‘The Teahouse Upstairs’ Puts the Spotlight on Regional Myanmarese Cuisine with a Table & Apron Touch

We catch up with Wai Zhung See Toh of Table & Apron, who shares the story of their ‘The Teahouse Upstairs’ pop-up. 

Table & Apron has been a stalwart in the local restaurant scene for meals that not only please your palate but warm your heart. For over a decade now, the eatery has also been a role model in the industry for their commitment to uplifting their team running the show both in and out of the kitchen. Its latest ‘The Teahouse Upstairs’ is a testament to that very camaraderie between their team members. The story begins with a friendly in-house staff meal competition. It was part of its first-ever talent incubation programme aimed at giving the team a platform to experiment and create their own menus outside of service. Different teams took turns to present their meals each week and were judged by their peers and industry friends. 

The winning team—consisting of Kham, Ken, Joshua, Justin, and Chong Li—earned the right to pilot their very own dining series, which ended up being ‘The Teahouse Upstairs’. With the help of the Myanmarese team members, junior sous chef Keith Gan, sous chef Tan Yan Pin and restaurant manager, See Toh Wai Zhung, the team planned, ideated, researched, developed, and executed an entire menu based on Myanmar’s legendary teahouses—with a Table & Apron twist, of course. The meal details dishes like pickled tea leaf salads, claypot pork belly curry with roselle leaves and bamboo shoots, and toasted rice ice cream. For a deeper look into the story behind ‘The Teahouse Upstairs’, we caught up with Toh, who shared his experience with the pop-up and what it means to the team.

When and how did you know you wanted to turn the Table & Apron kitchen cook-off into something bigger?

Turning eleven was a milestone that made us pause and reflect. Not many restaurants last this long, and with that came a question we’ve always wrestled with: “What’s next?” How do we preserve what makes T&A special—the space, the community, and the legacy—while also looking at what the next chapter would be?

That’s when we turned to something that’s been at the heart of our kitchen from day one: staff meals. It’s more than just eating together, it’s a ritual that grounds us. And the cook-off just grew from there. We wanted it to be more than a fun competition; it really became a way for our team to step outside of their comfort zone and into the shoes of building a restaurant concept. It wasn’t just about cooking a dish, but learning to design a menu, cost it, and eventually bring it to life as a pop-up. It’s our way of protecting Table & Aprons’s spirit while giving our team a platform to imagine and build something of their own.

For your team, what is the importance in showcasing the flavours of Myanmar?

The majority of our team, and actually much of the industry, comes from Myanmar. Food is the biggest conversation starter during a staff meal. Whether it’s a pork curry, a salad, or a hearty noodle dish, it breaks language barriers and allows team members to share their culture, heritage, and a part of themselves. To the public, we want to showcase a cuisine that’s rarely spotlighted in Malaysia.

What are some of the integral flavours or ingredients that we’ll find on your menu?

What makes Myanmar cuisine so special is how deeply communal it is. Meals are built around rice, then surrounded by a spread of dishes like curries, soups, pickles, salads – all meant to be shared. The flavours are bold and aromatic, with fermented tea leaves, garlic, dried shrimp, chilli, and spices giving every bite a punch. 

But it’s never just about the food; it’s about gathering, passing plates, and eating together. That’s something we relate to very closely. Our own dining culture here is also rooted in sharing, whether it’s a family meal at home or sitting around a big table at a restaurant. So while the flavours of Myanmar might be new to some, the way of eating already feels familiar.

That connection is what inspired our pop-up. We wanted to bring out those punchy, layered flavours while keeping the experience approachable, something that feels both exciting and, at the same time, comfortingly close to the way we already eat together.

How do you want diners to experience ‘The Teahouse Upstairs’?

I think of it in three parts. When they arrive, we want curiosity to spark and conversations to flow between guests and the team. During the meal, we want the flavours to feel familiar yet new—close enough to what they already eat, but with a twist of comfort. And finally, when they leave, we hope they feel like they’ve experienced something they’ll wish more places would do.

What does ‘The Teahouse Upstairs’ mean to your team, particularly those who are showcasing the flavours of their home?

For our team members from Myanmar, it’s deeply personal. Their integrity and upbringing are expressed through this experience. For the rest of the team, it’s a chance to step outside their day-to-day at Table & Apron, to work together in new dynamics, and to stretch themselves in ways the usual rhythm of service doesn’t demand.

What is something that you or your team are particularly excited about with the launch of ‘The Teahouse Upstairs’?

For the guests, it’s the excitement of hearing “whispers” about the event—like when a newcomer says, “Wow, I never expected this,”—that keeps us going. For the team, it’s about stepping into the unknown. The highs and lows of trying something different really stretch what they’re capable of.

What do you want your guests to walk away from ‘The Teahouse Upstairs’ with? 

Simply put: full bellies and sparked curiosity. But also a sense of connection to the team who curated this experience, and the feeling that they’ve been part of something special.

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