Will you dine with Me(yrick)?
> Get a taste of the personal side of this celebrity chef, a sharp-witted man with admirable culinary skills
that’s the same at all Mama San, we will tweak a little, depending on the location.
When you’re designing a complete menu, what factors do you take into account?
Basically, when we conceptualise the menu, or when we develop a restaurant, we always have a theme behind it. When I started travelling, my collection of recipes grew and I didn’t know what to do with them. Hence, I decided to segregate the recipes and tailor made each restaurant according to a concept. The idea for Mama San was born when I was travelling in Southeast Asia, namely Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand, so the food here is more about northern Southeast Asian fare.
Since cooking is your profession, do you still cook at home?
Yes, I do. Since I deal with Asian food every day, I cook western food at home. Sometimes, there is nothing more comforting than a good bowl of pasta.
If you only have 30 minutes to whip up a Malaysian dish, what would you cook?
Nasi goreng kambing, but in nasi kandar style. I love nasi kandar because of the Indian spices and the Malay twist to it.
In your opinion, what is the one trait that most successful chefs have in common?
It has to be attention to detail. At the end of the day, it’s not just wholly about food. It’s also in the detail of how the kitchen is organised, how the crew is trained, how the chefs operate, and more. This is one vital thing that you have to be very careful with, especially when your restaurant is growing; if you grow too big, you may not be able to control the details, and the details are what set you apart from the rest.