Authentic Penang Hokkien Mee
----------------------------
Across the street from the Kenderaan Juara or
Melati Express (former City Council) bus terminal in Victoria Street is a hawker's centre,

beside which is a small coffee shop where, in the mornings, Hokkien Mee is sold.
You can ask for additional prawns or pork-ribs or intestines to be added.

Try the restaurant at the junction of MacAlister Road and New Lane.
There should be one or two Hokkien Mee stalls there in
the evenings. Tasty enough, but they do not have extra garnishings
like prawns, etc.

For more authentic stuff, Pulau Tikus is the place to go. There are
three stalls worth trying. Both are opened only in the
mornings to cater for people going to the Pulau Tikus market. The first
is in a coffee shop opposite the police station along Burmah Road, and
the second is the coffee shop at the junction of Burmah Road and Bangkok
Lane. Very popular stalls.
Be prepared to wait a while before your order is served, especially at
the second stall. However, the gem among the trio is
located in the coffee shop at the Burmah Road/Cantonment Road junction
(beside the Aiwa shop).

Finally, there is a row of shophouses along Perak Road, opposite the
Padang Brown hawker centre. At one end of the row (at a road junction, actually)
is a restaurant selling Hokkien Mee in the mornings. Quite palatable,
but you have to be there early to avoid the morning crowd.


Bak Kut Teh
-----------
Too many to mention, especially along Gurney Drive in the mornings.
Also, there's one coffee shop across from the City Stadium along Dato Kramat Road
(named Jolly Pal or something similar) which opens in the evenings.

Baked Salted Chicken
--------------------
Kimberley Street, about 100 metres from the Penang Road junction.

Look out for this shop house selling baked salted kampong chicken, Ipoh style.
The whole chicken is not too big or fat.....just right for two persons.
Try also the Guangzhou outlet along Burmah Road (junction with Immigration Road).

Bubur Caca
----------
Sad to say, I haven't seen this stall operating lately but if you are lucky,

do try this small stall at one end of the hawker centre at Padang Brown.

The Bubur Caca is delightful...guaranteed to make you come back again and again.

Real coconut milk is used quite liberally, making the iced mixture really tasty.

Cendol
------
Penangites swear by the two famous Cendol stalls in a side lane off Penang Road.

This side lane is located between Kimberley Street and Jalan Lim Chwee Leong

(formerly known as Prangin Road). One of these stalls has opened outlet at the

Super Komtar Food Court and the Island Plaza Food Court but they are

more expensive there.

Char Koay Teow
--------------
In the middle of Kimberley Street is the Kopi Tiam Kimberley Sdn Bhd.
In the evenings, you will find various stalls offering hawker stuff.

Do not miss the Char Koay Teow. The frier will add extra prawns

(big ones!) upon request.

Now, I have been asked too many times why I failed
to give a thumbs-up for the "famous" Two Sisters' Char Koay Teow stall in
MacAlister Road. In my opinion, the stall is over-rated and the food is
not up to my standard.

Fish Head Curry
---------------
Try the Jaws restaurant or the Restaurant 77 in Gurney Drive during lunch hour.

Don't go in the late afternoon because the fish may already be a little stale.

The two restaurants cook their Fish Head Curry differently but they are heavenly...

and don't miss ordering the extra dishes like Roasted Brinjals with Sambal,

Kiam Chye Boey, Otak-Otak, etc

German Food
-----------
German food is not exactly hawker's food but I think it warrants a mention
in this food guide. For authenticity, try the Wunderbar Restaurant  which now
operates from within the X Pub in Pulau Tikus. The place is run by a German couple.

The potato soup is unique, definitely worth a try. Nice veal sausages, superb sauerkraut...

and Lowenbrau beer (the last I saw the menu).

Ice Kacang
----------
Penang is full of ice kachang stalls but the most popular one is located at Swatow Lane.

It is a roadside stall serving ice Kacang with sliced fruits instead of the more usual ice-cream

which most other stalls will give you. Usually, the hawker will pour the red syrup on the ice but

for variety, ask for the sarsi syrup. It is a different taste altogether. This hawker was actually

invited by the state government to represent Penang at a Penang food festival in Adelaide a

few years' ago.

Another ice kachang stall to try is at a restaurant in the middle of Stewart Lane, but do note that

the place is closed on Tuesdays. The ice kachang is served with big red beans.

