Few restaurants have shaped London’s culinary landscape in recent years quite like Mambow. Abby Lee’s deeply personal take on Malaysian cooking has captivated the city - winning awards, packing tables, and redefining what Southeast Asian cuisine can look like in the West.
Born in Singapore and raised in Malaysia, Abby’s food story began early - on a stool behind the counter of her family’s bakery. ‘Pretty much as soon as I could stand, I was slicing bread in the bakery,’ she laughs. ‘They tried to put me in nursery and I was screaming to get out. I was like, “I have to be in the bakery!”’
Champagne AYALA: Celebrating over 160 years of history, Champagne AYALA was one of the original twenty-six Grandes Marques Champagne Houses. The House received a Royal Warrant in 1908 and became a part of the Bollinger family in 2005. With its longstanding commitment to the restaurant industry, Champagne AYALA is known for its chardonnay driven, low-dosage wines, crafted with precision and delicacy on a boutique scale. These wines are the ultimate epicurean pairing, it’s no wonder they have been served in the UK for over 100 years in many of London’s most prestigious establishments.
Today, there is no conversation about the best Malaysian food in London without Mambow, but Abby’s journey back to her culinary roots has been anything but straightforward. At the age of 15 she left Malaysia and moved to London for school - a cultural leap that was just as thrilling as it was disorienting.
‘When I left, I forgot about food at home - I just wanted to assimilate into London,’ she explains. ‘It was a huge change, but I was so ready. I loved punk rock and I thought London would be super grungy and that would be my scene.’
Adapting to the culture came naturally: even the food was less of a culture shock than you might expect, as Abby quickly discovered the joy of beige food. ‘I didn’t know how to cook Malaysian food so I just thought, “Okay, I’ll just be English.” Everyone just used to go to the chippy for lunch, so I did too. I gained 15 kilos!’
![abby lee sitting on counter]()
But in throwing herself into British life, Abby would come to feel increasingly distant from home; lost in the liminal space between two distant cultures, belonging to neither. ‘I’d shut off this whole other part of my identity to assimilate,’ she reflects. She dreamed of studying art and fashion, but her parents refused, and she ended up enduring three years of an economics degree. ‘I was pretty depressed, but it was actually baking that started to lift me up again. Cooking for people gave me purpose, and made me feel good in a way I hadn’t felt before.’
That spark led her to Le Cordon Bleu - ostensibly for the culinary training, but also for the student visa - and she thrived in the rigid kitchen environment. ‘I had lacked discipline and focus up to that point, so it was exactly what I needed,’ she says. ‘I always hated school, but I was so ready to learn and it felt right.’
‘I’d shut off this whole other part of my identity to assimilate...'
As it did for so many of us, though, the pandemic forced a reckoning. Abby had spent a few years searching for her culinary identity, grinding seven days a week in sweltering Puglian kitchens, then starting her first pop-up in Spitalfields. Two months after opening, COVID-19 hit UK shores like a tidal wave, and she was forced to close down. ‘That was my lowest point mentally,’ she says. ‘I didn’t even know what I was cooking anymore, it was a sort of Italian Asian fusion. I hadn’t found my voice.’
With few options, she returned to Malaysia. What felt like retreat, turned out to be revelation, as she found comfort in the food she had forgotten years ago. ‘I was like, “what have I been cooking for the last five years?” I knew that I needed to learn how to cook this.’
Dish by dish, ingredient by ingredient, Abby started to reconnect with the smells and flavours of her past. She dove in, shadowing her aunt in kitchens and markets, documenting every technique, every story. A personal journey of rediscovery soon became something more. ‘I felt like London hadn't tasted this before,’ she says. ‘Most people only know a broad version of Malaysian food. I thought this could be something special.’
![abby with champagne ayala]()
When Mambow opened in Peckham, the menu was strict, traditional - family recipes recreated exactly. Abby was still figuring out her place in it all, bottling up her natural creative instinct for reinterpretation. ‘Even though I’m Malaysian, I felt like a visitor to my own culture,’ she admits. ‘I didn’t want to disrespect the cuisine.’
