> <i>the Sarawak government designated it as a “protected geographical indicator,” decreeing that true kek lapis Sarawak can only be made within state borders</i><p>I love stuff like this... a governmental body’s deliberate grab for <i>extra-</i>territorial authority. We have similar things in Italy (D.O.C.: <i>Denominazione di Origine Controllata</i>, meaning “Name with a Controlled Origin”) but at least that’s substantiated by a E.U.-level authority. I suppose in this case it is supported by national authority, but the funny thing is that it’s only within the confines of a higher authority that <i>grants</i> these powers to its lower constituents that such powers can exist (or within the context of international trade deals). A better term than the active-voice ‘<i>designated</i>’ might’ve been the mixed active/passive-voice “<i>requested, and was granted</i>”, but I’m probably splitting hairs here.<p>I spent quite a while in Malaysia back in the early-to-mid 2000s, but I never actually tried this. The ingredients don’t sound super-appetising to me.<p>EDIT: fixed formatting & punctuation.
Kueh lapis is delicious, but by local standards eye-wateringly expensive due to the effort involved, even when it's just "regular" layer cake and not further remixed like the Sarawak variant. With a minimum wage of RM 1100/mo, that RM250 cake is a week's income.<p>Some well-known local chains if you're even in the region:<p><a href="https://lavender.com.my/" rel="nofollow">https://lavender.com.my/</a><p><a href="http://www.bengawansolo.com.sg/cat_signature_range.aspx" rel="nofollow">http://www.bengawansolo.com.sg/cat_signature_range.aspx</a><p>In the spirit of HN, perhaps there's room for a startup to automate the process with robotics and 3D printing...
When I was living in Labuan most food places sold cakes (usually a simpler pattern) and nasi lemak (coconut rice topped with sambal and wrapped in a banana leaf) for breakfast.<p>Maybe an acquired taste but I found the amount of butter and oil a bit sickly.
These are beautiful. I worked in a Malaysian restaurant as a young adult and unfortunately they didn't serve cakes. I'm a little saddened to think I may never get to experience one.
As a low 懐石, these cakes would be nice to eat after reading: <a href="https://aeon.co/ideas/is-there-any-real-distinction-between-high-and-low-pleasures" rel="nofollow">https://aeon.co/ideas/is-there-any-real-distinction-between-...</a><p>Bonus battenberg track: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eELH0ivexKA" rel="nofollow">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eELH0ivexKA</a>