Indian Fried Mee
----------------
There are several good stalls in Penang and here are just three of them. If you are travelling towards

the Ayer Itam roundabout from the city, try the stall at the restaurant before the roundabout.
There is also another one opposite the Lai Lai Supermarket in the Hill Railway Road. In George
Town inself, the roadside stall in Swatow Lane can fry a mouth-watering plate for you!

Laksa Asam/Lemak
----------------
This is land of Penang Laksa, and the stall to visit is located in the middle of Lorong Selamat in the

afternoons (except Tuesdays). Real good stuff, and yes, the hawker has been to Adelaide too!

The Ayer Itam market also has a good asam laksa stall, but if you are more adventurous, go all the

way to Balik Pulau where there are several good asam laksa stalls. Travelling north from Balik Pulau,

make a left turn into Jalan Baru and then a right turn into Kuala Jalan Baru. The laksa stalls there are

reputedly of very high quality!


Malay Food
----------
My favourite spot is the Eliza Restaurant at The City Bayview Hotel in Farquhar Street.

(BTW, Farquhar is always mispronounced as far-ku-whar. The correct pronounciation is far-ker)

Try also the Anggerik Biru Restoran beside Sunshine Square in Bayan Baru. The Tambuah
Mas restaurants at Komtar Level Four and along Jalan Sultan Azlan Shah serve good Indonesian food.

For Malay fish head curry, try the stall at a bungalow located at the junction of Kelawei Road and Jones Road. It is opened during lunch time and you need to be early. Otherwise, stand and wait for a table to be vacated.

Nasi Kandar/South Indian Food
-----------------------------
There are several outlets in various parts of the island. Recommended are the Hameediyah Restaurant in Campbell Street, Shusi (formerly known as Susila) Restaurant in Penang Street and Restaurant Sooria in Beach Street. The last two serve banana leaf rice. At Shusi, try the chicken and mutton curries - they are

good - and if you are there on Wednesdays, ask them for their fabulous chicken raasam.

Sooria serves good fish curry. There is another air-conditioned banana leaf restaurant in Penang Street
(Kaliaman) but frankly, I'd recommend you give it a miss. It's not worth the money to
step into the place if you can help it. Relatively expensive too.

In Taman Brown, there is Inniras. The fried fish is nice, but do try to go at about 12.30pm.

That's when the food is piping hot and fresh! Finally, if you are in Bayan Baru, try the banana leaf
restaurant in Taman Tunas (name escapes me).

From the late afternoon onwards, try the nasi kandar stalls along the
street beside the Chowrasta Market in Penang Road.

The Kassim Nasi Kandar restaurant in Brick Kiln Road

(opposite the Gama Supermarket and Department Store)

is opened for 24 hours daily.

North Indian Food
-----------------
Try the Kashmiri Restaurant in the basement of the
Oriental Hotel in Penang Road or the Moghul Restaurant in Hutton Lane.

The Moghul is beside the Toi Shan Convalescence Home which is actually not a
place for convalescence at all.

I won't tell you what the place is used for, though.

Penang Nyonya Food
------------------
There is not much to choose between the Nyonya Corner at the Sri Relau Complex in Bayan Baru,

Dragon King Restaurant in Bishop Street and the Hot
Wok Cafe in Jalan Tanjong Tokong (opposite the Fettes Park traffic lights)
although some people say the Dragon King has lost its charm. All three
serve authentic Penang Nyonya Food, as opposed to the style of the
Malacca Nyonyas. Try the In Chi Kay Bin, the various Kerabu mixtures,

the Otak-Otak, etc. Oh yes, the Hollywood Restaurant in Tanjung Bungah is
also a worthy place to visit for their In Chi Kay Bins and springrolls.

Popiah
------
The road-side stall in Lorong Selamat sells good popiah, but if you
really want very good popiah, make a beeline for the Padang Brown hawker centre.
Be prepared to wait for your orders to be fulfilled,

but you won't be disappointed when you taste it.

Rojak
-----
Not my regular cup-of-tea, but people have told me that the stall run
by Ah Chye at the Gurney Drive food court is one of the best in the island.
The only stall I have tried in more than 10 years is located in Bukit Mertajam,
at the Jalan Bunga Raya-Jalan Pasar junction. You should try it to
believe me when I say there's nowhere else like it!

