Yat Lok Roast Goose HK – One Michelin Star restaurant

Perhaps it is a case of the forbidden fruit. Many friends we know make a beeline for roast goose whenever they are in Hong Kong. It is hard to find roast goose in Singapore as the import of goose into Singapore is strictly regulated. According to a Straits Times story, there are still a few places to eat roast goose in Singapore. Many Singaporeans get their roast goose fix whenever they are in Hong Kong. Yung Kee, Kam’s Roast and Yat Lok are places that often come to mind. The latter two have received one Michelin star each in the Michelin Guide 2019. We decided to go to Yat Lok Roast Goose HK at Stanley Street to try their goose and roast pork. Yat Lok has been run by the Chu family since 1957 and at this Central HK location since 2011.

There is a concise account of the history of Yat Lok’s history, including the closure of the restaurant at Tai Po in this story in the SCMP : Best roast goose in Hong Kong just a memory now Yat Lok closed. The present Yat Lok restaurant at Central Hong Kong is certainly more convenient for visitors like us. It is a small and congested place. But that speeds up the turnover as it is not a place diners would linger and make small talk. Eat, pay and leave is the name of the game. We were there at an off-peak time around 5.30 pm. The queue to get in was short with less than 10 people in the queue (approx a wait of a ten minutes).

The famed Yat Lok roast goose is marinated with a secret recipe and undergo a special process before being chargrilled to its wonderful looking golden brown finished state. The char siew pork is also popular here and they use pork shoulder from Brazil.

Yat Lok Roast Goose HK Menu

Thankfully they have an English version of the Yat Lok Roast Goose HK Menu. Essentially, the main items are roast goose, roast pork, BBQ pork, soya chicken and Beijing dumplings.

We decided to have the roast goose drumstick with rice vermicelli soup (HK$118) and roast goose and BBQ pork with rice (HK$79).

The meat plus rice combination for HK$79 looked like a reasonable priced option on the menu. Diners can pick one or two types of meat to go with rice. We selected char siu and roast goose. The char siu was very good, succulent and with some charred edges. There were only a few slices but they were quite thick. We were not so fortunate with the roast goose portion. We got the odd pieces of goose – the parts with some bits of meat but not enough to sink our teeth into. But we could taste the magical taste of the roasted marinade on the bird.

We decided to have the goose drumstick with rice vermicelli as there was a picture of it in the menu and we thought we should try it instead of steamed rice. The goose was as good we can imagine it to be. Very juicy soft and not too fatty. The parts of skin not soaked with soup was crisp and light. The submerged parts lost their crisp but gained a different soft texture.

The placement of the goose into the soup also added a complex flavour to the soup. It was a good combination. We now understand the buzz surrounding Yat Lok. Be warned – it is addictive. We are already thinking of a next visit to Hong Kong to eat this again.

Ratings:
Food: 5
Service: 4
Value: 4
Atmosphere: 5
Overall Rating: TOPs 

Yat Lok Roast Goose HK
34-38 Conwell House Central, Stanley St, Hong Kong
香港島 中環 士丹利街34-38號 金禾大廈地鋪