shouldn't be numbing your tongue with Chinese five spice and Szechuan peppercorns.

Last but not least was the char siew, which was by far the star of the show. I have to admit that I have had my doubts about how it was going to turnout because from the looks of it, they had chosen to use a very lean loin from the pig, so i was afraid it would have been dry. How wrong was I! It was extremely tender and moist with little of the guilty indulgence associated with char siew! The mark of a properly roasted piece of meat is tenderness yet firm enough that it didn't break apart when you pick it up. This is so that there will still be a texture difference when eating it. It was also nicely cooked all round, its colour glistened of deep dark red caramelisation with hints of crisp, sharp, bitter, over-caramelised glaze on the tail ends of the meat which any good char siew should have as standard to contrast its sweetness. However, it wasn't as sweet nor caramelised enough as I would have liked it to be. As it was coming to the end of the meal, ’B’ told me of their “special sauce” that they lavished over their char siew rice if ordered individually. Luckily I hadn't finished all the char siew before it came. 

As I had the plain rice, I couldn't have given a proper review on the chicken rice’s rice, but from what little I tried from ‘B’, it was definitely leaving a lot to be desired from; in taste, texture and aroma. 

Price & Value for money: 
$11 for 1 plate of plain rice, 1 plate of chicken rice's rice and  3 types of meat. 
Good to reasonable value for money.

The verdict: 
Overall, a good find in the overly saturated Tanjong Katong area, although I wasn't fully satisfied. If you're working or living around here be sure to check this place out, but to those staying a lot further, don't bother making an occasion of coming here, I’m pretty sure you can find of similar quality closer to you. Go for the char siew rice, as it comes with their own, homemade, "special sauce". Have it with their house-blend ginger and chilli, and you're good to go.

Final Score: 
6.5/10

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