July 21, 2021 Rizal Van Geyzel temporarily transformed his comedy club in Kuala Lumpur’s upmarket Taman Tun Dr Ismail suburb into a pizzeria amid the pandemic. Farhan Iqbal Running a restaurant is never easy, but in Malaysia, where eating out is practically a national pastime, successful establishments have long thrived by virtue of their reputation and seen little reason to innovate. Then came March 2020 and the country's first partial coronavirus lockdown, sending chefs and restaurant owners scrambling for ways to stay afloat - seeking aid from the government, rental relief from landlords and urgently looking to pivot towards food-delivery apps. Others saw opportunity amid the crisis, however, with new entrepreneurs entering the food and beverage space looking to leverage their knowledge of the digital world and knack for innovation.