I had had a long hard day of work and was driving home along the East Coast Parkway and decided to have dinner before heading home to crash. And I figured as I was so close to the East Coast Lagoon Food Centre, I might as well turn off and grab a quick bite.
As you all know, there are loads of "world famous in Singapore only" hawker stalls at the East Coast Lagoon Food Centre. The fried Hokkien Mee, Beef Noodles, Wanton Mee, and etc etc.
I decided that I was in the mood for Duck Rice which happens to be Cheok Kee Duck Rice. They have countless endorsements from TV shows and print media on their stall front and invariably have a queue of patient Singaporeans waiting for their food.
I am a big protein person so I always augment my order with Tau Kwa, Gian (kidneys I think) and Braised Egg. The plate you see above was so fully loaded, he needed to use a larger plate. Yes, I am THAT greedy and hungry for protein. It was very reasonably priced at $5 and I loaded my plate with the sng nee chilli (sourish watery garlic chilli) and the hotter chilli paste.
I am not sure if the cook was having an off day or if the standards have dropped since I last ate there. The duck was dry and tough, almost as if the cook had not braised it for a sufficient period of time. Same for the braised kidneys. I was disappointed with the treatment of the meat protein and the rice wasn't great either. Not much taste nor flavour. The gravy was also lackluster and actually rather blah. Both chillis were also flat and one dimensional. I could only taste the sour from the sng nee and that was all. No chilli heat and definitely no added dimensions from spices and herbs. The tau kwa, however, was the star on the plate. Soft and smooth, it had not been over cooked and was fresh. A delight and frankly the only good thing on the plate.
Overall, it was a disappointing plate and left me somewhat dissatisfied and wanting more. It did not brighten what had been generally a very bad day. :(
I would rate it 6/10.
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