Over time, though, something shifted. Every day Abby cooked, she was reclaiming a bit of her identity. ‘After about a year of being in the space, meeting more Malaysians and building that community, I realised: I am part of this culture, these are my roots, and I can do what I want to do.’
That realisation and sense of belonging is what unlocked Mambow as we know it, unleashing Abby’s creative potential. Her food began to blend heritage with instinct, drawing from both sides of her identity - Malaysian flavours, reimagined with London’s unbounded spirit.
A life interrupted
In 2022, she moved Mambow from Peckham to Clapton, finally finding a space that could reflect not just her cooking but also her spirit. ‘I wanted a space where we could create our own atmosphere: my music, interiors, the whole vibe. That felt important.’
The restaurant is still small, but the upgraded kitchen space allowed her to experiment, iterate, and grow. And it resonated: soon, queues were forming and tables at Mambow were among the hottest in the city. But six months into life in Clapton, another storm appeared on the horizon. Abby found a lump on her breast - something she’d noticed earlier, but dismissed. Her partner pushed her to get it checked. The first doctor was reassuring, but the biopsy wasn’t - it was cancer.
‘There’s never a good time,’ she says. ‘But it felt like the worst time. We were only six months open, so we were still getting settled. It just felt like another hurdle.’
Fresh off the upheaval of moving the restaurant, Abby was launched straight into a whirlwind of medical treatment: IVF to freeze eggs; then surgery; chemo; radiotherapy. Even through treatment, she stayed connected to Mambow in any way possible - placing orders, shaping menus, doing back office admin. But eventually, her body said stop. ‘I lost strength in my arms. My mouth was so sore I couldn’t taste.' She pauses. 'As chefs, our instinct is to push through everything, but now I have to be really hyper-aware of listening to my body. It goes against everything I’ve learned.’
![abby cooking prawns]()
As we sit in the back garden of Mambow, on a sunny spring morning, the atmosphere is certainly more hopeful. Abby’s treatment finished a month ago, and she’s emerging, carefully. ‘I thought I’d feel more celebratory!’ she laughs. ‘But my body is exhausted. I tried cooking last week and it wiped me out. I don’t know when I’ll be able to stand in a kitchen for 12 hours again.’
That final thought is clearly one she’s still processing, but Mambow doesn’t need Abby at the pass to be special. The restaurant is the story of a modern, diasporic life - a chef who has battled burnout, reclaimed her roots, fought cancer with courage, and is still finding a way to feed people with joy. Whether or not she’s behind the stove, Mambow carries her story in every dish, and it's a story she's still writing.
Abby’s perfect match for AYALA's Le Blanc de Blancs A/18
The dish: Udang Masak Lemak (prawns in coconut milk) with tempura wild betel leaf
The Champagne: AYALA Le Blanc de Blancs A/18
![abby's dish with ayala champagne]()
Abby explains: 'The lightness and acidity of the Champagne pairs particularly well on multiple levels with this dish - it cuts through the creaminess of the coconut curry, but it also really accentuates the briny flavour of the prawns! Having the extra crisp deep fried betel leaves on top also brings a different texture, but betel leaf is quite bitter and peppery, and that works nicely with the minerality of the Champagne.'
Abby's quick bites
Describe your cooking style in three words
Passionate. Generous. Spicy!
What is one thing you can always find in your store cupboard?
Shrimp paste!
Where do you go for Malaysian food in London?
Dapur in Holborn.
Which chef or cook has inspired you the most?
My aunt.
What’s your favourite thing to cook at home?
Lots of sour soups, like a fish sinigang, or a pork and pickled mustard green soup.
What’s the one piece of advice you’d give to chefs just starting out?
Try and find a kitchen where the head chef is a flexible mentor, and you’re able to be on lots of different stations and try things out.
What’s your favourite London restaurant right now?
Planque. I always say that, he probably thinks I’m a super fan! But it’s so good. Seb’s cooking is just spot on, it’s perfect - no notes.
Explore more of our chef interviews in partnership with AYALA, including Adriana Cavita, April Lily Partridge, and 2024's SquareMeal AYALA Female Chef of the Year, Adejoké Bakare.