GEM Indian Restaurant @ Penang
GEM restaurant – House of fine Indian cuisine as they claimed, located within the core zone of the Unesco World Heritage Site in Penang – Bishop Street. The environment is beautifully design, with painting and cravings from India.
The design of the cup is very special, and it’s quite heavy too for a cup.
Nandu Rasam @ RM7.90 is certainly an interesting dish. The soup was boiled with the crab together, giving it a very interesting flavor. Besides, although the pepper taste might be a bit overwhelming, but it still taste very nice as the spices used to cook the soup is just wonderful. The crab is very fresh too (although small) but you can enjoy it while waiting for your main dish to come. 7.9/10
Penang Road Teochew Cendol @ Prangin Mall
Almost everyone will refer you to the famous Penang Road Teochew Cendol when you are in Penang. It’s is like the must eat desert in Penang already, and below, is the godly Teochew Cendol.
Although cendol is usually refer to the green colored noodle look-a-like thingy, but it’s not the main ingredients that made a bowl of cendol stand out from the others (well, at least to me la). It’s all due to the santan (coconut milk) and gula melaka (palm sugar) used. Besides, finely shaved ice and big sweet red beans also lead to a good bowl of cendol.
Due to the crowd and mess at their main branch at Penang road, I decided to give their branch inside Prangin Mall a try for my crave of cendol this time.
This is my first time trying at their branch, and I shall say I am quite happy with it. I don’t notice any difference here compare to their main branch, hence I find that in the future, I will just come here instead, where I no need to queue up under the hot sun, stand and eat under the hot sun, and worry my ass being knock my passing by car. I is can sit down and enjoy my desert. 8.0/10
Operating Hours: 11.00 AM to 8 PM
Location: Ground Floor, Prangin Mall, Penang
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O&N WanTan Mee @ Penang
Wantan mee, something simple to prepare, yet most of the time when I order 1, I either get something that’s too salty or the noodle is too dry. It might be the fact that it’s so easy to prepare until any Tom, Dick and Harry and come out from no where, simply set up a stall at any food court and start selling it, which greatly increase the chances for you (and me too) to get a below average plate of Wantan mee that’s below par, even in Penang.
Due to the fact that it’s so normal, and easily found in most places, Wantan mee is also something that you rarely see there’s a shop that sell Wantan mee solely, or as the shop main attraction. However, this Wantan mee stall at O&N Coffee Shop had did it.
Restaurant Floating @ Bukit Tambun
Bukit Tambun, a small town south of the mainland Penang, is famous for it’s fresh and extremely cheap seafood (in the past). Not only it do attracts many people travel all the way to dine there, but it also lead to many seafood restaurant operating there to crop with the crowd.
1 of my favorite restaurant here in Bukit Tambun will be Restaurant Floating.
Like all other seafood restaurant here, you can choose which seafood you want before you are seated. Don’t expect to find something like geoduck or snow crab here though.
The restaurant is not named as Restaurant Floating for nothing, it’s actually floating on the huge man made pond with loads of fish swimming underneath it.
Hammer Bay Ikan Bakar @ Penang
Where is the best place for dinner? Yes, beach is the way man! Watching the sun set, enjoying fresh seafood while the natural wind blowing you is just…..awesome! Although the sea water is not crystal clear in Penang, neither the sand is silky smooth in the East coast of Penang island, but still, you can overlook the whole Penang bridge and looking at ships entering and exiting the port is quite a view too.
Hence this explains why restaurants are mushrooming along the East coast of the island, all the way from the start of Jelutong Highway at the end of Pengkalan Weld to Queensbay mall.
However, most of these stalls are just normal road side restaurant, not those classy type that you find in Batu Ferringhi area.
Rasa Sayang Spice Market Cafe @ Penang
- Rasa sayang, hey! Rasa sayang sayang hey,
- Hey lihat nona jauh, rasa sayang sayang hey.
