Best of South Korea at PJ mall
Experience the beauty of South Korea and gain insight into the country's many regions at a mall in Petaling Jaya, Selangor, this weekend.
Organised by Korea Tourism Organization (KTO), 'Feel Korea in a Heartbeat' at 1 Utama Shopping Centre brings together the best of travel, food, culture, beauty and entertainment.
'It's a celebration of the diversity and depth of Korean culture.
'Through this event, we aim to bring Korea closer to the hearts of Malaysians and inspire their next journey to our beautiful country,' said KTO Malaysia office managing director Moon Sangho.
Visitors can plan their trip and get information on lesser known areas at the event's travel zone and take a closer look at hanbok traditional clothing.
While there, get up to speed on K-beauty trends through product demonstrations and expert advice, or immerse yourself in Korean flavours with food samplings at the K-Food Zone.
There will also be special performances including by The Painters and 1MILLION crew from the Street Woman Fighter dance franchise, and a K-Pop dance competition.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
9 hours ago
- The Star
Ji Seung-hyun looks forward to trying satay & laksa on his first visit to M'sia
He is in town as one of the presenters at the 8th Malaysia International Film Festival's awards ceremony. Photo:Ji Seung-hyun/Instagram Korean actor Ji Seung-hyun, who recently starred in the hit series Good Partner opposite Jang Na-ra, is in Malaysia for the 8th Malaysia International Film Festival (MIFFest). He will be one of the presenters at the festival's awards ceremony tonight (July 26), co-presenting an award with Malaysian actress Lin Min Chen. During a press meet today at a hotel in Kuala Lumpur, the 43-year-old shared that he had just arrived in the early hours of the morning and hadn't had much sleep. 'I only got to my hotel around 4am. It's my first time here, so honestly, I don't even know exactly where I am yet,' he said with a smile. Still, he expressed excitement about exploring the city and sampling local cuisine during his visit. 'I've tried satay and nasi goreng in Indonesia before, but not in Malaysia,' he said, wondering if the taste is similar here. 'I'd love to try laksa too. I really enjoy trying local food whenever I travel, so I'm definitely looking forward to that.' Aside from presenting at the awards, The Worst of Evil star is also in town to speak about his next project, Bluefish , produced by Malaysian film producer Joanne Goh, the founder of MIFFest. The Pan-Asian collaboration, directed by Lee Sang-hoon and starring Ji in the lead role, is scheduled to begin filming in September. Ji recalled meeting Goh at another regional film festival. 'I was at the Tarang Asian Film Festival to introduce my new film, My Friend Is A Murderer. That's where I met Joanne. She's also the investor and distributor for my next project, and it was actually our first time meeting in person. 'She suggested I come to MIFFest – so this trip came together quite suddenly.' Although he hasn't had the chance to watch any of the festival's films yet, Ji believes collaborations between countries are incredibly meaningful. 'I'd love to return next year for MIFFest.' He also expressed hope to work on a Malaysian production in the future. 'Actually… how about a love story between Malaysia and Korea? That way, I can be in it too,' he said.
Borneo Post
9 hours ago
- Borneo Post
SMK Kunak Jaya (B) Sabah State National Storytelling champion
Performance by SMK Kunak Jaya (B) team.-Information Department photo KOTA KINABALU (July 26): Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan (SMK) Kunak Jaya (Team B) emerged as the champion of this year's Sabah State-level National Storytelling Competition. SMK Kunak Jaya (Team A) was the runner-up, followed by SMK Putatan in third place. SMK Bandau Kota Marudu, SMK Bandaraya Kota Kinabalu and SMK Menumbok Kuala Penyu secured fourth, fifth, and sixth places respectively. Deputy Director of Information, Supian Musa, stated that the competition aimed to foster love and pride as Malaysians, especially among school students. 'Additionally, they can learn about national art figures and personalities related to the country's development. Through this competition, they also discover the sacrifices these figures made for the nation in the struggle for independence, as well as their contributions to our country's arts and culture. With this event, students gain awareness of the dedication and services rendered by these icons,' he told the media after the judging session for the Sabah State-level National Storytelling Competition Finals here on Tuesday. The official announcement of the competition results was made on the Sabah State Information Department's Facebook page on Saturday. Supian, who is also the chief judge of the competition, added that such contests amplify patriotic spirit and love for the Jalur Gemilang (Malaysian flag) in conjunction with the upcoming National Day on August 31. 'What I've observed after over five years as chief judge is that teams are showing improvement in their ability to creatively interpret history and stories about their chosen figures. We hope students will deeply appreciate these figures and subsequently communicate their stories through theater,' he said. As champions, SMK Kunak Jaya (B) will represent Sabah in the video-recorded National-level Storytelling Competition in August. The top six teams will then compete in person on September 16.
