PETALING JAYA, Nov 29 — Nicholas Scorpion is not your typical chef. The Singaporean, who owns Jing Ze Contemporary Asian Restaurant, is willing to go to great lengths just to cook.
In fact, he was once jailed because he did not want to give up cooking! (But more on that later.)
Opened in September last year, the restaurant — Scorpion's first — which is located in PJ's Section 17 reflects where he comes from and where he has been.
The restaurant's name is actually Scorpion's name in Mandarin. The 30-year-old admits that in the past it was rarely used.
Scorpion elaborated, "When I came back to Asia, I started to fall in love with the culture and the cuisine. I thought it was apt to use my Mandarin name and proudly put it on the front door."
You will also notice a distinct rose emblem the moment you walk through the doors. It's a nod towards a family heirloom ring that Scorpion wears all the time.
As Scorpion has been away from his family in Singapore for many years to pursue his cooking career, the restaurant is dedicated to them.
Interestingly, a culinary career was not the path that Scorpion had imagined for himself growing up. Instead, he once harboured thoughts of becoming a street cleaner (all for that cool vehicle they drove!), an architect as he excelled in drawing and even a lawyer since he always won an argument!
A music career was also contemplated since his father and sister are in that line.
Fate played its hand when he took up a part-time job as a waiter in a bistro to earn extra money. The observant Scorpion noticed the disconnect between the kitchen and dining room.
Soon he started writing notes on paper napkins — pretending they were from diners — to boost the chefs' morale. Eventually he was found out.
It did get him noticed and he was offered a spot in the kitchen to experience how things worked. "The rest is history. I cooked really hard and studied hard too," he said.
In 2008, he joined renowned pastry chef Janice Wong at 2am:dessertbar. One night, a visit from Australian chef Ryan Clift to the dessert bar saw him quitting his job the next day and joining Clift's new venture, Tippling Club, for the next six years.
"It was such an opportunity as he is such an amazing chef," he said.
Scorpion got into trouble with the military during his Tippling Club stint when he took an unapproved absence of leave from his National Service (NS) as he wanted to continue cooking.
"I didn't want to lose touch as I wanted to dedicate my 100 per cent to cooking," he explained.
Clift tried his best to get him out of his NS duty but failed. That offence led to him being placed in solitary confinement for a month.
"I had this crazy thing about time... if I lost even one minute or one day, I'd freak the hell out," he explained. Later, Scorpion went on to work in Oxwell & Co in Singapore and Kiln at Bali. He also staged at Michelin starred El Coq in Italy.
In 2018, he visited Malaysia for the first time and recognised a gap in the dining scene for a place with a casual vibe but well-cooked food.
"What I am not saying though is I am the saviour and I am going to turn this country into a culinary mecca. I just want to add to the momentum that has already started."
It also made business sense for the young chef as costs were more reasonable. "It gives me the space to make mistakes, which I am an advocate of doing. Making mistakes is one of the best ways of learning.
"I need to be in an environment where I can learn from my mistakes. In Singapore, if I make one mistake, I may be washed out with a S$45,000 rent!" (That's RM137,798.)
He admits it wasn't smooth sailing in the beginning but "choosing Malaysia allowed to me to stay afloat, take some steps back, restrategise, tighten our belts and persevere as a team."
As time passed, Jing Ze gained a dining crowd that appreciated their offerings and kept coming back. That has put them on a better footing.
Scorpion, who is always full of ideas, has plans to start a late night dessert bar upstairs next year.
At Jing Ze, expect to find fuss-free dining that won't murder your wallet. "Diners walk away paying RM150 for dinner with a glass of wine. The prices are reasonable and you're not received with a necktie and tablecloth service so you're not feeling uncomfortable, plus there's Kanye West playing in the background. I think it's all about putting people in the right mood."
That is also why Scorpion decided to open in this quiet suburb rather than Bangsar since it suited the restaurant's ethos. ""We are not a Bangsar brand, we are just a little premium but not pretentious premium."
When you dine here, the open kitchen space gives you a sense of connection with the work happening behind the scenes. Keen eyes can pick up their charcoal grill or the fact that Jing Ze currently has three female chefs working.
At Jing Ze, they also make their own bread, butter and pickles. Ingredients are sourced locally from farms in Janda Baik.
