Asia
The Mystery of Gong Fu Tea
My first time in Asia, and I found myself entering a traditional Chinese tea house, “The Chapter” in Singapore. The place felt like it came straight out of a Chinese fairy tale. Stairs led to a corridor with private chambers, each with individual tables for savoring fermented leaf broths and, why not, a bit of […]
Vietnamese Flavors from Berlin to Paris
I’ve never been to Vietnam, and I don’t know any famous Vietnamese chefs, except for Nguyen Thi Thanh, the lunch lady. In Venezuela, I grew up around Chinese and Japanese people to some extent, but I don’t recall connecting with people or restaurants from other Asian countries in the ’90s and early 2000s. My only […]
Dewakan Dinner: Last Waltz in Kuala Lumpur
Finally, the big night at Dewakan. We arrived at the restaurant with our luggage; we would head straight to the airport afterward. Darren Teoh, a Malaysian-born chef with a rich Chinese-Indian family background, leads the restaurant. Darren has placed Dewakan on Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list in 2019, a first for a Malaysian restaurant. After […]
Kuala Lumpur Blues
I land in Kuala Lumpur, and man, it’s a wild switch from Singapore. I take a cab from the airport and head downtown, cruising through these lush green expanses dotted with banana trees. There’s something about KL that takes me back to my roots in Caracas. Malaysia and Singapore split paths in 1965. While Singapore […]