It all started as a hobby — cooking and eating with friends — Penang-born Solehan-Manger Ramli who settled in Rumpt, Netherlands after marrying her husband, a Dutch local has now turned into an online business since 2017.
She offers a variety of Malaysian dishes but only one dish stood out amongst the rest and is none other than the Nasi Lemak.
Apparently, Solehan started getting requests from her Malaysian friends to make some Nasi Lemak as they have not returned home for a while as her version of the dish was as good as the ones back home.
But not only were her Malaysian friends and customers enjoyed the dishes, but the dish also garnered the attention of the Dutch locals. Dubbed as “Nasi Lemak Amsterdam”, we have to say it was a brilliant way to market the signature Malaysian dish to the locals there.
She claims that the majority of those who know her are aware that the dish is prepared by a Malaysian. Also, her regular customers who are also Malaysians, particularly students, would usually refer to her as “Kak Ann Nasi Lemak Rendang Ayam.”
“Most of them know me and know that this nasi lemak is prepared by Malaysians. Malaysians, including students here, call me ‘Kak Ann Nasi Lemak Rendang Ayam’,” the 44-year-old woman from Penang told Named via WhatsApp message.
Sometimes it’s difficult for her to manage the overwhelming orders as she’s handling a one-woman show however since the business is her main source of income, she has to brush through to meet the demands of her customers. Plus, before the pandemic happened — Solehan would usually invite friends over to her place to experiment with new Malaysian dishes on them as part of a promotional tactic.
According to her, after the COVID-19 pandemic subsided in the Netherlands, the response from local customers in nearby villages seemed to be increasing aside from receiving orders from her other regular customers.
Price-wise, her Nasi Lemak is sold for €8 (RM40) and €10 (RM50) and such rates are pretty normal over there as it’s difficult to obtain such authentic ingredients from Malaysia, which most of her clientele understands.
On top of that, her husband, Jan-Willem Manger has been pretty supportive with her business, plus with him being a local there — it simply helps with the orders.
In terms of how she started her business in the Netherlands is that it is compulsory for all traders to register and have a licence even if it’s a small scale business. Solehan also harbours a desire to open up a Malaysian food restaurant.
So make sure to je kan mijn nasi lemak rendang kip proberen (come and try our ayam rendang nasi lemak if you’re travelling here)!