In the Malaysian culinary landscape, the behemoth chef Darren Chin is a lauded figure who has gained immense respect and admiration over the years for his mastery of classic French techniques.
When Chin first opened DC Restaurant 12 years ago, the Kuala Lumpur dining scene was infinitely less saturated and significantly less robust and cosmopolitan. Since then, the restaurant scene has bloomed and blossomed with the advent of international F&B brands as well as a burgeoning number of younger chefs eager to showcase their culinary pedigree and prowess.
In 2022, Michelin Guide entered the KL and Penang markets and that has been instrumental in elevating the dining scene even more. The guide has also helped catapult talented chefs like Chin to new acclaim.
His DC Restaurant has retained a Michelin star for four years running now.
And yet Chin himself says that despite the accolades, all the changes that have happened in the industry have shown him that he can no longer rest on his French laurels.
“The basis of my cuisine has always been classical French – it’s the only food I know how to cook. Even though I have a Chinese background, I haven’t ventured into that identity. But I knew that sooner or later, the demand for local fare and an Asian context will take over and if I continue to cook classic French food in the restaurant, maybe customers won’t come back. Even if they do, it might just be for special occasions.
“What relevance we set in the beginning may not be the same as what we set now – so I have had to manoeuvre my mind and thoughts,” he says.
Chin says this was not an instant thing; it was a calculated decision that took place through travels and conversations with people who inspire him like Hanuman Aspler, an expert on pre-World War II Siamese cuisine, and Vincent Chaperon, cellar master of Dom Perignon, the famed champagne house in France.
“Crossing paths with these people really opened my eyes and gave me a structure. Every artist needs that structure – you cannot create something out of thin air,” he says.
Which is why these days, the food at DC retains its French structural underpinnings but also has a quiet Asian influence, a spirit of “locavorism” as well as infusions of techniques like lacto-fermentation.
Chin has also turned his focus to driving more plant-based culinary crafting, relying less on animal extracts for making classic French elements like jus.
To aid him in his endeavour, Chin hired chef de cuisine Nathan Besson, who has a strong French culinary grounding complemented by over a decade’s worth of experience working in top Michelin-starred restaurants in Hong Kong. As Chin puts it, Besson “has a way of permeating Asian culture through his cooking”.
DC offers a range of menus but if you’re here for a special occasion, indulge in the Exploration Journey menu (RM1,198++).
Highlights include the Royale N 3 Oyster, Marennes-Oleron, France with sauternes (a sweet wine) jelly, green apple-celery jus and dill oil. These premium French open-ocean oysters, prized for their plump fleshiness, don’t disappoint – offering up a voluptuousness that competes with its silken mouthfeel.
The slight brine that laces your tongue is accentuated by the witchery of the green apple-celery jus and dill oil which add freshness and herbaceous overtones to this luxurious mollusc.
The Line-Caught Fingermark Snapper is something that Chin caught himself and is extremely proud of.
“Of late, I have taken up this hobby of fishing. I do it in my free time and it’s nice to be able to share that with guests,” he says.
The fish is buoyed by yuzu kosho emulsion, lightly pickled musk melon and fennel granita and highlights clean, light flavours with citric elements. The fish itself is supple and incredibly fresh.
Everything else adds layers that work together harmoniously to cheer the fish to podium place at the finish line.
Then there is the Spanish Tomato Declination, which shows off the humble tomato in a multitude of ways – from tomato leather to gazpacho and tomato water.
Of the tomato offerings, the gazpacho with sweet basil sorbet and pickled coriander flower is unforgettable, yielding a rich tomato heart juxtaposed against the freshness of the sorbet.
The Mud Crab Cheong Fun alludes to Malaysian lineage and heritage and amalgamates rice sheets with fresh mud crab, botan shrimp, fresh uni and XO sauce, to name a few.
The tastes here are both familiar and unfamiliar – fusing tradition with innovation in bold new ways. The flavour profile evokes nostalgia while still charting its own path.
Move on to the charms of the Ofunato Bay Scallops with lacto-fermented kohlabi sauce (one of the techniques that Chin has grown increasingly fond of). This is positioned charmingly against kohlrabi spaghetti, saffron sabayon and a watercress puree that offer both distinctly vegetal qualities as well as an opulent slant.
The aquatic prowess of the scallop – which is sustainably farmed in Japan’s Iwate prefecture – is undisturbed – allowed to reign supreme, its natural attributes given the opportunity to shine, like a queen preening before her court.
From the main course, there is the A5 Miyazaki Beef Medallion with bone marrow, allium, lacto-fermented carrot and green plum sauce.
In most movies, theatre performances and television shows, there always needs to be a lead star. But no man is an island, which is why the supporting cast is often just as important; these ancillary characters are there to add allure, dimension and colour to the lead.
On this plate, this is exactly what the other elements do for the beef – propping it up and cheering it on, but ultimately never overshadowing it.
There is no question that the beef is the undisputed hero here – it’s skin burnished and blistered with a lovely char that then segues into deliciously pillowy tender, melt-in-the-mouth flesh.
End your meal with a judiciously thought-out sweet delight in the form of the 65% Madagascar Dark Chocolate x Espresso, inspired by Patrick Roger chocolate, a French chocolatier whose cocoa is sourced exclusively from the Ambanje region of Madagascar.
Made up of white chocolate Chantilly, coffee caviar, cacao sorbet and coffee pecan praline, this cocoa thriller is designed for seduction. The chocolate is rich and decadent, layered against sumptuous notes of caffeine, rendering this little piece of hedonism the perfect epilogue to a night of feasting at DC.
This is the third year that Chin has transitioned away from purely classic French cuisine and he says keeping a balance is crucial to nailing what he wants to do.
“In the beginning, I started to maybe go too much towards Thai cuisine, but I geared away from that after a few tries. So now we play with some local ingredients but we’re still DC. What we’re doing is not overly complex – I just make sure it is delicious and makes sense to the diner,” he says.
