Hawkers in favour of cooking ban on foreigners

GEORGE TOWN: Hawkers seem to be in favour of the state government barring foreign cooks at hawker stalls beginning 2016.
One of them theSun spoke to today was mee goreng seller Mydin Mohd Ibrahim, 48, who said the ruling was timely in view of preserving tastes and flavours associated with Penang.
He said foreigners could help prepare the ingredients and in washing up, but the actual cooking should be done by locals who are familiar with the local palate.
He added foreign cooks who were not accustomed to local tastes or ingredients could result in people being turned off.
"I am fine with the ruling," he added.
His views were echoed by chicken rice seller Soon Soon, 43, who said his recipe was a family secret.
He said he was loathe to be passing on any business secrets to foreigners and that foreigners in his employ were only for preparing the ingredients.
"Only locals should be doing the cooking," he stressed.
Meanwhile in an earlier press conference, state Local Government Committee chairman Chow Kon Yeow laughed off suggestions the state will be policing all hawker stalls when the ruling is enforced.
He said monitoring will only be done on hawkers selling Penang dishes and urged for their cooperation in the matter.
"We are not going to turn Penang into a police state," he said.
The Penang Island and Seberang Prai Municipal Councils will be coming out with a list of Penang dishes soon.