Ducking Good 好吃鸭

Got to know about this new establishment named Ducking Good 好吃鸭 whilst going around the Geylang neighbourhood one day; located right across Yong He Eating House, Ducking Good should be an establishment that is fairly easy to locate with its frontage facing Geylang Road — these folks have taken over the former premises of the now-defunct (and also short-lived) & The Hare. Ducking Good is also neighbours of the Ji Xiang (yes, the establishment best known for its Ang Ku Kueh) outlet at Geylang; a seemingly new addition to the neighbourhood as well. Considering how it takes over the former premises of & The Hare, it seems that the folks of Ducking Good had decided to keep much of & The Hare’s decor largely intact — the only really obvious change here would be the landscaping that & The Hare used to have in the dining area that has seemed to be removed. Much of the slightly upscale and posh vibes of the space had been retained, with the space seeing large use of grey and other dark coloured elements with white walls to finish the look — they had even gone for the use of dining tables with dark glass table tops and dark-coloured cushioned seats to go along with it. As the name suggests, Ducking Good has its menu focused around its duck offerings — this would include the Crispy Spiced Duck Leg as well as Signature Braised Duck Leg; they also do offer both in the format of a whole duck. Other items available in the menu can also be found split into categories such as Claypot Dishes and Double Boiled Soup; there are also rice and noodle items that can be ordered to pair with their other dishes that they have to offer. Beverages available at Ducking Good will include several types of tea, a monk fruit juice and canned beverages.

It is interesting to note that while items can be ordered ala-carte at Ducking Good, patrons can also go for the set options if they so wish to — the set options are a great way to have a complete meal with several combinations that fit across individual diners as well as groups of diners of varying sizes. We opted for the Duck Leg + Rice / Noodles — this would allow one to choose between their Crispy Spiced Duck Leg or the Signature Braised Duck Leg for the Duck Leg with the ability to choose between Jasmine Rice, Fragrant Duck Fat Garlic Rice and Braised Soy Kuay Teow Soup for their choice of carbs. For our order, we went with the Signature Braised Duck Leg and the Fragrant Duck Fat Garlic Rice. Interestingly, Ducking Good does provide quite a balance meal in a way — while the set is missing of a soup here, credit should be given where Ducking Good does serve up a side of braised cabbage with their rice. Coming in two separate plates, the Signature Braised Duck Leg comes with meat where some part of the duck leg has been de-boned (though not all) — the portion size of the duck leg also being rather generous. Digging into the duck leg, we did find the duck leg to be sufficiently moist and tender; the meat also did not feel rough or grainy like how some stalls serving up braised duck meat would do. Truth to be told, the braising liquid here does seem like something that would appeal to some tastebuds but not all; sure, it is rich and savoury considering the dark shade of colour that it came with — that being said, the flavour lacks a certain contrast of spices despite coming with that depth and felt a little bit of a missed opportunity. The addition of fried garlic did add a crisp factor and a garlicky note, and we liked how the coriander was able to cut through the richness of the braising liquid.

Meanwhile, the Fragrant Duck Fat Garlic Rice was pretty flavoursome on its own; being sufficiently moist and not too overwhelming — adding a bit of the braised liquid does help to elevate the entire experience even further. The braised cabbage is cooked till soft and carried a light note that went well with the rice as well. The Prunella Luo Han Guo is a beverage featuring monk fruit; while it is evident that these folks have attempted to tone down on the level of sweetness of the beverages, we did feel that we would have preferred things to be more heavy handed in general. Given the environment of which Ducking Good set in, the food seems to be priced at a decent price point — the set comprising of a duck leg and a noodle / rice item of the patron’s choice being priced at $14.90 (promo price $10.90); no doubt a little pricey compared to the more mom-and-pop style eatery in the same neighbourhood, but at least one is enjoying their food in a fairly well-decorated, air-conditioned environment here. That being said, it really depends on whether such incentives are a plus to those looking for somewhere to dine at in this neighbourhood; after all, Geylang is quite a different breed of its own and Ducking Good deserve up quite a limited variety of food items anyway — would be interesting to see what the future holds for them …