So, what did Mogan Anthony and Seleste Tan do? They made their own kuih. Since both are working in the culinary industry, this solution was a no-brainer.
In fact, Anthony and Tan, both 41, met while working at the Four Seasons Hotel in Singapore. They moved to New York when a friend asked for their help in starting a restaurant. And since they liked it there, they stayed on.
Since then, this power couple has worked in a string of well-established restaurants including wd-50, a molecular gastronomy restaurant in Manhattan, New York City.
However, skilled as they both were, they weren’t used to making kuih.
“The first thing my wife made was seri muka. It was a disaster,” said Anthony via a Zoom call.
They continued perfecting the recipe until they got it right, and learned how to make other kuih such as talam pandan, talam jawa, kuih lapis sago and onde-onde.
“You can’t make one piece of kuih. You have to make a tray of them,” said Anthony. So, the couple decided to share it with their neighbours and this eventually gave them an idea to start a business. In February 2021, they did just that.
They named their business “Lady Wong”.
“We wanted to create something that is very easy to understand and came up with ‘Lady Ong’ as ‘ong’ stands for luck,” he recalled. They subsequently added the “W” after feeling that something was missing.
From initially participating in pop-ups, the couple eventually opened their first store in East Village, New York. “It was Feb 22, 2022,” said Tan, who designed the outlet.
Today, Lady Wong has approximately 30 tantalising items on the menu such as lapis rainbow, kuih bengka, kuih kosui, curry puffs and a variety of cakes like cendol gula Melaka and the classic pandan chiffon.
They also pay homage to other Southeast Asian desserts such as mung bean cake from Vietnam and mango sticky rice tart as a nod to Thailand.
To achieve the high quality of their treats, the couple makes them in small batches. This also ensures its freshness.
Ingredients such as gula Melaka are imported from Malaysia while glutinous rice is sourced from Thailand and Vietnam – something that Anthony admitted requires a lot of coordination with different vendors.
“When customers tell us they don’t like a cake or if they accidentally dropped it, we refund them. That’s how we built Lady Wong. We have that personal touch,” said Anthony.
Their hard work is paying off, as they now have a growing fan base which includes Caucasians. But it wasn’t just the man on the street who had taken notice of them – they also caught the attention of prestigious publications. These include “Forbes”, the “New York Times”, “Bon Appétit”, and the “New Yorker”.
The Bloomberg writer described the lapis rainbow cake as “the coolest dessert” she has tried in a long time. The couple did not expect this. “We are honoured and grateful,” said Tan.
Within six months of opening their first outlet, they were invited to be a part of Urban Hawker, a food centre in Times Square. In June, they opened their third outlet at Urbanspace Vanderbilt, a food hall in Grand Central.
And so, the humble kuih is gaining a sweet spot in the spotlight and winning many hearts in a place where bagels with cream cheese traditionally reign supreme.
“There’s only a small number of people who eat kuih here. When we opened, we wanted to serve them. But in a surprising turn of events, others got interested to learn about pandan, durian and all these exotic flavours,” said Anthony.
“I feel really proud to showcase the flavours that we grew up with. We hope to continue the momentum and maintain the quality. It’s not easy, but we’re trying,” he added.
Learn more about Lady Wong on its website, Facebook and Instagram.