TWO years ago, when Covid-19 plunged us into unforeseen circumstances, many, especially those who had been imposed the work from home (WFH) order, were advised to learn new skills to fill their gaps at home.
But for K. Arvin Prasad and his wife Chee Nermala Devi, they grasped this opportunity and converted their home-based food delivery business into opening a multi-cuisine restaurant, called La Fiesta in George Town.
During an exclusive interview with Buletin Mutiara on April 20, Arvin said prior to operating the food business from home in Penang in 2020, he was working at a high-end restaurant in Singapore.
Having worked there for three years, Arvin said he had gained a sufficient amount of experience and decided to return to his homeland, Penang to run a food business with his wife.
“The reason I quit my job in Singapore and came back was also that my daughter was young and I didn’t want to miss seeing her growing up.
“Apart from that, my wife and I were already planning to set up our own food business even before the pandemic took place.
“So, we decided to start small by cooking from home and delivering it to our customers. My wife had previously worked in a logistics company in Bayan Lepas, and there, she had a lot of friends who are now our loyal customers.
“Between 2020 and 2022, we saw that our business was progressing well, and that was when we decided to open our own restaurant.
“Although we operated from home in the initial stages, we managed to secure bookings for events such as weddings, birthdays and so on.
“We are very proud of our journey so far because it was just me and my wife all the way, from planning to managing the menu, cooking and preparing the needful,” Arvin said during the interview at the restaurant in Jalan Argyll, George Town.
The shop was officially open on April 2 this year, but it started operations after its soft opening in early March.
Meanwhile, being a multi-cuisine and halal-certified restaurant, Arvin’s wife, Chee said the restaurant serves Indian, Chinese, Indonesian, and western-based dishes, as well as juices and non-alcoholic drinks such as tea and coffee.
“Our signature dish is the Lamb Shoulder Biryani. We easily sell 100 to 200 plates or packets daily.
“Then we also have ‘Gilda’, which is a famous homemade starter, ‘Rolitos Primavera’ (spring rolls), Fiesta Chicken, ‘Estrellado with Pepperoni’ (Spanish style scrambled eggs with deep-fried potatoes and pepperoni chicken ham) and many others.
“All of the dishes that we prepare, especially the ingredients for the main courses, are self-made by us without using preservatives.
“Our dishes are freshly made and we don’t stock up for the next day, including meat as well.
“We want to give the best possible meal for our customers,” Chee said.
She also said the crowd is bigger during weekends than on weekdays, but a lot of people order via online as the shop provides delivery services as well.
The restaurant is open daily from 12pm to 12am.
Story by Kevin Vimal
Pix by Law Suun Ting