The Star
14 hours ago
- The Star
Gua group aims to bring legacy restaurants from small-towns in Malaysia to KL
It is 11am at Kedai Kopi Xiong Wor in Taman Tun Dr Ismail in Kuala Lumpur and tables are heaving with customers. By 12pm, every single available table is taken up and the eatery's signature curry noodles are precariously close to being sold out – as is often the case. What is interesting is that this scenario is a replication of what usually happens on a daily basis in the original outlet in Kuantan, named Teng Haw Coffee Shop (its name in Hainanese). Teng Haw was established in 1966 and is named after the patriarch of the family who first started it 59 years ago. For many Klang Valley denizens who call Kuantan their hometown, the curry noodles at Teng Haw are a must-have on a trip back home and consequently, one of the dishes they miss the most when they're back in Kuala Lumpur. Thankfully a few months ago, a fledgling restaurant group called Gua Group successfully convinced Jayden Ong, the fourth-generation owner of the restaurant, to bring the brand to Kuala Lumpur, where it now sits under the banner of Kedai Kopi Xiong Wor, its Cantonese name. What is even more interesting is that Gua Group's founders – Danial Yik, his sister Mimi Yik and brother-in-law Keanu Subba – are entirely focused on identifying and bringing heritage restaurants scattered throughout the country to the capital city. From left: Keanu, Mimi and Danial are on a mission to preserve heritage restaurants and recipes by providing an opportunity for younger-generation owners to open branches in KL. — SAMUEL ONG/The Star 'I had this thought of 'Isn't it a bit strange that you always have to tell your friend to go to Penang for the best char kuey teow or to Ipoh for chicken rice'? 'So the three of us had a discussion, and we thought, why don't we bring these heritage brands that are tried and tested and have a legacy to the Klang Valley? People love these foods, so why not have the same experience in KL?' says Danial. From those tenuous beginnings rose the kernel of an idea for Gua Group's core mission of building a repertoire of legacy restaurants in the Klang Valley. Driving tradition forward While Danial, Mimi and Keanu are relatively new to the F&B industry, they are not entirely untested, having established a healthy food eatery called Staple Eats just before the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. The three come from diverse backgrounds – Danial studied architecture at the University of Melbourne but left before completing his degree, while Mimi is a political science major. Her husband, Keanu, meanwhile, is a former champion Malaysian mixed martial artist. It was always Mimi's dream to open a restaurant, so Staple Eats became the family's first F&B venture. When the restaurant closed after the end of the Covid-19 pandemic, the trio realised that the dishes that resonated most with Malaysians were Malaysian food, especially traditional foods that are still made the old-fashioned way. 'A lot of these legacy foods are disappearing. We wanted to keep the legacy alive. I wouldn't say we are like custodians – I don't want to be too presumptuous but I would say that we want to have a hand in preserving local favourites that would be lost to time otherwise,' says Danial. Danial (right) says it was easy to convince Ong to come onboard, and the success of Xiong Wor has shown him that there is a gap in the market for heritage restaurants in KL. — SAMUEL ONG/The Star Part of this impetus was also prompted by the number of heritage restaurants dying out as younger generations are either not motivated to continue the business or have been encouraged by their parents to pursue other less physically laborious paths. 'There is a need for preservation of these dishes and there is a gap in the market to draw more of these heritage restaurants to KL and potentially expand their presence. Like with Jayden, for example, he was actually a mechanic before this as his family wasn't keen on him being in the business. 'So if he decided that he didn't want to continue making the curry mee, we won't be able to enjoy it anymore – nearly 60 years of culinary legacy would end with him. And you find this more and more with like famous chicken rice shops in Ipoh suddenly closing because the owner's son or daughter went overseas,' says Danial. Maiden venture Having discovered their true calling, Gua Group's founders wasted little time in recruiting their first heritage restaurant, setting their sights on a hometown favourite that they grew up with. 