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If you like rice that’s nice, go to Nice Rice! The sensational Japanese-French hawker don joint has recently moved to Telok Ayer and the newest addition to their menu is sure to knock your socks off.
Think “dry aged” anything is reserved for those atas restaurants? Think again. While Nice Rice’s dry aged Duck Bowls (S$18) take almost a week to prepare, they are very much a hawker stall with hawker prices.
The process of preparing Nice Rice’s newest creation is quite the labour of love. According to Mandel Ban — the mastermind behind the stall, it all begins with cleaning the crown of the duck. The bird it is then left to dry age over a wire rack for 5 whole days. The skin of the duck is pre-seared, and the duck is cooked sous vide with plenty of herbs.
To make the sauce, duck bones (and chicken bones from their Bird Bowl (S$7.90)) are added to the pot and simmered for a whole day with herbs and aromatics. The sauce is reduced and finished with Japanese grain vinegar.
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The duck comes out of this with a beautiful, rosy hue, a succulent, moist interior, and ultra crispy skin. Who said duck had to be dull?
Of course, the other dishes at Nice Rice are not to be overlooked. According to Chef Mandel, their favourite “bowls” are the Cow Bowl (S$12.90) and Super Bowl (S$11.90) or salmon bowl. These two dishes seem to be the favourites of customers, too!
The salmon here is cured in-house, so they have complete control over the texture, taste and colour of the end product. A chunky slab of aburi salmon is topped with house-made aioli and tobiko. Salmon plus rice is such a classic; who can resist, really?
The meat is cooked to perfection and accompanied by seasoned rice, an onsen egg and garlic confit. It’s also not difficult to see why the Cow Bowl is such a popular dish. If you told me I could get something like that at just S$12.90 before I discovered Nice Rice, I’d have done a double take.
If I’ve piqued your interest in the slightest, perhaps it’s time to head to Nice Rice for a taste of their nice rice yourself!
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