Tuesday, 16 Mar 2021 07:17 PM MYT
BY LEE KHANG YI
Penang’s Siam Road ‘char koay teow’ has been honoured with a listing on Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants inaugural ‘Essence of Asia’ collection Picture by K.E. Ooi
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KUALA LUMPUR, March 16 Four Malaysian eateries are featured in the first-ever “Essence of Asia” collection an unranked listing by Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants.
Kuala Lumpur’s Bijan Restaurant, Penang’s Siam Road Char Koay Teow, Kota Kinabalu’s Kedai Kopi Yee Fung and Ipoh’s Artisan Handmade Bread.
Bijan Bar & Restaurant showcases Malay food in a fine dining setting Picture by Choo Choy May
Covid-19 wreaked havoc on the F&B industry last year, and it continues to affect restaurants, cafes and bars around the world. Many have been closed for extended periods, have had to pivot to survive, or have shut their doors indefinitely. Yet both Michelin and Asia’s 50 Best chose to persevere with their respective awards this year, albeit virtually.
“We feel that our role as an organisation is to help promote great restaurants and by extension the hospitality sector as a whole. As the world tries to recover from the pandemic, the role we play in producing a list brings attention, energy and recognition to the restaurant world,” says William Drew, content director at Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants. “Of course, it focuses to some degree on the 50 restaurants that are named, but it spreads out further. Producing this list is the best means we have at our disposal to promote the restaurant sector in 2021, to drive its recovery and ultimately encourage people to go back to restau