MELAKA: Melaka's durian cendol has made its way to Wuhan, China, thanks to the efforts of local entrepreneur Jacky Ong from Klebang here.

       It started in 2008 when Ong served his bowl of mouth-watering cendol at his outlet in a shopping complex here to a group of Chinese tourists on a sweltering afternoon.

       Fascinated by the Malaysian dessert, one of the tourists returned to China and wanted Ong to be his partner and open an outlet in Wuhan in 2019.

       Today, there are two outlets selling Ong's cendol in China.

       When met on Sunday (March 27), Ong said that his cendol has also made its way to Brunei and Sabah.

       "There are several outlets now and I supply them with durian and gula Melaka (brown sugar) from here," he said.

       The 37-year-old father of three said he started his cendol business 14 years ago and now has a restaurant at Porto Historia at Kota Laksamana here.

       Ong said the durian pulp is sourced from local farms before being refrigerated and shipped to overseas and outstation outlets.

       Ong said he plans to expand the business to Kuala Lumpur and other cities in Malaysia.