'Kuantan is my father's hometown, so I've been going to Teng Haw since I was a toddler. Every trip to Kuantan, we always woke up early to go there. 'It was part of the experience, you know. It was not just about going and eating the food – you also had to wait in line and hope it wasn't sold out,' says Danial. Xiong Wor's curry mee boasts nearly 60 years of fine-tuning and is the key reason Gua Group wanted to bring the heritage restaurant to KL. The process of getting Ong on board was relatively simple and fuss-free. 'Our negotiation was very simple. I said, 'Do you want to open your shop in KL?' He said, 'Yes'.' Once Ong agreed, everything else fell into place relatively quickly. Danial's father believed in his children's vision and invested in the restaurant group and having learnt their lessons with their first F&B venture, it took Danial and his team only three months to put together Kedai Kopi Xiong Wor. 'We were working with Jayden, who is the same age as us and knows his job very well and we had operated kitchens before, so we were very quick to identify what we needed,' says Danial. But turning an age-old restaurant in Kuantan into a city staple was not without its challenges. Even though everything came together quickly, the hurdles and obstacles were presented in different packages. 'The translation from a kopitiam to a restaurant with a different set of cleanliness standards and preparation standards was one of the challenges we faced. 'We wanted to make the restaurant more modern but we also wanted it to be safe and clean, because we find that a lot of kopitiams have been operating for so long that they don't want to change. But luckily, Jayden has been very open to change,' says Danial. Since it opened a few months ago, the restaurant has been perpetually packed. — SAMUEL ONG/The Star Gua Group's business operates on a profit-sharing model. Danial and his team finance the expansion of heritage restaurants like Xiong Wor in KL as well as provide consultancy services. They don't own or buy the recipes from the owners, so the recipes remain with their rightful keepers. 'We don't buy their recipes – they still hold them. What we do is actually empower this new generation of restaurant owners and provide them with a platform or a way for them to see that they can continue with the next generation and preserve these dishes,' explains Danial. Eyes on the future Having established their first heritage restaurant in the Klang Valley, Danial now knows that this model is very viable. 'The success of Xiong Wor has enabled us to confidently continue with this mission because now we know that our model does work. And we can use the first restaurant to convince other businesses who want to continue their legacy and heritage that there is a way to make money and beyond that, to continue the traditional format in a sustainable way,' says Danial. Identifying new heritage restaurants to work with will depend on a few key factors: how good the food is, how passionate the owners are, and the most pertinent part of this equation – is there someone in the younger generation who is hungry for growth and an opportunity like this? Kaya toast is one of the old-school dishes at Kedai Kopi Xiong Wor. — SAMUEL ONG/The Star 'The next restaurants we are looking at are places in Ipoh and Penang. But for this to work, we need to see that the owners believe in the mission, which is to preserve the legacy and heritage. If they're running a family restaurant just for the sake of doing it, we probably wouldn't choose them. 'We're looking for people who inject love into their recipes and most importantly, we require someone from the restaurant to be very active in continuing the mission,' he says. To finance the expansion of these heritage Malaysian restaurants, Danial says Gua Group has to grow more organically. Next in their pipeline is a legacy international restaurant, which the group will be establishing in Kuala Lumpur. 'The international branding is more of an expansion effort. So we need to bring in a bit more income generation so that we can focus on financing our actual mission of bringing in more heritage Malaysian restaurants to KL,' says Danial. As Danial himself is Muslim (his father is Chinese and his mother is Malay), part of his core goal is also to introduce heritage restaurants that are more inclusive and cater to all Malaysians. 'We want to make these restaurants pork-free and alcohol- free because, from a business standpoint, we will miss out on a whole demographic of Malaysians if we don't do this. And the idea is to bring these heritage foods to a wider audience,' says Danial.
