Roast Paradise Guys Opened A Zi Char Restaurant At Somerset And It’s ‘Fook Kin’ Good
If you’ve been to Old Airport Road Food Centre in the past year or so, chances are that you’ve heard about Roast Paradise.
Started by two friends – Randall and Kai – in 2016, these young hawkerpreneurs have quickly made a name for themselves thanks to their Kuala Lumpur-style char siew and siu yoke / roast pork, and the stall attracts long, long queues at pretty much any time of the day.
And after setting up a second outlet in Ang Mo Kio, the pair have now brought their food to central Singapore in the form of the cheekily-named restaurant Fook Kin.
‘Fook Kin’ Good Food
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Conveniently located at 111 Killiney Road (a 5-minute walk from Somerset MRT, according to Google Maps), Fook Kin is a collaboration between Roast Paradise and local DJ royalty The Muttons.
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Featuring an Instagrammable, Wong Kar Wai-esque aesthetic (think marble tables, graffiti and neon lights in all the right places), the restaurant offers Roast Paradise’s Signature Char Siew and Roast Pork, while adding several zi char-style dishes to the menu as well.
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These dishes aren’t the kind you’d find at your standard coffee shop, though. The Triple Happiness ($9.80) for example, adds salmon roe and salted egg bits on top of Pitan / Century Egg Tofu, creating a refreshing-yet-flavourful appetiser that serves as a perfect accompaniment to Fook Kin’s meatier offerings.
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Those looking for a more traditional dish can also consider the Two Way Kai Lan ($9.80), which — as its name suggests — serves the classic vegetable in two styles on one plate. While one half is more or less your standard braised-in-oyster-sauce fare (still delish, btw), the other is fried and sprinkled with a generous amount of pork floss for a crispy and satisfying bite.
Of course, you can’t go to Fook Kin without eating their meat, and the restaurant has added roast duck on top of the Roast Paradise classics for even more freedom of choice.
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Those looking for a simple meal can opt for the one-meat Roast Delight ($8.80), while more indulgent patrons can go for the titular Roast Paradise ($10.80) that includes all three meats. Served with either rice or noodles and throwing in a Shoyu egg for good measure, you’re guaranteed a hearty meal no matter which option you choose.
At this point you might be wondering: how does Fook Kin’s meat compare to the original Roast Paradise? Well, considering that Randall has now made Fook Kin his main base of operations (he has trusted employees running the Old Airport Road and Ang Mo Kio outlets), you’re actually getting the quintessential Roast Paradise experience.
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Thanks to a painstaking preparation process that takes a whopping 4 hours every day, both the char siew and siu yoke are truly a step above the rest. The char siew was incredibly tender and had a distinctively sweet taste to it, while the siu yoke was probably the crispiest and most savoury that I’ve had in my entire life.
The roast duck — while serviceable — just isn’t as mind-blowing as the other two. If we had to choose between the three, I’d recommend going for either the char siew or siew yoke before springing for the duck.
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If the meat in your rice / noodle bowl isn’t enough (and believe me, it won’t be enough), you’ll be glad to know that you can order a meat platter as well. Ranging from $6.80 to $65 for a small and extra large serving respectively, this is the perfect choice if you’re coming here with a group of friends…or just really hungry. We won’t judge.
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With its convenient location and mouth-watering menu, Fook Kin is definitely the place to be if you want to up your zi char game. Sure, it might be a tad more expensive than…say, a coffee shop, but for the quality you’re getting, it’s definitely well worth the price.
FOOK KIN
Address: 111 Killiney Road, Singapore 239553
Opening Hours: 11:30am – 9:30pm
Also Read: 10 Affordable Dinner Date Spots In S’pore So You Can Treat Your Bae Without Going Broke
(Header Image Source: Discover SG)
A Malaysian’s Unbiased Opinions Towards Singapore Food
In my opinion, the perennial debate over whether Malaysia or Singapore has better food is something that need not exist. Having lived in both countries and tasted food at every level, it is hard to say whose food is better.
Just like everything out there, both have its strengths. While I personally believe Malaysia probably fares slightly better for hawker food in general, I believe Singapore easily overtakes Malaysia for speciality dishes such as the chilli crab and chicken rice.
Red House Seafood
When I was down in Singapore for two weeks, I got to try 
The dish is only made more memorable after the crabs have been finished and all that is left is to dip the fried mantou into the sinfully good sauce. Not a single drop should be wasted.
The charcoal bun with chilli crab filling was a pleasant surprise. The innovative dish incorporates charcoal powder into the bun, which makes it softer than anyone can imagine. Packed with the chilli crab filling, these buns were quite a treat. I don’t think I would be able to find anything close to this back home.
The trio of squid was another stunning dish. While I think this can be easily found in Malaysia, this dish is special because it has all three types of squid in one dish.
We also tried its crab bee hoon at Red House seafood, a slightly upscale seafood restaurant along Prinsep Street, just a stone’s throw away from the bustling Orchard Road. Again, this is a dish uncommon to Malaysia. The Sri Lankan crabs used in Singapore are easily three times larger than those found in Malaysia. My theory is that the best crabs go to Singapore, and Malaysia gets the rest.
