Johnny Lee knows his way around a chicken. The chef made a name for himself with Los Angeles restaurants Side Chick and Pearl River Deli, where he cooked up some of the region’s best Hainan chicken rice. After years of operating on his own, he recently teamed up with Last Word Hospitality, the local restaurant group behind Found Oyster, Barra Santos, Shins Pizza, Queen St., and more, to open Rasarumah. It debuted on November 24.
Housed on the ground floor of a former brassiere factory in Historic Filipinotown, Rasarumah (“flavor house” in Malay) is Lee’s first venture since Pearl River Deli, a solo project that he closed in February. He noted that working with an established restaurant group is different in that it gives him others to lean on.
“When the problems that have and will always occur in this line of work pop up, I now have a team of individuals, all with diverse industry experiences, who can weigh in,” Lee said. “It’s been great having the ability to bounce ideas off others who can see what I am envisioning.”
Rasarumah is now open in L.A.’s Historic Filipinotown neighborhood. Photo credit: Johnny Lee
He envisioned a restaurant that celebrates Malaysian and other Southeast Asian cuisine. It was a natural progression following his deep exploration of how regional Chinese food transcends borders. His interest in that cuisine’s diaspora, along with his extensive travels throughout Malaysia, informed Rasarumah’s concept and menu.
The 40-seat restaurant is casual and colorful, with design inspiration drawn from the bustling cafes of Penang, Malaysia, a hotbed of Chinese-Malay cuisine and culture. The interior is outfitted with linoleum checkered floors, wooden tables, yellow-and-orange banquettes, and green plants. A stainless-steel bar is backed by orange tiles and anchors the space. Chef Lee, who is a lifelong photography enthusiast, has lined Rasarumah’s walls with prints of his travels throughout Southeast Asia.
The menu is broken into sections including cold things, snacky things, noodles and rice, meaty things, and sides. A successful night out might see diners start with a savory rojak salad featuring cucumber, jícama, sour mango, Thai basil, and tamarind, and then move onto chicken thigh or pork jowl satay skewers. There’s also Malaysian fried chicken, Singapore-style Hokkien mee noodles, and banana leaf steamed black cod served with sambal, herbs, grilled lime, jasmine rice, and crispy shallots.
The restaurant’s design takes inspiration from Malaysian cafes. Photo credit: Johnny Lee
Last Word Hospitality’s wine director, Evelyn Goreshnik, created the wine list for Rasarumah, aiming for nontraditional playfulness to complement the food. Bottles come from regions all over the globe, like Jura, Mosel, California, and Burgundy, with several skin-contact wines and plenty of lesser-known varieties. Additional drinks include sake, shochu, beer, and non-alcoholic options.
The partnership between Last Word and Lee happened naturally. The hospitality group, which is known for opening community-centric restaurants in eastside neighborhoods in LA, first saw the 1920s-era building nearly a decade ago. When it became available, they reached out to Lee, and the concept was born.
Lee is all-in on Rasarumah, with no other projects or intentions to start something else in the near future.
“For now, I just want to focus on building Rasarumah into a mainstay of the L.A. dining scene,” he said.
