"I Didn't Pay Anyone" — Pork Nasi Kandar Owner Says After His Business Booms
A happy man.
By Sadho Ram — 02 Nov 2023, 12:02 PM — Updated 10 months ago
Suresh Gnanasekaran is a happy man.
His pork nasi kandar stall — which recently became the talk of the town after the Malaysian Muslim Restaurant Entrepreneurs Association (PRESMA) took offence to the dish — is thriving.
Named after the lovable warthog from Disney's 1994 animated film The Lion King, the stall in Damansara Jaya is aptly called Pumbaa's and features the character's likeness as its official logo.
Earlier this week, after PRESMA president Datuk Jawahar Ali Taib Khan claimed that the dish is "an insult to the nasi kandar industry" and will cause "confusion among the public", the 38-year-old owner had to issue a clarification that he is running his small business in a non-halal store.
Amidst the controversy, sales have surged at the Pumbaa's Non-Halal Nasi Lemak & Nasi Kandar stall, with the owner having to cook extra to cater to the influx of customers, reported Malaysiakini.
Suresh said he harbours no hard feelings against those who kicked up a fuss about the non-halal dish, especially since a lot of people are "coming out to support" his humble eatery.
"Not only by buying (food) but also on my social media, there are a lot of people who send me encouraging messages and tell me to hang in there. So, it was a very good response from my customers," he said.
The brouhaha began after a food influencer posted a video promoting Suresh's stall on her TikTok and Instagram accounts last week
Suresh told Malaysiakini that he did not hire the food influencer to promote his stall.
He said the influencer used to support him when he ran his previous eatery in Taman Megah and decided to create a video when he opened Pumbaa's a month back.
"She used to follow me in my previous endeavours and came and did the video. I didn't pay anyone," he said, adding that he always wanted to give pork nasi kandar a try since it was not available elsewhere.
Suresh also said he was surprised when PRESMA took offence as he had made it very clear that the food he sells is not halal and he chose to operate in an area that is "prominently Chinese".