Nope, not the controversy song that lead to some Indonesians people whom threatened to go to war with Malaysia if Malaysia did not drop their claim on the origins of the song la. The Rasa Sayang here is a hotel in Batu Ferringhi, Penang. I had heard that the buffet dinner here is quite awesome, as good as the one in Sarkies corner, and hence, here I am!
When I saw the mountain high fruits, the first thing that strike my mind is “Yay! Free flow fresh fruit juice is back!” Unfortunately it’s not, you have to pay for it.
Although the salad corner do offer more choices than others, but Sarkies Corner offer double of what was offer here.
Perak Road Nasi Lemak @ Penang
After the Petaling Street trilogy, it’s time for a Penang trilogy, hence here the third post of food in Perak Road wet market. This time, the Nasi Lemak I am introducing is something I first ate when I was still in kindergarten, but then it’s been years, since I last pay them a visit.
The special yellow curry chicken here is the single thing I miss most for the past 10 years. I always wanted to come back for this, but since my house was an hour far from where it was (in the past la), which means I need to wake up really early for it had stopped me to do so. The pain in the ass in finding a car park does not helps too.
However, the lovely curry still always appear in my mind. It’s very different from normal curry as it’s more towards sweet rather than spicy, but I just love it. Ever since my grandparents introduce this place to me 10++ years ago, I had become 1 of their most loyal customer, and every time I am here, I will surely take as many pieces of chicken as I can and go back happily.
Perak Road Hokkien Mee @ Penang
When talk about Hokkien Mee in Penang, rarely people will know about this stall at Perak Road wet market. However, as low profile as this stall is, as not so popular compare to others it can be, it doesn’t stop the crowd (especially those stay in Perak Road) to patronize this stall. This only prove 1 fact, the Hokkien Mee here is good!
The soup of the mee here is very good, full with prawns flavor. Although the ingredients given is much lesser than others (you are getting a bowl of classic and traditional Hokkien Mee, so no, you can’t add roasted pork or whatever others in it), and the prawns given is also much lesser, but all these does not stop the soup to taste wonderful. At only RM2.30 it’s very cheap. 8.0/10
Perak Road Char Kuih Kak @ Penang
Char Koay Kak, to me, is the same to Char Koay Teow as both are fried using the same method – black soy sauce, egg, beansrpout. While most Char Koay Kak does not served with prawns (unless those stated seafood), preserved vegetables are used.
However, most of the time Char Koay Teow will taste better. Reason is Koay Kak come in the form of square pieces instead of flat noodle, and while Koay Kak itself is tasteless like white rice, the person who fry it need to have more skill to ensure each piece of Koay Kak is full with flavor.
It’s quite hard to find a plate of good Char Koay Kak these days even in Penang. However this uncle who operate this mobile stall at Perak road (near to the morning market at Perak road) whom had been selling Char Koay Kak for years already, and I must say his Char Koay Kak is quite good.
Jiu Jiu Szechuan Restaurant @ Autocity Penang
Chinese cuisine, usually refers to food originates from China. However, as China extends to such a huge area in Asia, with twenty-two provinces, five autonomous regions, and four municipalities (excluding Hong Kong and Macau) in it, each provinces having different type of cultures and even climate since they are separated thousands of miles away, surely the people there will have different taste buds, and hence the birth of different type of cuisines in China.
The 4 Great Traditions of Chinese cuisines are Cantonese, Huaiyang, Shandong and Szechuan. Malaysia’s Chinese food are heavily influenced by the Cantonese cuisine, for example sweet and sour pork, Char Siew and Won Ton. Huaiyang and Shandong cuisine however are not as popular to Cantonese and Szechuan cuisine here in Malaysia,with representative such as Duck Egg and Pork Porridge, Yangzhou Fried Rice (both from Huaiyang) and Peiking duck (Shandong cuisine). For me myself, I love Szechuan cuisine, and it’s greatly influenced by the anime Cooking Master Boy!
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