'I thought it was a joke': Diners surprise owner of Langkawi eatery by arriving in helicopter

When Zaidi Hassan received a call from a diner saying he would be arriving at his restaurant in Langkawi by helicopter, he thought his friend was pulling a fast one on him.

But 20 minutes later, a helicopter did land near his eatery, Dangau Langkawi, which is located in a village eatery on the Malaysian island. And out stepped a group of six diners.

The surprising arrival was captured on video and shared on TikTok on Monday (April 29).

"Today in history. Customers come to eat at Dangau by helicopter," he wrote in Malay.

[embed]https://www.tiktok.com/@dangaulangkawi/video/7362807697663741202?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7314482949512201729[/embed]

Zaidi told the New Straits Times (NST) that the customer called him at 1.35pm to inform him that he would flying in by helicopter for lunch at his restaurant in 15 minutes.

"I thought it was one of my friends having a joke," he said, adding that the customer also asked if there was an area near his restaurant where he could land the chopper. 

"I asked if he was being serious."

About 20 minutes later, Zaidi said he heard a helicopter overhead. "It landed at an open space some 20m from my restaurant.

The video showed Zaidi, dressed in traditional attire, stunned at seeing the helicopter, an AS365N Airbus. 

"About six people stepped out and came to the restaurant. They were joined by around 10 to 15 other people who came by cars," he said.

He added that the diners spent around RM500 (S$140) on the 'set talam', which comprised of fish curry, sambal petai prawns, grilled fish, ulam and sambal belacan served with drinks.

"I didn't ask who they were and where they were from. But I did hear someone refer to one of them as 'Datuk'," he said.

The diners spent about an hour at the restaurant.

At the end of the one-and-a-half-minute video, Zaidi is seen taking pictures with some of the customers next to the helicopter before they took off.

Langkawi district police chief Assistant Commissioner Shariman Ashari said the helicopter was given the green light to fly by the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia, NST reported. 

Zaidi's video has since gone viral, garnering 1.3 million views.

Netizens flooded the comments section. Zaidi replied to some that this was an unforgettable moment for him. 

One netizen said: "I want to be this rich, to fly in a helicopter just to have lunch."

Many also recommended the restaurant, saying the food is delicious and affordable.

"I have eaten here before when I was on vacation. The food is delicious and cheap. There were 20 of us, but the bill came up to no more than RM800. The staff is very friendly," said a netizen.

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ashwini.balan@asiaone.com