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ETHAN LAU

Ethan Lau is a food writer based in Kuala Lumpur. He currently writes for the Malay Mail, and was previously the digital editor for the MICHELIN Guide Kuala Lumpur and Penang.

Featured Articles

Malay Mail •

Fine dining is dead. Long live fine dining

COMMENTARY, July 26 — Last month, I finished the final season of The Bear, the FX drama about fine dining chef Carmy Berzatto who returns home to run his late brother’s sandwich shop. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since. For one, it was immensely rewarding to watch Richie Jerimovich — once bitter and broken after the loss of his best friend, Carmy’s brother Michael — evolve into a slick, lovable, foul-mouthed, front-of-house manager who found newfound purpose staging at a three-Mi...
Malay Mail •

From Michelin-starred kitchens in Singapore to a food court in Kuala Lumpur: How Ong Ai Li and Josh Chua built Nude in Bangsar

KUALA LUMPUR, June 25 — A tiramisu costs RM15, and some passersby at Ong Ai Li’s old stall, Nude Bakery, in Kuchai wanted her to know exactly how outrageous that was. They didn't just say so; they brought proof.  “They would go out of their way,” Ong says. "They would go to the pasar malam and buy a tiramisu double the size of ours to show to my face and say, ‘Nah, see? This is a RM15 tiramisu!'" Looking back, Ong can only laugh. Just earlier that year, she was the Group Executive Pastry Chef at...
Malay Mail •

No such thing as a free lunch: The problem with influencers as ‘food reviewers’ in Malaysia

COMMENTARY, May 31 — My frustration begins where it often has, lately: an Instagram post.On their profile, MalaysianPAYGAP, a community initiative for salary transparency in Malaysia, posted a short clip with Ming Chun, one of Malaysia’s more prominent food influencers who has successfully carved out a niche for himself as a self-appointed ayam gepuk “connoisseur”.For the uninitiated, it is a dish of fried and smashed chicken, typically paired with a spicy sambal, cashew nut paste, fried cabbage...
Malay Mail •

Chef Nobu Matsuhisa on 10 years of Nobu Kuala Lumpur and the importance of people, patience and simplicity

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 16 — Chef Nobu Matsuhisa is a figure that hardly needs an introduction, but one almost always follows. At 76, his eponymous empire spans more than 50 restaurants and over 40 hotels in more than 20 countries. He’s often credited with reinventing the way the world eats sushi, first in Los Angeles and New York, then everywhere else. But don’t just take my word for it. In Nobu, a documentary centred on his life released earlier this year, Ruth Reichl, former restaurant critic for T...
Malay Mail •

Fermented tea leaves, chickpeas and ‘mohinga’: A night of Myanmar food and beer at S Double One Restaurant, Desa Sri Hartamas

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 29 — My friend Hong, a fellow writer and avid “foodie” – a label that makes me squirm, and I hope makes him squirm too – is an interesting character. When he’s not talking about meeting Japanese wrestlers of Korean descent in Osaka or putting me on to Beck’s 2008 album Modern Guilt, he’s usually double, triple, quadruple texting me about getting linopot delivered to my house, eating egusi and fufu at a place that no longer exists, or that time he ate horse steak in Amsterdam. H...
Malay Mail •

In a shack off Old Klang Road, Restoran Lim Kee Sdn Bhd serves a superb bitter gourd fried ‘dong fun’ that tells a story of grit and perseverance

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 8 — To the naked eye, Lim Kee is nothing more than a patch of curbside covered by a corrugated zinc roof.Beneath it, people gather around loose tables and chairs, their faces illuminated by the pale glow of fluorescent lights.All are here to eat some form of fried noodles – Hokkien mee, wat tan hor and even fried pak kor, a seldom seen chewy Hokkien rice cake – but most are here for the signature dish: bitter gourd fried dong fun.But Lim Kee is more than just a plate of noodles...
Malay Mail •

Heading to Nusa Dua, Bali? Here’s a roadside ‘sate babi’ you cannot miss

BALI, Oct 3 — The next time you get your Eat, Pray, Love on and book a Bali getaway, do yourself a favour and get out of the hotel.No, you won’t find Javier Bardem pretending to be Brazilian (his irrepressibly Spanish accent gives him away), but if you’re lucky, you’ll find something better.Nusa Dua is far away from the rowdy clubs and sweaty surfers in Seminyak and Canggu, but also a safe distance from the cult-like brand of yoga expats in Ubud.Developed as a resort area in the 1970s, it’s an e...
Malay Mail •

A unique ‘omakase’ experience in an unassuming Pudu ‘dai chow’ where a well-travelled chef delivers his take on traditional Chinese cooking

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 29 — At night, Jalan Gelang and its surrounding lanes are some of Pudu's quieter roads, though they are just a stone's throw from the bustling Jalan Pudu and its lively wai sek kai (food street). One of these lanes is home to Restoran Cai Ji, popular for steamed fish head, but I’m more interested in what’s on the corner: Restoran 满满818茶室 x 人生大事火锅. I wouldn’t bother translating the name – it's crucial that you use this for finding it on Google. Located at the corner of Jalan Gel...
Malay Mail •

In conversation with: Lau Ka Hong and Celine Choong of Atelier Binchotan, the hottest table in KL

KUALA LUMPUR, July 12 — Standing over white-hot coals, Lau Ka Hong often cuts a reserved and aloof figure.The 34-year-old chef and co-founder of Atelier Binchotan spends most of his time with his back to diners, though he insists it’s not in his nature to be so withdrawn from them.Even when he faces the counter while preparing a dish on the pass, his laser-focused gaze rarely shifts from the task at hand.You might get a smile when he serves your food. “It’s not that I don’t like talking (to dine...

Latest Articles

Malay Mail •

Tsukishima Monja Koboreya, Bukit Bintang: KL gets its first taste of Tokyo’s ‘monjayaki’

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 16 — The phrase “ugly delicious” gets thrown around a lot to describe dishes from our part of the world. It’s meant as a self-aware compliment: this won’t look good on Instagram, but it’s tasty. It’s real. Authentic. And yet, it’s never sat right with me. Why are some dishes — sometimes entire cuisines — deemed “ugly,” and others not? More pressingly: why do “our” dishes make up so much of that first category? Any wannabe food stylist can turn a charcuterie board or a pasta tray...
Malay Mail •

Asia Curry Noodle Cafe, Ara Damansara: Come for the curry ‘mee’, stay for the coconut shell-roasted pork

PETALING JAYA, Aug 14 — My unceasing, all-consuming love affair with curry mee is well documented: I eat it, and write about it with the same undiminished joy. And if the many bowls I’ve slurped down have taught me anything — some good, some great, some a crime against curry mee — it’s that good curry mee can come from anywhere. Sometimes it’s from a place you least expect. When I visited Tian MiMi Secret in Ara Damansara earlier this year, I drove past Asia Curry Noodle Cafe on my way out. The pro...
Malay Mail •

After Leen’s and S.A.J. Bistronomy, chef Ameer Alzalek ventures into ‘shawarma’ with Bab Shawarma and Grill in TTDI

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 9 — When chef and restaurateur Ameer Alzalek started Leen’s, he was selling hummus and traditional Syrian dishes at pop-ups and for home delivery during the pandemic. A dedicated following formed, and by the end of 2022, Leen’s had a brick-and-mortar home in TTDI. A year later, S.A.J. Bistronomy, its sister restaurant, opened basically next door. Then, in 2024, Leen’s was awarded a Bib Gourmand by the Michelin Guide, a recognition it has held onto since. After spending a decade...