Belmond’s luxury Eastern and Oriental Express train serves a four-day feast through the Malaysian jungle, celebrating some of the country’s best food, writes Katie Lockhart
My time in Malaysia typically passes in a delightful delirium of fiery woks, addictive soups and sweet satays. It may be a controversial take, but after travelling and writing about food in Asia for nearly a decade, I think Malaysian food is the region’s best.
On my most recent trip to this Southeast Asian gem, I didn’t expect to find some of its tastiest bites while zooming through the jungle at 70km/h.
Similar to the melting pot of cultures that make up Malaysia’s distinct cuisine, Belmond’s Eastern and Oriental Express serves a unique Malay, French and Taiwanese fusion as it wobbles its way from Singapore through Malaysia and back.
And while the lush jungle scenery and vintage interiors ripped from an Agatha Christie novel are captivating, the food is all anyone on the train can talk about.
Each meal’s multicourse menu comes from the mind of celebrity chef Andre Chiang. Originally from Taiwan, Chiang learned to cook in the culinary juggernauts of Japan and France, eventually opening his own award-winning restaurants and helming others, most recently 1887 by Andre inside the Raffles Singapore.
He’s been the culinary creator aboard the Eastern and Orient Express since 2024. Alongside the train’s head chef, Ivan Mah, he serves up to 650 plates between breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner, per four-day journey.
Mah tells me he spent several weeks in Taiwan, experimenting and dreaming up plates alongside Chiang. My first few bites of their creations were much like Malaysian cuisine – unassumingly delicious.
Mapo tofu encased in a golden-brown spring roll, sprinkled with chilli and Sichuan pepper dust. Simple enough, but I still remember the meaty-tasting, addictive tingle of the Sichuan as it lingered on my tongue. And while I wanted to ask the staff for four more, I knew three more courses were coming.
“Throughout the journey, each meal reveals a different spice, one at a time. I imagine it like walking along a beautiful beach, picking up one extraordinary shell after another. By the end of the journey, you carry with you a collection of flavours, memories and discoveries,” Chiang says.
The next course was a shrimp and clam miso bisque with tofu, Chinese broccoli, hints of ginger and fresh wakame, a soup so perfectly seasoned and moreish that my partner still talks about it days later.
It was followed by a 16-hour braised beef cheek on top of pomme puree, swimming in a nine-pepper jus made from Sarawak pepper, an ingredient Chiang considers “one of Malaysia’s greatest treasures”. The finale was chef Andre’s secret “jungle spices” Guanaja chocolate ganache atop cardamom milk.
And that was only the first dinner of our train journey.
Every meal served in the train’s two dining carts, Adisorn and Malaya, includes local Malaysian ingredients, sustainably sourced from organic farmers across the country, whether it’s the black chicken in the soup, the carrots in the tuna kimchi nicoise salad, or the pepper from Borneo freshly cracked on top.
These ingredients help to tell the story behind each of chef Chiang’s dishes. The Chinese braised pork belly, served in a stew of star anise, light soya and goose oil, with a side of rice, is “just like at home”. This plate was inspired by the simple, supremely comforting recipe his grandmother would make for him on a rainy day.
One of the Eastern and Orient Express’ signature offerings is the Penang duck curry, with ducks sourced from a farm in the east of Malaysia. The dish is an ode to Chiang’s Thai wife, adding Muscat grapes and pineapple for a sweet Malay touch, and, of course, local pepper for a spicy finish.
Another favourite is the laksa bouillabaisse with fresh river prawns, scallops and squid. “Laksa and bouillabaisse are two of the most iconic seafood soups from East and West. Bringing them together is our way of creating something new while keeping the soul of both,” Chiang says.
I saw many guests leave the dinner table clutching their stomachs, stuffed after a day of eating. And while several skipped dessert, that was one of my favourite courses. Chendol is arguably Malaysia’s most famous icy sweet treat. Instead of the usual coconut milk, Chiang’s version uses coconut panna cotta with thicker palm sugar drizzled on top.
An amalgamation of local flavours and ingredients peppered with personal stories and sprinkled with nostalgia, the food served on board this rolling restaurant could be in any Michelin-star spot in the region.
But beyond the wine served with each meal, Chiang insists each dish pairs best with the train experience itself.
“We don’t simply create a menu for a train. We curate the cuisine around the journey,” Chiang says.
“The changing scenery outside the window, the excursions along the way, the ingredients we encounter, and the extraordinary diversity of Asia.”
Details
belmond.com/en/trains/asia/malaysia/eastern-and-oriental-express
The writer travelled courtesy of Belmond’s Eastern & Oriental Express.