The food gods must have given us their blessing when we chanced upon XiangMei on their first day of launch at Bukit Gombak. They literally just launched their new stall next to Block 395A Coffee Shop and there was a long ass queue. Naturally as true blue kiasu Singaporeans, we queued as well.
Origins of Xiangmei Traditional Roasted Meat
We were surprised how a newly launched stall had such traction on its first day. It turned out that Xiangmei was previously a famous 烧腊 stall at Bukit Batok Central with more than 20 years of history. In fact, the family has been Cantonese meat roasters for generations, with origins in Guangzhou China.
Endless List of Menu
For a speciality stall, they have a wide range of menu items which can be really daunting. We ordered a 3 拼 (3 assorted mix of roasted duck, char siew and roasted meat) at S$9.
Succulent Char Siew, Crispy Roasted Meat, Dang-gui Roasted Duck
Given its price, there were quite a lot of meat for what it’s worth. It is definitely one of the best cheap and good food found in the heartlands of Singapore. The first thing that definitely caught our eye was the char siew.
The char siew was one of the best barbecued pork we have eaten since a long time. You could taste the char, the glaze and its fat, every element perfectly fused together to give that caramelised kick with no bitter aftertaste. It was juicy and succulent, with the perfect balance of sweetness.
Most importantly, it wasnt overly oily and greasy.
While that char siew stole the show, the roasted meat managed to stand its ground. Its roasted skin was so crunchy that it tasted like a meat cracker. Unfortunately, the roasted meat that was served to us had almost 80% lean meat ratio, giving it a slightly bland and dry flavor.
You should definitely request for a fatter roasted pork.
The same story goes for roasted duck meat as well. It was savoury with a hint of dang-gui flavor and had a really nice crispy smokey skin. However, as it was duck breast meat, it was slightly on the dry side and definitely would have tasted much better if we ordered duck leg instead.
What we really liked was that all three roasted meat weren’t greasy at all and still managed to produce complex flavors.
We will definitely relook into the roasted meat and roasted duck, do stay tuned for the best deals in Singapore by following our Facebook page.
Verdict
It was one of the best char siew we ever had since a long time especially in western part of Singapore. #westisthebest
Do you have any other recommendations for roasted meat and char siew? Do share with in the comment section below.