Roti Canai
----------
The perfect roti canai should be soft and tender, and served with
either fish or dhal curry. There are many places in Penang which serve good roti,
but the one I like best is located near the junction of Burmah Road
and Tavoy Road. Available only in the mornings (from mid-day onwards, the
shop sells nasi kandar), if you ask for Roti Telur (a variant of Roti Canai
which is made with eggs and onions) it comes cooked in margarine
instead of the normal ghee oil.

Sar Hor Fun
-----------
The quality may have suffered lately by I would
still recommend the Foo Heong Restaurant in Cintra Street. The restaurant
opens from 1pm daily. Look up the telephone directory for their number.
Take-away orders are accepted.

A little-known place is the Beer Garden in Tanjung Bungah. The place
is open only in the evenings and they serve superb sar hor
fun (very good value for money!), beside their seafood dinners.

Satay
-----
For one of the best Malay satays, serving succulent pieces of
marinated chicken and beef, try the Meriam Timbul open air
hawker centre beside the Butterworth ferry terminal. Their peanut sauce is
yummy! Chinese satays are a bit different from their Malay counterparts in
that pork is the main fare.  

Chinese satay is best taken at the Oriental Restaurant in MacAlister Road

or even at the Kopi Tiam Kimberley in Kimberley Street.

Seafood
-------
In George Town, go to the Oriental Restaurant in MacAlister Road,
opposite the Wisma Central or its branch at the Gurney
Drive roundabout (across from Sunrise Tower).

The seafood there is good but not cheap anymore.

However, you must be prepared to be more
adventurous if you *really* want to savour the best of Penang's seafood.

For instance, there is the Hai Heong Restaurant in Simpang Ampat,

mainland Penang, which is open from 6pm daily.

On the island, try the seafood restaurant in Batu Maung. It's located
a distance away from the shore and you need some
good balancing tricks to navigate the planks.

Good ambience, especially when it is going to rain and
you have the wind and thunder all around you while
you eat (one eye on the food, the other eye on the sky,

wondering whether you'll get wet before the end of the dinner).

In Teluk Bahang, if you take the right turn at the roundabout, it will
take you to some seafood restaurants. One place to
visit is the End of the World Restaurant.

There is another popular restaurant nearby - after you turn at
the roundabout, make another right turn at the next road junction.

You won't miss the restaurant.

I should also mention Batu Kawan and Bukit Tambun
in mainland Penang where there are at least half a dozen seafood
restaurants. if you are looking for Mantis Prawn Broth, go to Bukit Tambun.

The prawns are reared and measure between six inches and a foot.

Take your pick; prices vary according to the size of the crustacean

(from RM6 to RM12 per bowl of broth) or should
I say, according to the length of the prawn.

Soya Bean Drink
---------------
At the risk of repeating myself....yes, go to Kimberley Street again.
This time, the junction with Cintra Street. The roadside stall selling this
drink is verrry popular with local residents. Try it!

Vegetarian Food
---------------
You don't have to wait until the Nine Emperor Gods
festivities to enjoy vegetarian food. Many restaurants like Ee Hoe Chye
(along Dato Kramat Road, diagonally opposite from the City Stadium) or
Happy Realm in Burmah Road serve such dishes every day.

Further down the road is another vegetarian restaurant, Tze-chu Lin,

which serves very good dishes. There is one in China Street

(a stone's throw from the Kuan Yin temple in Pitt Street).

But beware of prices in some outlets...vegetarian food
can be VERY expensive.  Don't really understand why soya-based

dishes must be that expensive!

Western Food
------------
I don't have to explain the extreme popularity of the two Eden Restaurants
along Hutton Lane or the two The Ship Restaurants along Sri Bahari Road and

in Batu Ferringhi.

For American-sized helpings, try the Victoria Station in Bayan Baru.
Dave's Deli at the Midland One-Stop Centre serves one of
the best roast chickens I have ever tasted.

Yam Rice
--------
Strangely enough, Yam Rice is more popular in mainland Penang than in
the island. There are several in Bukit Mertajam, but two that I frequent
are in Chai Leng Park, Prai. The coffee shops are across
the road from the wet market. (Turn in at the traffic lights and then
turn left at the second junction. Watch out for changes to the traffic
system, though!)

Yong Tau Foo
------------
The best Yong Tau Foo is still served at the Padang Brown hawker centre

in the afternoons. You'll love the food here!