Ep 29: Darren Teoh (Head Chef & Owner of Dewakan - Asia's Top 50 Restaurants 2019)

Chef Darren Teoh Min Guo is the head chef and restaurant owner of
Dewakan, where in April 2019, it became the first Malaysian
restaurant on Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list at 46th place with
the title Best Restaurant in Malaysia.





“Dewakan” derives its name from a combination of two Malay words:
Dewa (meaning “God”) and “makan” (meaning “to eat”). And at
Dewakan, Chef Darren is known for taking rare and forgotten
ingredients from peninsular Malaysia – including the sea,
mountain, jungle and farmlands – and elevating them into unique
dishes that diners have described as ‘modern art’.





But how did it all begin?





In this STIMY episode, we talked about:


2:00: Why Darren once considered doing fashion or graphic
design

3:38: Being good with his hands

5:15: Studying at Ternas, which had a dual programme with
Institute Cartel

7:13: Why he moved to Singapore to work

10:25: Being caught sauteing mushrooms in a pan that wasn’t
hot enough

14:58: Working in the cafeteria of KDU

15:46: Lecturing on molecular gastronomy at KDU

17:14: Unexpected challenges in running Dewakan

18:44: Diving into the history of “Malaysian” cuisine 

21:12: Figuring out how to use local, often forgotten,
ingredients in Dewakan’s menu

23:17: Developing relationships with local producers like
Langit, Chocolate Concierge & A Little Farm on the Hill

24:09: Differentiating good/bad local producers

29:04: Impact of being on Asia’s Top 50 Restaurants List in
2019

31:55: How listeners can help Darren

36:38: Be very, very good at failing






Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/29