MALAYSIA | THE GREAT PENANG FOOD TRIP ~ WHERE TO EAT IN PENANG, HAWKERS EDITION

Wednesday, November 15, 2023

Penang Food Trip

The moment we landed at Penang’s International Airport, we knew right away that we’d be in for a culinary treat. Besides the numerous TV shows and write-ups about the city’s food, a brochure along the airport’s corridor confirmed everything--it listed each and every dish we needed to sample in Penang and where to get it too! Nifty, eh?!

FIND THE CHEAPEST FLIGHT TO PENANG
PENANG FOOD TRIP
TABLE OF CONTENTS ~ WHAT’S INSIDE?

  1. Jooi Hooi Cafe
  2. Mee Goreng Mamak Lebuh Armenian
  3. Ultimaxx Cafe
  4. Lebuh Kimberly Night Market
  5. Gurney Drive Hawker Center
  6. Toh Soon Café
  7. New Lane Hawker Centre
  8. Tanjung Bungah Mppp Food Court & Market
  9. Kannaas Bamboo Masalla Briyani Restaurant
  10. Duck Blood Curry Mee Restaurant
   ► WHAT TO SEE IN GEORGE TOWN PENANG
CHECK FOR AFFORDABLE HOTELS IN PENANG


JOOI HOOI CAFÉ

ADDRESS: 475 JALAN PENANG, GEORGETOWN | OPEN HOURS: 11AM TO 5:30PM | GPS COORDINATES MAP: 5.417129, 100.330583


Jooi Hooi Cafe Georgetown Penang
THE CRAMPED DINING HALL OF JOOI HOOI CAFE IN PENANG

Jooi Hooi Café was one of the first food places we tried in Georgetown. At the time, we weren’t really aware that this is the place to get your asam laksa and char kway teow fix in the city. It was pure chance that we passed by this hole-in-the-wall at the corner of Jalan Penang and Lebuh Keng Kwee and saw multitudes of people trooping inside. A throng of people lining up, both locals and tourists, on an eatery is an excellent measure on how good a place is.

Jooi Hooi Cafe Georgetown Penang
KUEH PIE TEE

The place is packed, the tables and chairs were tightly spaced, and it was quite hot inside. We sat ourselves on one end of the café and ordered a bowl of asam laksa, kueh pie tee and kopi ais. We heard so much about Penang’s version of laksa that we were literally salivating as we asked it, we love laksa!

Jooi Hooi Cafe Georgetown Penang Laksa
ASAM LAKSA

We nibbled on our kueh pie tee, a mix of shredded bamboo shoots and turnips on edible pie tee cups, while waiting for the laksa to be finally laid on our table. We were quite surprised that it isn’t milky at all, like how we liked our laksa in Singapore, but rather it has a clearer broth with a reddish tinge. It turns out that Penang does their laksa differently, instead of using coconut milk, the soup is flavored with mackerel fish flakes, tamarind (asam), lemongrass, mint, and chili--which results to a sour than usual broth.

Jooi Hooi Cafe Georgetown Penang
KOPI AIS

Unfortunately, we found it to be unsuitable for our taste; it was way too fishy for us. We quickly washed it off with kopi ais (iced coffee), which was smashingly good. I asked a local acquaintance about this, since I was quite disturbed that I didn’t like asam laksa, Penang’s most famous dish. He told me not to worry, as it is indeed, an acquired taste.

BOOK DISCOUNTED TOURS IN PENANG


MEE GORENG MAMAK LEBUH ARMENIAN

ADDRESS: JALAN MASJID KAPITAN KELING COR. LEBUH ARMENIAN, GEORGETOWN | GPS COORDINATES MAP: 5.415467, 100.337116


Mee Goreng Georgetown Penang
THE MEE GORENG STALL AT GEORGETOWN’S LEBUH ARMENIAN

We first came upon this noodle seller at the corner of Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling and Lebuh Armenian after visiting the Kapitan Keling Mosque on our first trip to Penang several years ago. Always crazy for mee goreng (Malaysian fried noodles), we ordered a plateful from him. Barely able to speak any English, we used sign language to indicate the spiciness level of our dish.

Mee Goreng Georgetown Penang
COOKING MEE GORENG LITERALLY ON THE STREETS OF PENANG
Mee Goreng Georgetown Penang
MEE GORENG MAMAK-STYLE

After cooking our lunch, mamak-style, he personally brought our still hot noodles to the nearby benches across the street to where we were sitting. Mamak, by the way, is a term used for Malaysians with Indian descent. It was one of the most remarkable mee goreng I’ve ever tried, and it even got better when a passing vendor sold us a cold bottle of beer.

Mee Goreng Georgetown Penang
THIS GUY HAS BEEN ON THIS SAME SPOT FOR YEARS

Years later, we came back to this very same spot, hoping against hope that this mamak hawker was still in his place. Lo and behold, he’s still there, cooking the very same mee goreng! This old man, apparently, has been selling his noodles at this corner for several years already, rain or shine. Curious, I checked out Google Maps’ streetview of the place, and yes, he’s right there too! We’re definitely keeping our hopes up that we’d see him again on our next visit to Penang.

