Yat Lok Restaurant (一樂燒鵝): A MICHELIN-Starred Restaurant in Hong Kong Serving Cantonese Roast Meats (And the Juiciest Roast Goose I’ve Ever Had!)

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This article is part of the Hong Kong Food Trip series. Check out the installments in this series: Australia Dairy Company (Cha Chaan Teng/Hong Kong-Style Cafe) | Hing Kee Restaurant (Claypot Rice) | Lin Heung Lau (Dim Sum) | Oi Man Sang (Dai Pai Dong) | Yat Lok (MICHELIN-Starred Roast Meats/Goose) | Yuk Kin Fast Food (Fried Rice)

I was supposed to travel to Hong Kong in February 2020. Unfortunately, the Philippine borders closed during that time as a precautionary measure against COVID-19. I had to change my travel plans and went to Davao City instead (check out my Davao City food trip series starting here).

The pandemic already ended a few years ago but Hong Kong wasn’t priority in our travel list. Maybe because when we were researching about HK, we find the prices too expensive (we were shocked that it’s even more expensive than Singapore). But earlier this year, we took a leap of faith and decided to travel to HK. And you know what that means—a Hong Kong Food Trip series!

Let me start this series with one of two Cantonese meats restaurants awarded with a MICHELIN Star—Yat Lok Restaurant (the other establishment is Kam’s Roast Goose).

Yat Lok Restaurant (一樂燒鵝) is a family-run business that originated in Fanling (New Territories) in 1957, moved south to Tai Po in 1976, and finally settled to its current location in Central in 2011.

Inside Yat Lok Restaurant During Lunchtime

It has been awarded a MICHELIN Star every year since 2015. No wonder it’s notorious for long queues!

The MICHELIN Stars of Yat Lok Restaurant

But we visited on a Tuesday lunchtime and were seated immediately. As expected, the staff wasn’t friendly. We ordered very quickly for fears of getting scolded. LOL!

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But the lack of hospitality was compensated with efficiency. We got all our orders in under five minutes!

Let’s talk about the food, starting with what they’re popular for: Roast Goose. I got a Whole Goose Leg over rice. Since I was already there, I might as well order the best part of the goose.

Man, it was the best dish I’ve had in our trip! It’s so succulent that every time I chew it, it bursts with juices!

The skin is shimmering, fatty, and has a slight crisp. Dip it in the plum sauce for added sweet and sour flavors, and it’s the perfect bite.

Because of my Yat Lok roast goose experience, I can call roast goose as the lechon (Filipino suckling pig) of poultry!

We also tried their Char Siu (barbecue pork) and Crispy Pork (belly). The former is tender and not too sweet, while the latter has a crisp skin, though I wish it’s fattier and more tender.

While the roast meats are good, it’s not as spectacular as the roast goose.

To offset the fattiness of the meats, we ordered their Vegetables with Oyster Sauce. It’s actually blanched but has retained some crispness. It’s also on the plain side but the oyster sauce gives it flavor.

Is Yat Lok Restaurant worthy of a MICHELIN Star? I believe so. Their roast meats are good, and their roast goose is unlike others I’ve tried in our trip (though I haven’t tried Kam’s Roast Goose yet).

Admittedly, there are other roast meat shops that serve good food, have shorter queues, and are more affordable. Try them out and I’m sure you won’t be disappointed. But if you want to eat good roast meats together with an ultra-succulent, world-class, MICHELIN-level roast goose, then head to Yat Lok. I highly recommend it to you!

Address: G/F 34-38 Stanley St., Central, Hong Kong | Operating Hours: Daily: 10AM-8:30PM | Contact No.: +852 2524 3882 | Instagram

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