Kevin Wong, chef-owner of Seroja restaurant
Cover Kevin Wong, chef-owner of Seroja restaurant

The young Malaysian chef is ready to step into the culinary limelight with a novel dining concept that celebrates the flavours of the Malay Archipelago

Young chefs are making a splash in the local dining scene with innovative restaurant concepts that plumb through their food memories, culture and heritage. Joining these rising culinary stars is Meta’s ex-head chef Kevin Wong, who is set to open Seroja at Duo Galleria on October 1.

The decision to open the restaurant, named after the Malay word for “lotus flower”, came from the 30-year-old chef’s goal to be true to himself. “I was cooking all over the world and was cooking food from many different cultures under many great chefs,” explains Wong, who worked alongside notable chefs such as Franck Putelat of two-Michelin-starred Le Parc Franck Putelat in Carcassonne, France; Matthew Kirkley of three-Michelin-starred Coi in San Francisco, USA; and Sun Kim of one-Michelin-starred Meta in Singapore. So, when the opportunity came to do something on his own, he decided to highlight the flavours of the Malay Archipelago.

Wong feels that the region is under-represented globally, and Seroja feeds into this unsaturated market with a cuisine that takes diners from north, south, east to west of Malaysia.

Ahead of its much-awaited opening, we chat with Wong to discuss his growing up years in Malaysia, favourite dishes from home and why we should be excited about Seroja.

In case you missed it: Meta’s Ex-Head Chef Kevin Wong to Open Seroja, a Restaurant That Pays Tribute to His Heritage

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Tiram
Above Tiram
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Borneo brown sugar bahulu
Above Borneo brown sugar bahulu

How did your love for food and cooking start?

Kevin Wong (KW): My grandmother was an amazing cook. She took feeding the family very seriously and would cook two meals a day when I was growing up (in Klang, Malaysia). She brought me up on dishes like perut ikan, assam prawns, kerabu, nasi ulam and many more delicious delicacies.

That said, I have always loved tasting new flavours. I enjoy making people happy by hosting and cooking for them. What made me want to pursue this seriously was the early influence of my mentors when I was a teenager. They told me about the high honours of being a chef and stories about the Michelin Guide and legendary chefs. It got into my head and all I wanted was to pursue that in life.

What were family meals like in your household?

KW: I grew up with early exposure to a diversified cuisine. It could be having Indian and Chinese food for lunch and Malay food for dinner. Dishes such as sambal petai prawns and chicken 65 could be on the dining table at the same time. To me, that’s the beauty of our region. I grew up eating a lot of different dishes from various cultures such as gulai ikan, nasi kerabu, mutton vindaloo, turmeric fish, ikan bakar and Teochew steamed fish. The variety of what we can get here is endless!

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Traders rice
Above Traders rice

When you first started in your profession, was there a specific cuisine you wanted to master?

KW: When I first started cooking, I was in love with French cuisine. I left to work in France, learned the language and cooked that style of cuisine for a long period of my cooking career.

Thus, I bought a one-way ticket to France when I was 18. It was an eye-opener and a lot of hard work. To be honest, I didn’t learn how to cook a single dish in France. The only thing I learned was to scrub the pots, brush the floors and clean the stoves. Looking back, I truly think that was the single most important period of my career. It built my character, and from there, I realised the importance of every single person in the kitchen. If I didn’t do my job well, the cooks could never do what they do.

What were the greatest lessons you learned from your mentors?

KW: I am very lucky to have met and worked under many different chefs with different styles of cuisine and leadership. My time in France with Franck Putelat taught me discipline and how to keep going until you are finished—not when the time is up. During my time with Matthew Kirkley in San Francisco, I mastered precision. With Benu’s Corey Lee, I learned how to make technical and highly complicated dishes look simple. At Meta in Singapore, humility is one of the traits that chef Sun Kim emphasised.

Why focus on the Malay Archipelago at Seroja?

KW: I think this region is under-represented globally. I remember cooking for Anthony Bourdain once when I was very young. I cooked simple local dishes and he loved it. Off-camera he asked about my ambitions and I told him that I wanted to cook in France and cook the best French food. He questioned me and told me that I should channel my energy and time to cook from within instead. I was very confused and didn’t take him seriously until I travelled the globe. Only now do I understand what he meant.

I think that the Malay Archipelago is so rich in culture, flavours and produce. There's so much that this region has to offer, and I am still learning about it every day. It amazes me every time I stumble upon something new and interesting. Be it produce, people or even a story.

Could you give us a preview of the menu/dishes you'll serve?

KW: I don’t want to spoil the surprise too much, but one of the dishes that I love cooking from the menu is the final savoury course. It is beef cooked with a very old sauce recipe using coconut, candlenut and tamarind over mangrove coals. Alongside it, we serve unique red rice from the mountains of Borneo and two different salads. This is how we eat in this region, where you have a nice piece of protein and some rice and greens. A complete and nutritious meal. In Malay, there is a phrase called lauk pauk, which means side dishes almost like the Korean “banchan”. We feature a few lauk pauk throughout our dining experience.

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