BOOK DISCOUNTED PENANG FOOD TOUR


ULTIMAXX CAFÉ

ADDRESS: PERSIARAN BAYAN INDAH, BAYAN LEPAS | OPENING HOURS: 7AM TO 4PM | GPS COORDINATES MAP: 5.335568, 100.306280


Ultimaxx Cafe Georgetown Penang
ULTIMAXX CAFE NEAR QUEENSBAY MALL PENANG

Lunch came calling during one of our outings to see the Penang Bridge near Queensbay Mall along the Selatan Strait. It was noontime when we finished our quick jaunt at the mall and our even quicker view of the bridge. Not wanting to eat inside the mall, we searched for a good hawker place and found the Ultimaxx Café just right beside it.

Ultimaxx Cafe Georgetown Penang
NASI GORENG

The place, as most hawker centers are, is not air-conditioned. They have the usual plastic chairs and tables surrounded by different hawker stalls selling everything from asam laksa to char kway teow. But after our experience with Jooi Hooi Café, we wanted to try something else other than laksa, like err, fried rice?

Ultimaxx Cafe Georgetown Penang
ERR, A NOODLE DISH
Ultimaxx Cafe Georgetown Penang
FRIED BEAN CURD AND TOFU
Ultimaxx Cafe Georgetown Penang
MORE NOODLES, CAN’T REMEMBER THE NAME THOUGH

We went crazy this time, buying everything that looked good in pictures. I love how the hawkers in Malaysia have photos of the dishes they’re selling--it’s much easier that way for us persiarans, lol. After a few minutes of food spree, we had a total of three full dishes—nasi goreng, two noodle dishes, a bowl of fried bean curd, and two glasses of kopi ais.

Ultimaxx Café might be a bit off radar for food aficionados in Penang, but we had one of our most enjoyable meals in the city right here.




2016 UPDATE

We went back to Penang for our Beach Hop Asia summer trip, and of course, we ate, and ate, and ate! We got to try old favorites and new ones, and here are some of them.


LEBUH KIMBERLY NIGHT MARKET

ADDRESS: LEBUH KIMBERLY, GEORGETOWN | OPENING HOURS: 6PM ONWARDS | GPS MAP: 5.416222, 100.332952


Lebuh Kimberly Georgetown Penang
TYPICAL HAWKER STALL AT LEBUH KIMBERLY IN PENANG

N, a friend from the Philippines working in the city, toured us around the second time we visited Penang. From E&O Hotel where we were cooped up, we took a quick walk to the nearby Lebuh Kimberly where she said we would have dinner. Again, with zero knowledge about Georgetown, we were quite surprised to see a host of stalls hawking Malaysian-Chinese dishes along the length of the street sidewalks.

Lebuh Kimberly Georgetown Penang
LEBUH KIMBERLY FOOD MARKET AT NIGHT
Lebuh Kimberly Georgetown Penang
OUR CHOSEN SPOT

Quickly securing a rare vacant table right on the street side, she proceeded on ordering our dinner for us along her favorite stalls—seems like she frequent this place quite often as I saw her being chummy with most of the vendors she spoke with (thanks N!).

Lebuh Kimberly Georgetown Penang
KWAY CHAP
Lebuh Kimberly Georgetown Penang
FRIED TOFU, BEANCURD AND LOBAK

After much terimakasih-ing, she plunked a bowl of kway chap—braised flat noodles all over braised pork innards—and a plate of fried tofu, lobak, and bean curds on our table. The former looked quite intimidating, with its dark broth and unknown pork parts swimming along the dark steaming soup, its thick flat noodles didn’t help either. The fried everything was superb though!

Lebuh Kimberly Georgetown Penang
MEE GORENG STALL

We also saw hawkers selling mee goreng, but we were, surprisingly, too full from what we ate that we passed off on ordering a plate. Imagine that, eh? More than the food, I guess the charm of Lebuh Kimberly comes from having your fill right along one of the historic streets of Georgetown.



GURNEY DRIVE HAWKER CENTER

ADDRESS: SOLOK GURNEY, GEORGETOWN | OPENING HOURS: 6:30PM ONWARDS | GPS MAP: 5.440006, 100.308950


Gurney Drive Hawker Center Georgetown Penang
GURNEY DRIVE HAWKER CENTER

One of the most famous hawker centers in Penang is located at the upscale Gurney Drive area. I know, a hawker center on a posh area? Most Penangites really don’t care much for this place, claiming the food here is overrated and quite overpriced. But being the tourists that we are, we simply have to try it out and judge for ourselves (not that we’re good food judges, lol).

Gurney Drive Hawker Center Georgetown Penang
INDIAN ROJAK, WE WOULD’VE ORDERED BUT THE PRICING WAS TOO CONFUSING

The Gurney Drive Hawker Center is located on a center island in between Persiaran Gurney and a smaller road, Solok Gurney 1. The place is filled by local stalls divided into three sections; Chinese, Malay, and Mamak cuisine. It looks relatively cleaner than most hawker stalls in Penang and there are, surprisingly, a lot of locals eating at the tables. Well, so much for what the Internet says.

