The top line: Viral comedian Nigel Ng’s Uncle Roger character - a middle-aged, old-school East Asian man with a fondness for MSG and innuendo - has opened his first London restaurant. Uncle Roger went viral during the pandemic after brutally (and hilariously) roasting BBC food writer Hersha Patel over her questionable fried rice recipe. Never without his signature orange polo shirt, the character has since achieved global fame by critiquing the online output of other food personalities and chefs, including Jamie Oliver and David Chang. Speaking to Restaurant earlier this month, Ng accepted that he has put a target on his back. “I talk a lot of shit about chefs so people want to see if I can actually produce some good food. I welcome that - it’s part of the job. There are some things we want to get completely correct and leave no space for people to criticise them, not least the fried rice. If I put anything out into the world - whether it’s my stand-up tour, social posts or a restaurant - I want to be proud of it.” Kawan by Uncle Roger follows the success of FUIYOH! It’s Uncle Roger in Ng’s native Malaysia, which now has five sites. Located on Chinatown’s Macclesfield Street, the restaurant takes its name from the Malay word for ‘friend’ and is a collaboration between Ng and the team behind YiQi, SanHao and The Eight, including top chef Daren Liew.
On the menu: Kawan by Uncle Roger is not a Malaysian restaurant, instead offering an eclectic mix of Southeast and East Asian staples, occasionally riffing on British classics. Some dishes feel designed with social media in mind, not least the Chinese Wellington “inspired by Uncle Gordon”. The dish is essentially a mild chicken curry encased in puff pastry with a leg bone protruding from one end and, like several other plates on the menu, comes with a small serving of green salad and coleslaw. Elsewhere, dishes include Hainanese chicken chop, Sarawak pepper-glazed pork and Silky Hot Mess - Uncle Roger’s take on mapo tofu. As one would hope, the fried rice is indeed on point.
The vibe: At first glance, the bright, two-storey space resembles many of its Chinatown neighbours. Look closer, however, and Uncle Roger’s irreverent tone comes through in details such as plates emblazoned with slogans like “leftovers still better than your cooking”. A photo wall charts milestones in Ng’s career, including a framed image with Gordon Ramsay, with whom he has collaborated after the chef produced a passable fried rice. The restaurant seats around 60 covers.
And another thing: Gimmicky concepts can be difficult to land. While this won’t appeal to purists, Kawan appears to be successfully tapping into Ng’s sizeable fanbase. On opening, the restaurant has been packed with ‘nieces and nephews’ happily snapping the more theatrical dishes. For now, it appears to be delivering precisely what its audience expects. But whether it can turn novelty into repeat custom remains to be seen.
12 Macclesfield St, London W1D 5BP