The Malaysia International Gourmet Festival was launched in 2001 and has become the country’s finest dining event, a favorite of Kuala Lumpur’s crème de la crème. It is a very high profile event and has prompted excitement both inside and outside the country.

From the beginning, the festival’s aims were twofold: to increase the number of fine diners and to create a buzz and a sustained interest in Malaysia’s fine dining scene.
When the doors closed at this year’s Gourmet Festival, it was mission accomplished!

As the organizing chairman, Dato Steve Day put it, “we continue to explore new ideas to strengthen Malaysia’s position as a world-class food tourism destination, and this year have introduced a “Malaysia Truly Asia Cuisine” competition among the master chefs, and launched the Malaysia International Gourmet Festival Gourmet Tour Packages. With these incentives the Gourmet Festival has been the best to date.”
Completing the picture, this festival is well publicized around the world with its main objective always in sight—to sell Malaysia as a top food tourism destination.

The cuisine of Malaysia is a true amalgam of Southeast Asia. The country has taken people and influences from both East and West. The result is a myriad of exotic and mouth-watering dishes. Malaysia’s unique multicultural society and blend of Asian persuasions provides the finest sample of the region’s culinary flavors in one single destination. Malaysian cuisine and delicacies tell an interesting story, representing the country’s exquisite identity and origin. Malaysia is fast gaining prominence as both a gastronomic paradise and a premier destination for gastronomical indulgence.

With all the promotions and publicity like the Citrarasa, the Food & Fruits Festival and the Kuala Lumpur International Gourmet Festival, it is the best time for foreign tourists to savor an unforgettable gourmet experience, right here in Malaysia itself. These Festivals compliment the Ministry’s effort and goals in making Malaysia a top-of-mind destination.

Malaysia has provided a peaceful home for many different ethic groups. Malays, Chinese, Indians, Thais and Eurasians live and eat together in harmony. The best cuisines of each culture have “intermarried” and have produced an astonishing array of dishes. Malaysia is working with this ethnic advantage to popularize is cuisine worldwide, particularly in Japan, Australia, India, North America and Europe.

The objectives are to increase Malaysian presence in the global restaurant world. They want to expand the existing restaurants and create new ones, giving Malaysian cuisine an increased presence and visibility around the world.

This Truly Kitchen program is based on a comprehensive development of activities from the ‘farm to the table,’ the utilization of restaurants as a “Window to Malaysia” and as a showcase to promote local cuisines, tropical fruits and handicrafts. Through this program, the government expects the number of Malaysian restaurants to grow to 8,000 venues by the year 2015. (There are currently 376 Malaysian restaurants overseas).

For the record, the Malaysia Truly Kitchen is operating to a full house in London, Beijing and Hyderabad in India. More of such restaurants will be making their debut in Macau, Australia, Japan, Europe and the United States.