Malaysian Restaurant Awarded Michelin's 'One Star' Rating

KUALA LUMPUR, (Bernama) -- Hardly a year since its debut in New York City, Malaysian restaurant Mamak Malaysia, has been awarded a 'One Star' rating by the Michelin Guide, the international benchmark of good food.

Owned by Chef Nani Yusof Hughie, a former journalist with the Malaysian national news agency Bernama, the restaurant which serves up the popular dishes long identified with Penang's Indian Muslim community, was listed in the guide, a professional rating of quality restaurants in December last year.

The allocation of stars is done annually by Michelin based on anonymous visits by its inspectors. 'One Star' indicates a very good restaurant in its category, offering cuisines prepared to a consistently high standard. "I am surprised and honoured by the recognition as I am not a professional chef, and that includes my kitchen team. Furthermore, I am very new in this restaurant business, not even a year," she told Bernama via email recently.

The restaurateur, who is also a freelance writer, says the coveted award is meaningful for her and her team who have been working untiringly to ensure that meals are prepared with high standards and maintaining consistency. "I was cleaning up my office at the restaurant on Jan 18 when I found a stack of letters on my desk. To my surprise, I found this letter dated Dec 23 from Michelin," Nani recalls.

Mamak Malaysia serves mixed Indian, Malay and Chinese cuisines, which are popular in Penang, she says, noting that some of her dishes are not served at other Malaysian restaurants in the United States. Born and raised in Penang, Nani is the creator of Mami Penang Cooking Inc, the registered company that runs Mamak Malaysia, the first fully halal Malaysian restaurant in New York City. The restaurant is located at 35-20 Farrington Street, Flushing, in the north-central region of the city's borough of Queens.

Since moving permanently to New York in 2005, Nani has built two successful businesses, Mami PG's Cooking and Melayu's Cookies. Mami PG's Cooking, which was set up in 2007, specialises in hometown Penang cuisines.

As a self-taught chef, Nani has become known for her nasi lemak and nasi kandar. "We are famous for our shrimp nasi kandar, beef nasi kandar, squid nasi kandar, crispy okra and lamb rack with rendang sauce", she said.

Within three months of its launch, the restaurant received rave reviews from various media such as The New York Times, The New York Magazine, Chopsticks and Marrow, Chowhound, among others. "We also have been featured in Globe Trotter by Jon Haggins - TV segment. Chowhound also has selected us as 'The Best New York Chowhound Find in 2013' on Jan 5," she says.

Since its opening in May last year, Mamak Malaysia has attracted Royal diners, foreign dignitaries and celebrities, who brought a touch of fame and glamour to the restaurant. Nani had the honour to serve Brunei's Prince Abdul Mateen Bolkiah and his delegation during their visit to New York City on Nov 2 last year.

Malaysian Ministers, Parliament Members and celebrities are also among her distinguished diners. Mamak Malaysia also provides catering services to several Asean Permanent Missions to the United Nations (UN) during their National Day and holiday celebrations. Her clients include NBC (National Broadcasting Corporation) offices, the United Nations, Warner Brothers, Seamless, Tourism Malaysia and various Permanent Missions to the UN from Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore.

Nani, 42, says her entrepreneurial skills were developed since she was a teenager by selling 'Mee Rebus Mamak" during her school's canteen day each year. "During my college year, I started my own street burger business which is still operating until today after more than 20 years. The business is now run by my brother at my hometown," she said.

Nani comes from a mixed marriage background. Her mother, a housewife, is a mix of Punjabi/Bengali and mamak (Indian Muslim) while her father, a teacher, is of Dutch, Thai and Nyonya descent. Brought up in Indian, Malay and Chinese mixed community in Georgetown, Nani developed an interest in Penang's authentic cuisine since she was 10.

It was romance that brought Nani to the Big Apple. Nani has been married for the last 10 years to a Barbados-born American nutritionist. It was her love for cooking that had been her mainstay during these years in the US. Initially, she spent time doing regular office jobs besides writing for Bernama and catering food for special events. Nani is the proud mother of two kids, a five-year old boy and three-month old girl.

She says that several well known food blogs, Midtown Lunch, Eating in Translation, and Chubby Chinese Girl Eats have written glowing reviews of Mami's PG Cooking in the past year. Various Malaysian newspapers have also given rave reviews on Nani's cooking.

Given that her business is currently experiencing rapid growth and expansion, Nani says she is working with the Queens Economic Development Corporation to develop her company's own branded products for the US market.

Nani says that running a restaurant is a tough business as it requires a lot of hard work, planning and commitment. "You need to develop the right attitude, promote the restaurant, keep an eye on the competition and communicate with your customers. And you have to perform all these tasks while you're cooking awesome food and providing top-notch service."

"It is tougher overseas, given the enormous challenges and obstacles that restaurateurs like me have to face. You really have to possess extraordinary strength to operate abroad," she said.

To stay competitive, she has to fully understand the stringent US procedures and laws and keep abreast of the latest developments. Nani regularly uses the social media, such as Facebook and Twitter to promote her restaurant and stay connected with her friends and customers.

Nani, who is humbled by her success, is grateful to Queens Economic Development Corporation for extending assistance since she started her business by providing various programmes, especially for women migrants.
-bernama.