Time’s Table with… Sugen Gopal of Roti King

Every now and then a meal becomes more than just a meal. It could be innovative and exciting – the kind that shapes your cooking going forward. But there’s something equally magic about the dish your mum used to cook you growing up, or even the reliable weekly staple you knock together on repeat.

In this series, Time’s Table, we chat to people about the food that has left an impact on a time in their life – be it their past, present or future. Trust us, you can learn a lot about someone through what’s on their plate. 

Time's Table with... Sugen Gopal of Roti King

Growing up in Ipol, Malaysia, Sugen Gopal vowed he wouldn’t be a chef. His parents had a restaurant of their own, which meant for many years, making roti and serving customers was an obligation rather than a passion. 

Fast forward over a decade later and there are a lot of people who are very glad he changed his tune. Serving the likes of roti canai, murtabak and curries, Sugen’s restaurant, Roti King, put the food of his hometown on the map at a time where it was few and far between in London.

Sugen Gopal is founder of Roti King (Credit: Twisted)

Now, he has four outposts around the city, and the queues of people speak for themselves. Plus, he’s also opened a sister restaurant, Gopal’s Corner, named after his parents’ old spot. 

It took moving abroad for Sugen to realise that he was the perfect ambassador for the South Asian cuisine he knew and loved, and not only that - to fall in love with the restaurant world again.

His cooking is unpretentious and full of heart - but what are the meals that make the Roti King founder the chef he is today? 

Past - Curry, rice and banana leaf

“I didn’t really enjoy my youth like young people normally do, because all my friends were out having fun and I was at my parents’ restaurant, working front of house, making rotis, cleaning – everything really. 

"It’s nobody’s fault. I chose to be there, because I would see my mum working so hard [and then] feel really bad whenever I left. 

"It started as a small roadside stall under a tree, and we’d well rice, curry and banana leaf. 

"My parents are famous for curry fish head and prawn sambal, but also so many other things. 

"It would always be different, but there might be fried fish, mutton curry, two veg, rice, pickles. I could eat that every day, all day long – I still miss it! Of course, it’s not just about the food, it’s the environment. As a family, we didn’t spend time at home – our whole life was the restaurant. 

"The atmosphere was amazing, I’ve not experienced anywhere else like it. We’d be fully packed from lunch until three o'clock, then we would start cleaning [and] prepare for dinner.

"The space would be full of cars and neighbours started petitions because there was nowhere to park. Eventually we got a proper, air conditioned restaurant and that would be where all our memories were. 

Sugen's mum, Padma (Credit: Roti King/ Instagram)

"Because, in school time, we would be sleeping [when mum got home from work], she would come and wake us up at about nine o’clock with a pack of food, and she would feed us. She would just mix all the curries together in a big lump, and it was just magic. 

"The curries tasted amazing, but the emotion behind the taste was the best part. She never had a chance to spend time with us, so she made use of that time. Even if we had already had dinner, it wasn’t about that. It was motherhood.

"I do this sometimes with my family now. I’ll go to [Gopal’s Corner], pack everything in a banana leaf and just take home and heat it."

Present - Fish congee

"When it’s very cold weather, I like to do a fish congee. Where I come from, in the evening, there's one guy in the market who would always sell congee. It would be chicken or pork congee, and whenever we were ill, my dad would go and get that and we’d eat it. 

"So, one day I was sitting at home, it was a rainy day in the middle of winter and I was like ‘I feel like eating this again’...

Sugen was inspired by the Malaysian markets his dad visited as a kid (Credit: Roti King/ Instagram)

"Normally on weekends I try to cook seafood, so I went out and bought some fish and then made it with that. My children were like ‘fish, again?!’ but then they tried it and they loved it. My son ate two bowls!

"I’m someone who needs a lot of variety, so I make a lot of condiments [and toppings] for the congee – fried dry fish, peanuts, fried shallots, fresh chilli oil…everything is from scratch.

Congee is Sugen's weekend comfort food (Stock image, Credit: Getty)

"I add a lot of carrot, celery, ginger and garlic [to the rice]. It takes about one and a half hours to make [including all the toppings], and when it’s combined and you eat it all in one mouthful it’s amazing. I can imagine the tastes now. 

"Once I cooked this for my mum and she was like ‘Oh my god, this is so good’. It's very hard to get a compliment from my mum!

"I don’t know exactly how that guy on the market cooked [his congee], so I cooked it how I know. 

"I like to experiment with food, and to fusion it. People say ‘Cook this way because it’s traditional’, but I reply ‘This is my way of cooking’. They taste it and they like it!"

Future - Baked fish with spaghetti

"I thought I didn’t like Italian food. When I’ve tried it before, it’s always been very plain…just not ‘wow’.

"Recently I went to Rome and I was like ‘how am I gonna enjoy eating here?’ – because my holidays are usually all about eating – but I was amazed by food and the way they cooked. 

"It’s totally different from the Italian food I’ve eaten here! I tried this catch of the day fish. They baked the fish then they put it on top of spaghetti then added a tomato sauce. I love fish, and it was so fresh and flavourful. So different from the sauce with mincemeat, [which I’d had before].

Sugen was converted to Italian food after a recent holiday (Credit: Getty)

"I asked the guy how he made it and then when I got home I tried to cook it for my daughter, because she likes pasta, just adding a little bit of spicy chili, to give it a bit of a kick.

"Then, I tried it with prawns, with lobster, with clams. I mixed seafoods, I added spinach…

"That’s what travelling is all about for me. You get ideas; you get inspired. You see the way people serve things, the ingredients they use, the flavours. 

"I’ve never been someone who likes Michelin starred food. I enjoy real, original, authentic food, cooked from the heart. 

"If someone was to get inspired by my food [it would be because] it’s humble. Theres no drama. It’s just all about the culture. I’m trying to make food that’s gonna touch your soul.

"I once told myself ‘I don’t want to be working in a restaurant when I’m older’, but seeing people smile when they ate my food… it kept me going, and encouraged me to do more and do better."

You can buy Sugen's new cookbook, Roti King: Classic and Modern Malaysian Street Food, now.

Featured image: Roti King/ Twisted