Retrenched SIA Steward Opens Pablo Escobar-Themed Nasi Lemak & Burger Joint

The brains behind it: former Singapore Airlines steward Patrick Mervin Maran (middle in pic), 28, along with long-time friends, Alex Neo (left), 38, and Jing Hui (right), 31. The Malaysian air steward-turned-chef and restaurateur says he has “been in the kitchen since young learning to cook” from his Eurasian mother, though his time in the kitchen more than doubled last year after the Covid-19 pandemic hit and crippled the airline industry.

Luckily for the owners, the recent no dine-in restrictions haven’t impacted the small eatery much as they wanted to iron out opening kinks before marketing the place. Besides, Pablo’s Kitchen wasn’t intended to be a serious dine-in type of joint anyway — there weren’t even any tables or chairs at the space yet when we visited recently (though they plan to provide a few stools once the dining ban is lifted). “We wanted a casual place - just to grab your food and go. It was never meant to be a [proper] dine-in concept,” says Alex.

It’s mostly takeout for now, though they do ad-hoc deliveries if you call at least two hours ahead. And they’re also looking to get themselves on Grabfood soon.

“We tried to combine our faces [for our logo],” says Alex with a laugh, gesturing to Patrick. “And someone said, eh, looks like Pablo Escobar. So we decided to run with it.” The trio also “really like” the hit Netflix show, he explains.

“The branding is very memorable and ‘in your face’,” Alex says.

Pablo’s presence is indeed felt everywhere here. In the dining area – where construction isn’t yet finished – a massive mural of the drug lord dominates. Back in the kitchen, the metal security cage (this space was originally meant to be a silver jewellery shop that Alex had abandoned in favour of this restaurant biz) is reminiscent of “Pablo’s jail”, says Alex. Though in our opinion, it bears little resemblance to Pablo Escobar’s actual palace-prison La Catedral.

Some netizens have taken, uh, umbrage at their controversial branding: “Do you know what Sicario (see below) means? It’s a person hired to kill for money? (sic) Very disturbing name for your burger,” remarks a comment on Facebook. Still, it doesn’t really bother them, insists Alex. “If the food is good, we can call it anything – people will still come,” he insists.

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In response to the public’s concerns over the Pablo Escobar branding, the owners put out a statement via Instagram about a week after this article was published. It states that they “want to be clear that [their] team dispraises [Pablo’s] crimes in narcoterrorism.” They also added: “Like the TV series, Pablo's Kitchen is drawn to the story of the crackdown on drugs. In fact, the Pablo's Kitchen logo draws its likeness from Javier Pena (portrayed by Pedro Pascal) the DEA agent who took down the infamous Kingpin”.

They also plan to make “changes to [their] space in the coming week”. 8days.sg has reached out to them for further clarification on the proposed changes, but have yet to receive a reply.

In 2018, a bar called Escobar splashed with paintings of the Colombian drug lord had to rebrand its logos after the Colombian embassy in Singapore condemned its theme, with the Central Narcotics Bureau and the Singapore Police Force also getting involved. While the bar’s name remained, it later changed its theme.

Patrick was furloughed (but still given a basic allowance from the airline) last April, and thus looked for other ways to occupy his time. By July, he was operating a no-name home-based biz, selling dishes across various cuisines on ‘Tiong Bahru Social Page’, a Facebook group serving residents in the area.

His offerings included Portuguese devil’s curry, sambal prawns and butter chicken, which proved popular enough for his 50 daily servings to be sold out constantly. It was then that Alex and Jing Hui first tasted his food. “I thought, hey, maybe we could do something with this. So we began thinking [of a business plan],” says Alex.

Patrick was eventually let go during SIA’s retrenchment exercise last September, which was when planning for Pablo’s Kitchen began in earnest. The steward-turned-chef was to helm the kitchen, while his partners helped out behind the scenes.

The partners are from wildly different industries. Alex spent 22 years in the hairdressing industry, and is no stranger to offbeat concepts. He owns a salon on Eng Watt Street that comes with old-school arcade machines – and a beer dispenser. He also co-owns a hobby shop peddling Tamiya model car kits with Jing Hui, who previously worked as a freelance public relations executive in the nightlife industry.

