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On a recommendation from one of our readers, I found myself under Block 317 in Yishun for roasted meat. TST Roasted Food peddles herbal duck and other roasted delights that boast snaking queues.
True enough, when I reached the coffee shop, there was already a small queue in front of TST Roasted Food.
Ever a fiend for roasted meat, I made sure to order a good variety of what TST Roasted Food had to offer.
Up first was their Roasted Duck Rice (S$3.50) — a dish which undoubtedly held high expectations. When it comes any kind of roasted duck, the first thing you want to look out for is the skin. The skin has to be roasted just enough so that it’s crispy but not dry.
For TST Roasted Food, you get a generous serving of roasted duck doused in their trademark sauce, sitting atop a plate of steaming white rice.
Never one to waste time when it comes to duck, I went straight for it. Each piece had a good layer of fat and they weren’t skimping on the sauce.
While the duck was tasty, it was a little dry for my liking. Perhaps it was the fact that they used breast meat, but I would have liked it to be a little more tender. What I did like was that the duck was not gamey, which is always a plus.
The rice was nothing spectacular, but when eaten together with the duck it does make for a rather hearty mouthful.
Only slightly disappointed, I continued on to the Three Combination (S$9). As the name suggests, you get three different cuts of meat, namely char siew, roasted duck and siew yoke.
Is there anything better than being presented with an assortment of roasted meat? What an utter delight!
Without a doubt, I went for the duck first. A different cut of meat from the Roasted Duck Rice, this piece was fattier than the one from the duck rice. I’d reckon this would fare better than breast meat.
Indeed, this was a much more indulgent and tastier sliver of duck. The fat melted the moment it hit my tongue and the duck was much juicer as well. Needles to say, the duck was polished off in seconds and I was already making plans for an evening return.
Up next was the Char Siew, an unvarying hawker staple that demands skill and expertise to execute. For TST Roasted Food, their char siew was a leaner cut and paler than most.
Despite the leaner cut, this char siew was surprisingly tender and juicy. I would have liked a little more char on my char siew just so I could get a little more caramelisation.
Either way, I was pretty satisfied with this char siew.
The last roast on the plate is also another favourite of mine, siew yoke or roasted pork belly. You get the salty, crispy crackling on the top, followed by thick layers of fat interspersed with succulent pork.
This checked all the boxes for me — juicy, fatty and just salty enough that you will keep coming back for more.
To end off my meal with something lighter on the palate, I opted for the Soy Sauce Chicken Noodle (S$3.00). According to the Chinese name of the dish, the chicken is also marinated in rose oil for added flavour.
The chicken was delicate, fragrant and unbelievably tender. I usually don’t go for chicken but for this one, I might make an exception.
While the chicken was good, the noodles, however, were rather unremarkable.
All in all, the Soy Sauce Chicken Noodles was perfectly adequate but perhaps not something I would gravitate towards.
TST Roasted Food is decidedly a little better than your run-of-the-mill roasted meat stall. Their strengths definitely lie in how they treat their roasted meat. A little more finesse is needed in regards to the details, but if you’re in the area and craving for some good quality roasted TST Roasted Food is a good bet.
Expected Damage: S$3.00 – S$10 per pax
