Hennessy Duck: Herbalicious dang gui roasted duck, caramel char siew & homemade wanton
Those who frequent Hong Kong will be familiar with the old Hennessy Road, lined with plenty of Cantonese roast stalls. This was the inspiration for Hennessy Duck, which is a brand new concept that recently opened its doors at Kopitiam Food Hall @ Jem on 15 September 2022.
Hennessy Duck employs the use of premium quality ducks together with high-end herbs like dang gui and other spices. They’ve spent a lot of effort in their R&D to perfect their roasting technique.
Their mission is to produce mouth-watering delights like their signature herbal roast duck and char siew, which allow patrons to experience the authentic taste of Hong Kong.
I had the pleasure of witnessing a fresh batch of roasted ducks coming out of the oven. The intoxicating aroma released from the freshly roasted meats, coupled with the sizzling sounds coming from the crackling skin were seducing my senses.
The meat was chopped up by the staff and my stomach was already growling. I had spent almost an hour travelling from Ang Mo Kio to Jurong all the way for this, so I was ready to dig in!
Would Hennessy Duck live up to the standards like other mainstream brands serving herbal roasted duck? Let’s get this tasting started and find out.
What I tried at Hennessy Duck
I started my gastronomic journey with the signature Dang Gui Duck Drumstick Noodle (S$7.80). It had a whole duck drumstick meticulously chopped up, chye sim, goji berries, bits of star anise and clove, with a bed of Hong Kong egg noodles resting below, soused in gravy.
After mixing everything up, I dived straight into the noodles. The Hong Kong egg noodles were thinner and more refined than our usual mee kia, which slithered easily down my throat like luxurious threads of silk.
The subtle herbal notes coming from the roasted duck were absorbed by the noodles, giving a slight bitter aftertaste which wasn’t unpleasant at all. The tiny sweet bursts coming from the goji berries acted like mini grenades detonating in my mouth— a perfect balance of bitter and sweet!
Roasted duck may be one of my favourite meats to have but the meat is usually tough and dry like the Sahara desert. The skin was surprisingly still a little crispy even though it was soaked for a while in the herbal gravy, and the meat was tender and flavourful— I was flabbergasted!
There were two kinds of chilli dips at the stall: a dark-coloured thick chilli and a watery kind that resembled those served at chicken rice stalls. I dipped the duck meat into the thick dip, and it instantly grabbed my attention.
It had granules of blended heh bi (dried shrimp), which hits you first with tons of umami that reminded me of a robust-tasting XO sauce, followed by a spicy kick at the end.
Kudos to the chef who created this chilli recipe— it should be available at every roasted duck stall on the island.
I then moved on to something light, the Wanton Soup (S$4 for 6 pieces). The wantons at Hennessy Duck are made in-house, not brought in by a supplier, and I was eager to give them a try.
The outer skin was thin and silky smooth like the noodles I had earlier on. My eyes were transfixed at the amount of meat that was packed into the paper-thin wanton skin. The taste was spot-on and the meat was super fresh— I could eat a whole bowl of this myself!
The soup was the underdog of this dish. With its plain outlook and light colour, you’ll naturally keep your expectations low. But as the saying goes, “Do not judge a book by its cover.” It blew me away with its intense flavour.
The last dish was the Caramel Char Siew Rice (S$5). It came with a platter of sliced char siew drizzled with sauce, served together with Hong Kong chye sim, and was served with a plate of plain rice with gravy. I felt that the portion of the char siew was generous at this price point.
The chye sim was blanched with the perfect calibrated time, possessing the perfect balance of crunchiness and softness in every bite.
The char siew was extremely meaty and didn’t possess any creamy fatty parts. Unfortunately, for someone who loves some fats, it was a little dry and tough for me.
On the other hand, my dining partner who loves lean meat took a liking to the char siew— oh well, taste is very subjective, isn’t it?
The more watered-down chilli was acidic and packed a spicy punch, and paired really well with the meat.
Final Thoughts
Did Hennessy Duck’s herbal roasted duck live up to its standards? For sure! The 1 hour travel time was totally worth it and the roasted duck was extremely well executed.
Come here for their roasted dang gui duck and wantons, I highly recommend it!
Expected damage: S$4.50 – S$10 per pax
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