For some unknown reason, I’d expected the dish to be fried, but to my surprise, the dish consisted of a cold water crab bathed in rich, deeply flavoured broth and surround by thick bee hoon. The milky sheen of the broth reminded me very much of fish head bee hoon soup and indeed, the taste of this broth bore some similarities to the fish head bee hoon soup, but with more depth.
The crab seemed to have enhanced the flavour of the soup, bringing it up a notch. Again, I have to admit that I probably wouldn’t be able to find an eatery in KL that could serve a rival dish.
Roast Paradise
But if we talk about dishes that could contest each other in flavour and consistency between the two countries, it will have to be Roast Paradise’s char siew. Admittedly, Randall and Kai, the two Gen-Y owners of the hawker stall in Old Airport Road Food Centre, completed a four-week training course in Kuala Lumpur before opening their stall. But they have taken the best of what they could learn from an expert in KL before making the char siew in a uniquely Singaporean way.
I had the utmost privilege of speaking to Randall, a 26-year-old entrepreneur who was so passionate about food, he was willing to go against his parents’ wishes to enter the hawker trade. In only four weeks of training, he and Kai had mastered the art of preparing char siew and now serves to a strong crowd almost daily.
The sweet marinade of the char siew meat ($4.50 for 100gm), coupled with an unparalleled expertise in the technique of achieving tender roast meat, is what makes this dish memorable from start to end. The trip to the food centre might be a hassle for some, but it is worth it.
The dishes come with garlic rice ($0.60) or freshly made Hakka noodles ($2.20). They had, unfortunately, ran out of garlic rice and roasted pork ($4.50 for 100gm) when we were there at about 4pm (towards the end of their second service). However, we did manage to try the Hakka Mee.
In comparison, hawker food in Singapore is incredibly affordable compared to Kuala Lumpur, where an average bowl of noodles can cost up RM5.50.
Would I say either country’s food is better? I strongly believe they’re both good in their own way. Healthy competition is always encouraged.
Red House (Prinsep Street)
Address: 68 Prinsep Street, S188661
Tel: 6336 6080
Email: [email protected]
Operating hours: Mon-Fri, 11.30am-2.30pm, 5pm – 10.30pm; Sat-Sun, 11am-10.30pm
Roast Paradise 烧味天堂
Address: Old Airport Road Food Centre Stall #01-122
Brought to you by Discover SG x Foodie VS The World.
Also, read Watermelon Fried Rice In Singapore, Have You Tried It?
Roast Paradise @ Old Airport Food Centre: Serving Great Char Siu!
It isn’t often you find young hawkers. The trade has seen a sad decline due to the aging population. Without much of the younger generation taking the places of older, tired hawkers, the hawker food trade is at serious risk of being lost to foreign talent and also diminishing quality.
But hawker food is so deeply ingrained in the Singapore culture that it would be a waste to see it die off. This is something that Randall and Kai, who run the Roast Paradise hawker stall at the Old Airport Road Food Centre, hopes to prevent. The 26 and 28 year-olds are a rare pair who dare (check out that rhyme) to break out from the norm in pursuit of their dreams.
Both were from a PR background but wanted to switch trades. After training with a well-known char siu chef in Selangor for a mere 4 weeks, the duo were ready to take on the Singapore hawker scene by storm. At their corner stall in the food centre, located near the back, Randall and Kai expertly slice up char siu and roasted pork belly with the swiftness and precision of well-trained chefs.
According to Randall, for their char siu dishes, there are two types of cuts they use. One is a leaner, typical char siu cut and the other is a premium cut with more fat. The difference lies in how they are prepared. Though both carry the same sweet, flavourful body, the meats differ slightly in texture. The normal char siu, though already tender and juicy, almost pales in comparison to the premium cut. Each bite absolutely melts in your mouth like butter.
The meats alone are enough to satiate a hungry belly, but what is also popular at their stall is the garlic rice and pork belly. In fact, they are so popular that it ran out by the time we went to their stall! But our tastebuds and appetites were well compensated with a piping hot bowl of mee poh. The springy noodles, also known as Hakka noodles, come with minced pork and spring onions. A dollop of chilli sauce is added for those who like a little spice in their noodles.
Dishes at Roast Paradise start at a reasonable $2.20 (for the noodles). For the amount of love and passion that is translated into their dishes, I’m more than willing to pay twice that amount.
Randall (right), sharing his thoughts on the hawker scene in Singapore.
The next time you’re around the area, do pop by Roast Paradise for a plate of their garlic rice and roast meat!
Roast Paradise 烧味天堂
Address: Old Airport Road Food Centre Stall #01-122
Brought to you by Discover SG X Foodie Vs The World
This was an invited food tasting session.
(Header image credit: Desmond Teo)
Also read: Hipster Hawkers: 5 Stalls That Are Redefining Hawker Culture
