Ritch’s Lechon (The Bedok Market Place)

Was scrolling around social media and got to learn about the existence of Ritch’s Lechon at The Bedok Marketplace — these folks had taken over the original spot where The Naughty Chef had first set up stall within The Bedok Marketplace that is right beside The Burning Oak. A newly-opened stall at The Bedok Marketplace, these folks should be quite easy to locate considering how it sports a rather simple signboard, while illustration of the various items that they serve up can be found hung around the entire stall that helps to catch the eyeballs of those whom are passing by. There is also a pretty prominent menu board that is located right beside the counter that showcases what they have to offer. Based on the namesake of the stall, it is already fairly obvious that Ritch’s Lechon is an establishment that specialises in serving up Filipino fare — Lechon in particular. It is interesting to note that Ritch’s Lechon serves up both chicken and pork versions of Lechon; namely Lechon Manok and Lechon Banoy respectively. There are also some other non-Lechon dishes that are being served up at Ritch’s Lechon which includes Lumpiang and even Leche Flan that is being served up at Ritch’s Lechon as well.

One thing that piqued our interest with Ritch’s Lechon is the availability of the Lechon Manok — the Lechon Manok is actually the chicken rendition of the pork version of the Lechon that some might already know about and does seem to be quite an uncommon dish around the island; Ritch’s Lechon also does serve up the usual Lechon that we already come to know as the Lechon Baboy. Whilst most establishments serving up Lechon either serves the item as-is or with white rice, Ritch’s Lechon does serve up their Lechon offerings featuring quite a number of carb options — this would include mashed potatoes, Aglio Olio pasta, Seafood Pasta, Green Salad and Rice. For our order of the Lechon Manok, we went for the Lechon Manok with Aglio Olio. Digging into the Lechon Manok itself, the Lechon Manok is served in a format that is rather similar to the Lechon Baboy with the chicken thigh being chopped up — considering how this is a spit fire-roasted chicken, there is some similarities that one can find with the Lechon Manok with roasted chicken commonly found at stalls serving up Hainanese Chicken Rice, though the Lechon Manok would be the more flavoursome one of the two. The skin is less greasy and carried a roasty note as compared to the roasted chicken from Hainanese Chicken Rice stalls, while the meat is much more tender and juicy as well with a more full and plump bite. In comparison to the standard pork-rendition of the Lechon however, the Lechon Manok carries a much milder flavour partially due to the use of white meat — the difference in the meat already causing the slight difference in the flavour profile with the herbs used such as the bay leaf, garlic, onion and pepper also felt milder as what we would typically find in the pork-rendition of the Lechon. The Aglio Olio features standard spaghetti that is tossed with chili padi, garlic, herbs, cherry tomatoes and pepper — we do feel that there is a lack of olive oil fragrance with the Aglio Olio and it could also definitely make do with a bit more oil to lacquer around the noodles, though it does hint of a slight hint of pepper and garlic, with the cherry tomatoes carrying a refreshing burst of tanginess; the chili padi also giving it a good kick of spiciness as one bites on them. Do opt for the soup that they offer complimentary on the side; this does seem to be a Lechon Sinigang which is a savoury and sour soup that is pretty hearty — almost akin to that of salted vegetables soup that comes with a slight sweetness from the addition of corn, and features scraps of Lechon Baboy within as well.

Giving their Leche Flan a go, these are initially stored in plastic containers but the folks at Ritch’s Lechon would plate them up for dine-in patrons. The Leche Flan can be described as a Creme Caramel dish, though we did find that this would still be a little different from the usual caramel pudding dish that we have come to know. For one, the Leche Flan does come a lot more dense instead of pudding-like, though it is especially smooth whilst at it. Whilst typical caramel pudding carries a slightly more eggy note with a hint of sweetness from the caramel drizzled above, the Leche Flan itself does carry a rich sweetness that suggests the use of condensed milk, whilst drizzled in sugar syrup — this does make the Leche Flan feel a little bit on the sweeter side, though should be expected considering how it is a Filipino dessert. Filipino cuisine has started to become a little bit more easier to find in the past number of years, with stalls serving up Filipino cuisine being situated in food courts, coffeeshops and hawker centres having sprouted up quite a fair bit in recent times. Ritch’s Lechon is one of the few establishments that chooses to specialise on Lechon, though the availability of Lechon Manok does remain fairly rare even within such establishments. Considering how little exposure we do have on Lechon Manok, we wouldn’t be able to comment on how authentic the Lechon Manok at Ritch’s Lechon is. Ritch’s Lechon does keep its offerings pretty wallet-friendly; the prices of its Lechon offerings range from $7 to $12, with the lowest priced item being the Lechon Manok with Rice whilst the priciest item will be the Lechon Baboy with Seafood Pasta and Lechon Baboy with Green Salad. For those whom are curious on what Lechon Manok is all about (or even looking to expand their knowledge on Filipino cuisine in general), Ritch’s Lechon is a spot to be added to the list to check out.