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Ayam penyet is an iconic dish commonly found in Indonesia, and is well-known across South East Asia. Ayam penyet translated to English means ‘smashed chicken’. Wonder how the name came about? Well, after the chicken is boiled, marinated, and deep-fried, the chicken is literally smashed to be made tender.
Bebek Goreng Pak Ndut at Lucky Plaza serves crispy duck and a few other authentic Indonesian dishes on their menu.
I dropped by the restaurant around lunchtime, and yet, there were still enough seats for us despite the bustling lunch crowd.
Their signature Original Crispy Fried Duck With Rice (S$9.90) is marinated for 24 hours, and their spices and sauces are imported directly from Indonesia.
The crispy duck is served with a fiery spicy sauce at the side, along with tofu, tempeh, and a side salad.
The skin was fried till golden and crispy, and the duck was meaty on the inside. Texture-wise, the duck was succulent, although I found it to be a little too salty for my liking.
However, the impressive thing about the crispy duck was that it did not have the extreme gamey taste found in a lot of duck dishes I have tried before.
Next up, I tried the Oxtail Soup (S$8.90). It was a wholesome bowl filled with goodness like beef, potatoes, carrots, and onions.
I liked that the beef was tender, and how it came off the bone easily.
Usually, side ingredients like potatoes and the carrots are not really regarded as an important part of soup dishes, but I beg to differ. It was fork-tender, and made the oxtail soup much heartier.
The soup was rather too oily for me, but you can’t really put it down as it’s a result of boiling the oxtail for a prolonged period.
I was thrilled to try their Kangkong Belachan (S$5.90) as it is one of my go-to vegetables when I dine at restaurants. The spinach tasted like it was parboiled, and had a crispy bite to it when I sunk my mouth into it.
Although the chilli tinged my tastebuds slightly, I would have preferred if it had a stronger spicy kick to it.
Moving on, we tried the Mixed Vegetable (S$6.50), also known as gado-gado, an Indonesian salad with vegetables and hard-boiled eggs with a peanut sauce.
The keropok (small prawn crackers) covered the dish entirely, and carried a generous portion of ingredients.
Picking up a handful of beansprouts soaked in the peanut sauce, with a piece of keropok, I took a huge bite of the medley of ingredients. It was sweet with a hint of sourness, and with the beansprouts and keropok, it added a new dimension to the meal.
I would recommend this dish as the sweetness of the mixed vegetable contrasted well with the many savoury dishes found on their menu, like the crispy duck.
Up next would be the Crispy Duck Skin (S$4.90). It was amber-brown and had a good crisp to it. I would strongly recommend this dish to those who love lip-smacking savoury food.
If you’re not into extremely savoury food, get the mixed vegetables to have a balance of flavours for your meal.
The Grilled Chicken (S$7.90) was grilled well with Indonesian sweet soya sauce, served with tempeh, tofu, as well as a side salad. If you are not keen on having rice with your dish, you will be able to request for it to be served without rice.
The meat was tender with a hint of sweetness from the soy sauce. This dish seems more of a hit or miss for me; I’ll suggest this dish to those who prefer chicken that is grilled and not fried.
Overall, I would recommend this place to those shopping in the Orchard area who would want to have an affordable meal and enjoy authentic Indonesian cuisine, especially if it means having their very own crispy duck.
Head down to Bebek Goreng Pak Ndut for a different take on ayam penyet. To those living in the West, here’s a tip. An upcoming outlet of theirs will be opening at Westgate in December 2019!
Expected Damage: S$9 – S$15 per pax
