A Californian Hari Raya Tradition

One of the most popular events of the Eid season in Southern California is the Hari Raya gathering hosted by the Consul-General of Malaysia. This year, members of the Malaysian community here as well as guests from other Southeast Asian countries made their way to the Arcadia community centre in Los Angeles county for the [...]

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The Briyani Trail

I’m on the briyani trail again. This time in Northern California. The Sunnyvale/San Jose area has a big population of Indian expatriates working in the IT industry, and there is a big selection of Indian restaurants. I went online to see opinions about the best briyani in the area, and a couple of restaurants always [...]

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Reading Coffee Grounds

I’m ordering local coffee in a Singapore coffee shop. The black coffee, known as kopi, is thick and dark, almost as dark as the night. The woman who makes the coffee pours in sweetened condensed milk. It turns the coffee a unique brown color. The color reminds me of small rivers in Southeast Asia. It’s [...]

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On the Road to My First Book

It’s been quite a learning curve. I’ve been on the road to completing my manuscript during the last few months.  I’ve considered several options including self-publishing. Lots to learn, some challenges, but exciting and satisfying as well.  And one of the best things about the experience is the generosity of help and advice that I [...]

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Top Taste Dishes

A favored restaurant: tasty dishes. That should describe Kai Xuan, a halal Chinese restaurant at the Puteri Pacific Johor Bahru, Malaysia. One of the dishes that we inevitably order is the venison cooked with green onions and ginger. The meat, as usual, was tender and the flavors subtle enough to enhance, but not overpower, the [...]

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Welcoming and Anticipating Hari Raya

Each of us has a special memory of a festival which we celebrate. The memory can come from any stage of our life, and like a piece of favorite jewellery, it is always bright and meaningful, at least in our eyes. Here, I would like to share my special memory of Eid or Hari Raya [...]

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A Bite of Heritage

    With Hari Raya or Eid, the festival marking the end of Ramadan drawing near, baking season will soon be in full swing in many parts of the world. Here, in California, my Malaysian friends bake both modern cookies and traditional Malay goodies, from family recipes or those via the Web. I hope they [...]

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Creative Fried Rice

Is there any Asian who does not like fried rice? Fried rice, or nasi goreng as we call it in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia, is a one-dish meal that can be enjoyed any time of day. It’s also a good way of making use of leftover rice, and letting one’s creativity flow in adding different [...]

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A Window on Malaysia-United States Trade and Investment

A Malaysian delegation was in Southern California to interact with the American business community. The Malaysian Industrial Development Authority (MIDA) organized a seminar on “Malaysia – U.S. Business Opportunities” held at the Wilshire Grand Hotel Los Angles on December 8. The seminar which was well attended aimed at providing the latest updates on the economy, [...]

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Malaysian Contemporary Art Landed in California

As Malaysia’s Independence Day draws near on August 31, a group of Malaysian artists can reflect that this year, they reached a new milestone in their artistic journeys. For the first time, the Matahati group of artists exhibited their works in the United States. The exhibition “Matahati ke Matadunia: Malaysian Contemporary Art to the World” [...]

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