We don't come to this area very often.
Well, at least, not as much as we used to.
So, since it becomes somewhat of a purposeful trip every time we drop into Geylang, we make sure we make time to go eat what we want to eat.
The last time we came here we tried out one of the BKT places on Lorong 11.
Today we decided on the braised duck.
Now, I am not very familiar with what makes a good braised duck, and all- most of the time I just eat- but if there is a place that serves up a pretty good one, Sean Kee here would be it.
This isn't my first rodeo here, by the way.
My friend had recommended it to me many moons ago.
And no wonder.
But first, the stall itself is not difficult to find.
Just look out for it at corner coffee shop Sin Huat Eating House at the junction of Lorong 35. If you're still not sure where the coffee shop is, look out for the store next to it.
Let's digress a little bit from braised duck rice.
I am always intrigued by the number of (what I think are) steel rods in the store. At first glance, the store might seem to be a little rough and tumble with gloves, cloths, parts, and all kinds of paraphernalia everywhere, but there has to be some sort of structured organization if one wants quick access to the many categories of rods sitting snug in their individual square cubicles.
The lorry parked by the side of the curb cannot be parked there too long.
Perhaps this is one of the charms that Geylang, or at least this zone, has.
You might think they are messy and chaotic.
That anything and everything goes with them.
But there is a system.
There is a structure not obvious at first sight, but unveils itself gradually as you linger and look closer.
Come to think of it, that's also how it is for this braised duck rice.
There are some people who might take one look at this plate and find it untidy.
But give it a while, look a little closer, and you'll soon see that there is a structure, an arrangement, to everything.
It is not a complicated plate.
Spread across the entire bottom of the plate is a bed of bean sprouts that soaks up all the gravy. Above it is a single portion of rice, and above that still then comes the single portion of braised duck. At the side, neatly placed, are the cucumber slices.
Looking at this picture now, I wonder if there is a specific technique to how people eat their duck rice.
Like, do they have the meat together with the rice in one spoon, or do they have the rice separately from the meat, like one spoon rice, one spoon meat etc.?
Me, actually, I like to have the rice on its own, followed by a piece of the duck. The yam-scented rice reveals its own clean, dry texture. The duck has its own flavor.
But today's plate came to the table with a generous serving of gravy slathered over everything, rice, duck, bean sprouts, all.
Not that I minded- it didn't change the taste of the duck.
On the other hand, it actually complemented the sauce quite well, and made the meat feel less dry.
My favorite part about this duck here was how excellently deboned it was.
Maybe it had something to do with the stall being of a heritage nature.
Maybe it was just how the duck was prepared.
I don't really know.
But, as someone terrified of finding bones in the duck meat, here, I didn't have to worry that I might find them inside, I didn't have to worry if there would be any in each piece, or- horror of horrors- if there would be any sharp hidden bits that hadn't been removed.
Here, each sliced piece was tender yet firm, easy to eat.
Not just that, the fat and skin were rather well balanced.
Some pieces do have a little bit more fat than the others but the whole duck had been braised so well that I didn't actually taste the fat at all. It easily slid under the rich, thick, slightly sweet braised sauce and disappeared.
The only thing about this plate today was that I didn't have much space to really appreciate the gravy. Generous, evenly spread out all over the plate, you could have as much burst of flavors with every bite.
Perhaps next time I come I'll see if both of us can have half a duck instead of our own individual plates. That way we'll get to feel the rich, thick, sweetness wrapped around the duck, the cucumber, the tofu or the braised egg.
But that shall have to be another day.