Why nasi lemak and burgers? “Burgers are trending,” explains Patrick. Nasi lemak cooked Malaysian-style, on the other hand, is simply comfort nosh from his time growing up in Petaling Jaya, and he wanted to bring it to a Singaporean crowd. The trio invested some 60K to get Pablo’s going.

The menu references the drug lord’s shady dealings, albeit in a tongue-in-cheek manner. For instance, the sizes of the burgers come in “Sicario’s, Kingpin’s and Cartel’s”, corresponding to the increasing number of meat patties and slices of cheese. There’s an option of chicken or beef, along with three Mexican-themed sauces, jalapeno cheese, guacamole and tomato salsa.

For the nasi lemak side of things, you can either get it with a chicken thigh (done a la ayam goreng berempah, which means spiced fried chicken), or with two mid-joint chicken wings, which are done in a simpler style.

Pablo’s Kitchen currently doesn’t use any pork or lard, and “getting a halal certification is part of the plan,” says Patrick. He also plans to reintroduce other items like butter chicken and sambal prawns, popular during his home-based biz days.

Two beef patties constructed from a 70-30 percent blend of chuck roll and fat are sandwiched between brioche buns, supplied from nearby artisans Bakery Brera, with a slice of tomato and plenty of jalapeno cheese sauce – store-bought – slathered over everything.

It’s a likeable, if messy, piece of work – the hand-moulded beef patties are irregularly shaped and feel homely. They’ve been given a satisfying sear on the griddle, imparting them with some smoky char. The patties are marinated “Turkish-style” overnight, says Patrick, though he’d only divulge that little bits of chilli padi, sans seeds, have been incorporated into the mix. The flavours are all there – it’s just a little spicy, and more than fragrant – pity about the bits of gristle in the meat. Some bites are a little tougher than others, and though there’s an interesting mouthfeel that reminded us of Ramly burgers when pasar malams were still a thing, it’s not something everyone would enjoy.

That said, the bun is fluffy and yielding, and the jalapeno cheese, though not made in-house, works rather well with the burger. The accompanying fries are crisp and simply there to fill you up – nothing much to shout about.

The chicken burger is a lot tastier. It has all the yumminess of the beef burger – nicely seared rustic patties, an excellent bun and oozy melted cheese — but with none of the textural drawbacks. There aren’t any discernible bits of gristle in the minced chicken patty, which is heavily scented with ginger, galangal and lemongrass. It’s tasty enough for us to forgive the guacamole, which tastes more like green sour cream than guac. Stick with the jalapeno cheese sauce or have it plain.

“I’m trying to introduce Malaysian-style nasi lemak to Singaporeans,” says Patrick. He opts for basmati rice instead of the more commonly used jasmine rice. It’s a move that the young hawker claims to produce fluffier, distinct grains. True enough, it isn’t clumpy, though the perfume of the pandan and coconut milk seems rather subdued.

The sambal is fiery – hotter than most nasi lemak chilils you’d find here, which tend to skew sweet rather than spicy. “Malaysians like it hot,” he explains. The blended mix of dried chilies, onion and ikan bilis lends the dish some much needed piquancy and savouriness.

The spiced fried chicken thigh, made to order, is juicy, crispy and fragrant – excellent stuff. The rempah it’s been marinated in imparts a dark-red sheen, with wisps of lemongrass giving the fried bird character. Other accompaniments come in the form of ikan bilis, peanuts, and a griddle-fried sunny side-up. It’s all done well enough, but we feel the rice lacks the oomph to contend with the big boys.

This wing boasts a delightful crunch, thanks to a light batter of potato starch and corn flour. Unfortunately, it’s rather bland, despite the accompanying tangy tomato salsa dip. It needs more salt and a little something-something.

Tasty, hearty chicken burgers with a homespun charm. As for the nasi lemak? The juicy ayam goreng berempah and sambal are yummy, but the basmati rice could be richer and more coconutty. Also, be prepared to wait if you’re popping by to tapow as there’s only one man hustling in the kitchen — no, not Pablo, but Patrick.

Pablo’s Kitchen is at #01-487, 49 Stirling Rd, S141049. Tel: 9853-9299. Open daily except Wed, 11am – 8.30pm. Call at least 30 mins ahead to pre-order. More info on Facebook & Instagram.

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Photos: Alvin Teo