"In this kitchen, everything is made with the highest integrity. We don't order anything frozen. If we can make it ourselves, we'll make it. If we can control every aspect we'll control it, but we're not charging you RM500 for it," explained Scorpion.
On the menu, expect plates with a finely tuned balance of flavours and textures. Scorpion elaborated, "I think it's a very European and Australian way of building a dish as that's where 80 per cent of my career was in.
"Australia is also where Kelvin Wong, my head chef, trained with Neil Perry at Rockpool."
It's hard to pinpoint the cuisine served here, as influences abound from South-east Asia, Korea and even far flung South Africa; Scorpion labels it as contemporary Asian.
Take for instance their addictive crispy pork bossam, where fried crispy pork belly similar to char siew is served with baby gem lettuce, fresh herbs, house-made kimchi and Thai nam jin.
You can mix and match what you like in your lettuce cup. Add a bit of chilli garlic sauce to cut through the richness of the tender pork while kimchi gives you the funk and the herbs lend a lightness.
One feels like the dish has you zipping through various cultures — Chinese, Korean and Thailand — but what is clear is how delicious it is.
You'll quickly find an empty plate staring at you within a few minutes.
It's all about feel-good and easy dining here; like using your fingers to devour the chicken wings, a permanent staple on their menu.
"A lot of people come here for the realness of the food as we don't do molecular gastronomy," he said. They change the type of chicken wings served from time to time though.
This current version has the wings stuffed with glutinous rice and Thai fermented pork sausage. Dip the crispy wings into the Sriracha mayonnaise for a slight spicy hit.
Most plates include their house-made pickles. Scorpion believes it's an important element. "It's there to balance the food and to give you appetite."
And it does work wonders since it's also good for your gut. Their Wagyu rice bowl — a popular order from their lunch menu — which can be heavy for a mid-day meal is lightened up with a mix of pickles.
Similarly their tuna tataki served with horseradish soy sauce has carrot and daikon pickles on the side rather than the usual pickled ginger. Rice crackers give a nice contrast of textures, making it a dish you can easily finish in a few seconds.
We also appreciate how the sting from the horseradish is nicely reined in to make it a pleasant experience, unlike the more pungent wasabi hit that goes straight through your nose.
Jing Ze also excels in the flavours for their sauces. For their duck dish, it's paired with a sauce derived from a Surabaya rawon beef stew.
The dark hue for the sauce comes from the use of keluak nuts while spices used leave a warm tingle on your tongue.
Accompanying it is their zippy cabbage, a name coined by Scorpion. This South African preserved vegetable prepared in-house is flash grilled on the charcoal fire before serving. "The taste is a little sour, tangy and it dances in your mouth," he said. It gives the balance needed too for this rich dish that has became a crowd favourite.
On the same page albeit a little lighter for the stomach is Scorpion's adaptation of a dish known as pindang kecombrang in Indonesia.
Traditionally in Indonesia, they use mackerel but at Jing Ze, they pan fry locally sourced seabass. The fish skin, crisped up to resemble a cracker, is served on the side for texture.
The star is the sauce, made with kecombrang or what we know here locally as torch ginger flower or bunga kantan. The citrus and ginger notes for the sauce shine bright here as organic buds from Janda Baik are used. Rounding up this dish is a light salad of wing beans tossed in coconut serunding.
For dessert, zoom in on the classic chocolate lava cake with its oozing decadence. Scorpion describes it as being similar to "that cheesy song which everybody enjoys."
Yes, we can't help but dig in to this warm chocolate cake updated with organic mulberry sauce. It's lightened up with their house-made coconut sorbet and given texture with a crumble assembled from a mix of cacao, almonds and coffee.
In December, Scorpion is celebrating with a big bang as he debuts babi guling for the festivities! Expect a visual feast in their open kitchen as he has installed a rotisserie where whole pigs will be roasting on a spit over a charcoal fire.
"It's my favourite dish ever and I've probably eaten in at least 200 places for babi guling," explained Scorpion. Popular in Bali, where Scorpion was based before, it takes a lot of work, from cleaning, stuffing, sewing and slowly roasting it. He plans to introduce it together with whole roasted birds, served with Yorkshire puddings and lots of gravy.
We can't wait!
Jing Ze Contemporary Asian Restaurant , No 22A, Ground & Mezzanine Floors, Jalan 17/54, Section 17, Petaling Jaya. Tel: 03-79314801. Website: https://jingze.com.my Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jingzerestaurant/
