“New menu design in progress” – Oriental Kopi Responds to Backlash Over Menu Without Bahasa Malaysia

A netizen recently criticised Oriental Kopi for leaving Bahasa Malaysia out of its menu, which was only available in English and Chinese.

The netizen questioned why the national language was being sidelined, despite it being the country’s official language.

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Malaysian calls out Oriental Kopi for menu without Bahasa Melayu

The netizen sarcastically remarked that Malaysia is one of the few places where the national language is treated as a “third language.”

“Only English and Chinese are used, while the national language is being sidelined. I’ve never seen this happen in other countries. They claim to be Malaysians, yet they continue to prioritise the language of their ancestral homeland over the language of the country they were born in,” the individual wrote.

Following the backlash, Oriental Kopi founder Dato’ Calvin Chan addressed the issue and apologised for the oversight. Taking to Threads, he also shared that the brand is already working on a new menu design that will include Bahasa Malaysia.

“Thank you so much for your feedback and suggestions. We truly appreciate them. As a brand born in Malaysia, we always respect Bahasa Melayu as our national language.

“We apologise for this shortcoming. We’re already in the process of introducing a new menu design that will include Bahasa Malaysia,” he wrote.

“We’ll continue doing our best to make Malaysia proud”

Calvin has since thanked the public for their feedback and asked for more time as the team works on improving the menu.

“We truly appreciate your concern for Oriental Kopi and your willingness to give us the time and opportunity to improve in this area.

“Oriental Kopi is for all Malaysians, regardless of race or background. We’ll continue doing our best to make Malaysia proud through our traditional heritage dishes. Thank you for helping us become better,” he wrote.

What are your thoughts on this? Let us know down in the comments!

Also read: Oriental Kopi to Attempt Guinness World Record by Serving 10,000 Plates of Nasi Lemak in 8 Hours