A tourist-first merch concept for NZ Curry House — a mamak restaurant directly opposite the Petronas Twin Towers. Brand analysis, illustration language, and a full product range built from the ground up.
Most mamak restaurants serve locals who come weekly. They don't need a souvenir — they'll be back next Tuesday. But NZ Curry House is different. It sits directly opposite the Petronas Twin Towers, putting it in the path of every tourist who visits KL's biggest landmark.
Tourists are the only segment who buy branded merch from a restaurant. No other mamak in KL can credibly sell merch like this — this market position belongs only to NZ right now.
Bold chunky outlines, expressive watercolour fills, food as personality. Every illustration captures NZ Curry's character — not polished product shots, but loveable sketches that feel like they belong on the table.
Orange, brown, and cream mirrors the brand. The NZ checkerboard table appears across products as the unifying element.
Two roti canai triangles that are also the Twin Towers. A joke you only get if you've been there. Front: minimal NZ logo chest print. Back: the punchline.
The best merch works on two levels — it's a shirt to outsiders, it's an inside joke to anyone who's eaten here.
The storefront tee puts the building on your back — "Good Place. Good Food. Since 1988." A direct portrait for anyone who's ever walked past and thought: that place looks interesting.
The OTGO tee turns the checkerboard into a chessboard. Food as pieces, mamak as endgame. Open Til Game Over. Both shirts, one language.
Teh Tarik, Teh O Limau, Milo Dino, Bandung, and Young Coconut. Each one illustrated from scratch — every glass, vessel, and garnish drawn by hand.
The drink range underpins everything: the postcard, the gang cards, the tote patches. One illustration system, deployed everywhere.
Each signature drink becomes a collectible identity badge. Teh Tarik Gang. Teh O Limau Gang. Cheapest item in the range — impulse buy at the counter.
Perfect for tourists who want something small for 5–10 people back home.
The tote ships as an empty table. NZ Curry's iconic marble top, on natural canvas — waiting to be filled.
Iron-on patches are sold separately, one per food or drink. You pick what goes on your table. Your usual order. Your group's drinks — four people, four different patches, one tote that tells the whole story of the meal. Or just the teh tarik, because that's all you ever order.
The table is communal by nature. So is the bag.
NZ Curry's signature drinks illustrated and printed. A proper sendable souvenir. Ideal impulse buy at the counter for tourists who want something small for everyone back home.
