Join Shanghai Foodie Rachel Gouk for Brunch This Weekend at the Waldorf

Beijing is getting a visit, and a meal, from a bona fide Shanghai foodie with food writer Rachel Gouk set to take the capital with a pop-up of Malaysian classics and twists this weekend at the Waldorf Astoria Beijing's Brasserie 1893.

Better known as the creator of food-focused media platform Nomfluence, which she started in 2018, the Malaysian expat has been writing about food and drink for different publications in Shanghai since 2011, after which she made the jump from writing full-time to food consultancy and PR for a number of restaurants in Shanghai.

Gouk's expertise in the realm of food and taste has more recently led her to delve into actually getting to work in the kitchen, with this latest pop-up being part of her effort to share her love of cooking with others. We spoke with Gouk ahead of the weekend shindig to find out more about the event, what she's been up to, and her feelings on Beijing's F&B scene.

How does it feel to be in Beijing, and how long has it been since your last visit?
It feels great! The last time I was back in Beijing was in 2019, also for a food related event: Shuck Off 2019.

So you're usually either writing about food or doing food consulting/PR. Is this your first time in the kitchen professionally for a pop-up or otherwise?
First off, I’m not a professional chef and don’t have any formal training or experience. But I do love to cook as much as I like to eat, and when I can, I like to share it with others. My F&B friends in Shanghai have been kind enough to give me the opportunity to do that on a larger scale. 

My first pop-up was in July 2020 at Tomatito (SH). It was an insane first run — it thunderstormed that evening, but more than 160 people still braved the weather to show up for my Malaysian food pop-up. I must give credit to Kelley Lee, co-founder of Boxing Cat Brewery and Liquid Laundry, for giving me the first spark. She had organized a huge line-up of chefs and personalities to make pizzas for Liquid Laundry’s six-year anniversary in June 2020, and somehow, I managed to make the bill. I made the Siu Yok Pizza, canton-style crispy pork with an anchovy garlic crisp and I was hooked.

The biggest event I ever did was at Mikkeler Shanghai, and more than 450 people showed up for Malaysian barbecue: Malaysian food done American barbecue style, smoker and all. 

How long have you been a friend of Chef Mandela, and what's it been like working with him and his team thus far?
It’s been years. I first met him in 2014 at a Bund restaurant. We kept in touch and reconnected in 2019. He was heading up a new restaurant, Charcohol, and called me in to work on PR and marketing. I worked closely with him on that project for about nine months, and really enjoyed his style of management. His “can do” attitude is not only assuring but also motivating.

Mandela is quite creative, a Chinese chef cooking Western cuisine, and I’d say he’s very open to new ideas and always looks for opportunities to be outside of the box. OMG! His team at the Waldorf Astoria Beijing has been fantastic! We’ve been organizing the pop-up dishes remotely, sending recipes over WeChat and via calls. I arrived Thursday to do a taste check, and the team executed the recipes to a tee.

Looking at the menu, we're seeing a few twists on Malaysian classics. How did these come about?

Of all the dishes on the menu, which dish (or which two) would you personally recommend and why?I’d recommend the Nasi Kerabu. It’s really a simple dish but very satisfying. The chicken is marinated overnight and is roasted to a juicy finish. It’s served with coconut and yogurt dressing and additional curry sauce. I’d also say the satay, it’s a humble street food that’s easy to love. I’ve paired it with pasta, as I do have a reason… At home, I make a chicken satay pasta, which is basically chicken stir-fried with satay sauce and tossed with pasta. My kind of comfort food. It’s probably offensive for Italians and pasta snobs, but I really love it. 

You often cover Shanghai via your blog (and more recently, vlog) Nomfluence, but if you were to sum up the Beijing F&B scene in a few sentences, what would you say?
Oh gosh. I don’t know much about the Beijing scene to make a summary, but I’d say resilient and underrated. I recently learned more about a few impressive restaurants and the talents behind them, and I do hope the scene stays strong. We’ve had quite a few Beijing originals open in Shanghai that I really love, like Bottega, Ling Long, and Sheng Yong Xing. Come one, come all to Shanghai!

I do get most of my news from the Beijinger, so thank you for that! I liked the latest one about Beijing bars, and the snark. Totally agree, by the way.

Now that you're here in the capital, what have you been eating or drinking thus far? Anything you're looking forward to trying?
I had dinner at Zijin Mansion, the Cantonese restaurant at the Waldorf Astoria Beijing. Chef James Wang made an impression! I tried their Michelin Tasting Menu.

Memorable dishes include the soup, as it should be for any Cantonese restaurant, a double-boiled aged chicken soup with whelk and fish maw. The wok-fried Australian beef with black pepper sauce was also excellent, as was the wok-fried rice with scallop, which used white long grain rice and a type of brown rice (糙米) that had been cooked in stock and had a firm and chewy texture.

I am looking forward to trying Laksa Queen! I met chef Addison Liew of MULU recently during a pop-up at the Waldorf Astoria Shanghai. His take on modern Malaysian food was a real eye-opener. YES! Malaysian food can be done fine dining! And his menu was amazing. I hope to try MULU Hutong Beijing one day, but first, I’m going to check out what his kopitiam in Beijing is like. That and some lamb hotpot would be lovely.

The Friends Brunch Series with Rachel Guok, aka the Bites & Beats Brunch, is happening from Saturday, Jul 20 to Sunday, Jul 21, noon to 3pm each day, at Brasserie 1893 in the Waldorf Astoria Beijing. The brunch is priced at RMB 528/person, with bookings available by scanning the QR code in the poster above.

Brasserie 1893
1F, Waldorf Astoria Beijing, 5-15 Jinyu Hutong Wangfujing Dongcheng District
东城区金鱼胡同5-15号华尔道夫酒店1层

READ: Asia's 50 Best, My A**: Great Beijing Bars That Deserve a Nod

Images courtesy of Rachel Guok