Mang Kiko’s Lechon

Mang Kiko’s Lechon is a Filipino BBQ hawker that opened in Lau Pa Sat last year. It seems to be doing rather well and has spawned another branch over at the Youth Park. I didn’t have a good first experience with the place last year but headed down over to Somerset last week to give it another shot.

Mang Kiko's Lechon.

Ordering counter.

For those who are wondering, lechon is atas Spanish for roast pork, Mang Kiko’s signature dish. I decided to try the chicken instead this time though. A set of rice and your choice of meat costs $6 here, which may seem a tad pricey before you consider where the stall is located. It’s no steal but definitely has the one-up when compared to the absurd Nandos at Parco Bugis Junction.

Pork Belly.

Roasted Chicken.

The chicken didn’t fare any better than their pork, at least in my opinion. The over burnt style of cooking was not to my liking. As with the pork belly, the burnt taste overpowered the flavor of the meat. The meats had also been sitting at the stall for a while so when I got mine, it was already cold and hardened. Yan suggested that perhaps we made the wrong timing. Certainly the staff certainly did have quite the crowd to handle.

Sisig.

Yan decided that we should try the Sisig , even though we saw the people at other tables hesitantly picking away at their orders of the dish. While assumed that it was some sort of minced meat dish but it turned out to be a pan of nothing but pork fats. We had a little difficulty finishing it ourselves.

Perhaps I’ve grown accustomed to the usual Singaporean kind of roast meats but I would have to say that Mang Kiko’s is vastly overrated. Don’t get me wrong, it’s by no far means bad. It’s just not the wonder that the rest of the internet is making it up to be either. Still it’s one of the most affordable choices if you’re stuck in the central Orchard area and probably one of the better choices at the tourist trap that is Lau Pa Sat.