Manchurian chicken, sweet and sour tofu?
These two dishes definitely do not come to mind when one thinks of Malaysian food, and one British YouTuber named Pat was none too pleased when he came across these items being sold under the guise of “Malaysian street food” at a London market.
For some context, Pat is one half of the duo behind Pat & Giulia, a British-Italian couple who spent six months locked down in Malaysia during the Covid-19 pandemic.
It is understandable then that they developed an appreciation for Malaysian food, as well as a basic grasp of Bahasa Melayu.
In the video published on Tuesday (July 22), the couple appear to be on a mission to seek out both authentic and inauthentic Malaysian cuisine in London.
Sharing that London is home to a large number of Malaysians, they wrote: “There exists some very good Malaysian food, but we also uncovered some of those selling fake Malaysian food.”
“Now we’re back in London, we’re craving a bit of Malaysian food, so we thought we’d come out here to get some,” said Pat.
Their first stop? An eatery in northeast London known for offering “the cheapest roti canai (roti prata) in London”.
“British people love a roti canai, let me tell you,” said Pat.
Their order of two roti canais cost £4.95 (S$8.60), along with two curry puffs for £1.80.
Their review of the curry puffs? “Very nice,” said both.
“It actually tastes like Malaysian ones, doesn’t it?” Pat remarked.
The freshly made “not frozen” rotis also received good reviews. The dish came with a dhal curry as well as sambal.
“Very, very delicious,” said Pat, adding that it might be the best roti canai he’s had in London. “It’s like being back in Malaysia,” Giulia concurred.
However, their next stop in their Malaysian food hunt left more to be desired, with Pat proclaiming that they’d “found fake Malaysian food in London”.
They do not identify the stall’s location, but the camera pans to a shot of Camden Lock, suggesting that it could be at Camden Market, a place known for its many food stalls.
When asked what’s classic Malaysian food, a man behind the Malaysian food stall replies, “beef rendang” and “chilli chicken Manchurian”, even adding that it’s a “traditional curry from Malaysia”.
“Interesting,” Pat responds. The hawker then recommends “sweet and sour tofu”, as well as a soupy item he introduces as “laksa”.
“Can you speak Bahasa Melayu?” Pat quizzes the pair in Malay, also asking “Dari mana (where are you from)?” But it is evident that they don’t speak the language.
“You guys aren’t Malaysian,” Pat adds, to which the duo behind the counter state that their boss is from Malaysia, more specifically, Penang.
Needless to say, Pat and Giulia leave empty handed.
‘How dare you say this is Malaysian?’
“How funny was that?” Pat remarked to the camera following the encounter. “It wasn’t Malaysian food at all… we called them all out.”
Sharing that he was “getting a bit annoyed”, he added: “How dare you say this is Malaysian [food]?”
Pat also indicated that the items sold were all “typical Chinese-British food”.
“There we go, fake Malaysian food here in London,” he quipped.
Many in the comments praised the couple for their effort in calling out such stalls and also for appreciating Malaysian culture.
“You guys are so Malaysianised… For non-Malaysians to be able to spot that fake stall is crazy, respect!” one commenter stated.
Wrote another: “I hope this brings awareness and vendors should stop misrepresenting and mis-labelling food as an easy way out. Good on ya for pointing it out. I’d be hangry too.”
One netizen appeared to notice another small sign that the stall wasn’t authentic.
“The guy didn’t call you ‘boss’, which suggests he isn’t Malaysian selling authentic Malaysian food,” joked another, to which several others agreed.
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candicecai@asiaone.com
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