Gurney Drive Hawker Center Georgetown Penang
FRIED CRISPY CHICKEN SKIN

For starters, we bought a plate of crisply fried chicken skin, which was quite ordinary, to say the least, while waiting for our bowl of asam laksa and char kway teow. Asam laksa?! Yes, we’re giving this famous Penang noodle soup another try just to be sure we weren’t really missing anything.

Gurney Drive Hawker Center Georgetown Penang
ASAM LAKSA

The famous Penang noodle soup arrived on our table quick enough, and it looked almost exactly the same as the first bowl we ordered years back; reddish soup, fish flakes floating on the surface. With trepidation, we spooned a mouthful and decided that Penang laksa isn’t really for us.

Gurney Drive Hawker Center Georgetown Penang
CHAR KOAY TEOW

What’s for us though is Penang’s other famous street food, the tongue twisting char kway teow. I usually don’t dig thick noodles, but I love this dish, even though I cannot for the life of me pronounce it. It’s basically fried thick noodles set with eggs, bean sprouts, and prawns. The flavor is twice milder than my favorite mee goreng, but I love it all the same.

Indeed, the offerings at Gurney Drive may be quite average, but in terms of selection, you can’t hardly go wrong here. I recommend it for first time Penang visitors who want a good cross-section of what the city has to offer when it comes to food.



TOH SOON CAFÉ

ADDRESS: LEBUH CAMPBELL, GEORGETOWN | OPENING HOURS: 8AM TO 6PM | GPS MAP: 5.418923, 100.332025


Toh Soon Cafe Georgetown Penang
TOH SOON CAFE, SET ON AN ALLEY BETWEEN TWO BUILDINGS

During one of those rare hours when we actually went out of our hotel in Georgetown (too hot!), we found this curious hawker place tucked in one of the narrow alleys of Lebuh Campbell. Toh Soon Café, a sign says. We excused our way in through the tight tables and found us a seat after waiting for a few minutes, this place looks quite popular with the locals, a good indication.

Toh Soon Cafe Georgetown Penang
HOW THEY TOAST IT HERE

We have absolutely no idea then what we would eat here, it’s just that the crowd attracted us and so did the legitness of its location. While waiting, we were quite shocked when we saw one of the staff toast loaves of white bread on the belly of a rusted drum filled with smoldering coals. What the heck did we get into!?

Toh Soon Cafe Georgetown Penang
PREPARING OUR KOPI AIS AT TOH SOON CAFE

Coffee and toasts, that’s the only thing Toh Soon Café offers, and just look at how they do their toasts! We were flabbergasted! Still, we ordered a batch of those metal drum-toasted bread, an egg, and a couple of kopi ais. It was perfect since we really weren’t too keen on anything heavy to eat.

Toh Soon Cafe Georgetown Penang
TOAST AND EGG

The toast was wonderfully crisp and was lathered with what seemed like peanut butter. It went perfectly well with our cold coffee. The egg, on the other hand, was a complete mystery. Plunked on a cup, it was very, very soft and looked barely cooked; we absolutely have no idea what to do with it.

Toh Soon Cafe Georgetown Penang
KOPI AIS FOR TAKE-AWAY

Looking around and taking cue from other customers, we saw them gulping the egg straight down. We’re no Rocky Balboa and we ain’t definitely doing that. What we did instead was add a pinch of salt and pepper to the gooey mess and dipped our crispy toasts on it. It may not be the proper way to eat it but it worked quite well for us!

 




2023 UPDATE

On our first post-pandemic trip, Penang was the first city outside the Philippines we visited. We now have a toddler with us, and he’s gonna be tagging along for the continuation of our Penang food trip.


NEW LANE HAWKER CENTRE

ADDRESS: LORONG BARU, GEORGETOWN | OPENING HOURS: 4PM TO 11PM, CLOSED WED | GPS MAP: 5.414807, 100.326520


New Lane Hawker Centre Georgetown Penang Malaysia
THE SCENE AT NEW LANE HAWKER CENTRE PENANG

Our first taste of post-pandemic Penang was at the New Lane Hawker Centre. The heavy crowd was a bit of a shock for us—we’re still trying to get used to mingling with people. The area is very much alive with locals and tourists on the hunt for the best Penang food.

New Lane Hawker Centre Georgetown Penang Malaysia
THE ROAD AS THE HAWKER CENTRE

New Lane Hawker Centre isn’t really a hawker center per se, it’s actually a street with stalls lining both sides of the road—tables and chairs are located on the parallel sidewalks and open areas. A local food vlogger, Steven Goh of 48 Holiao, herded us to the best stalls this side of Penang. It’s good that we actually have a food guide with us as we were quite overwhelmed with what to eat.

New Lane Hawker Centre Georgetown Penang Malaysia
OUR ORDERS

Soon, our table was filled with plates of char kway teow, hokkien mee mixed with lor mee, and cuttlefish kang kung.

Honey Glazed Roast Chicken New Lane Hawker Centre Georgetown Penang Malaysia
HONEY ROAST CHICKEN ~

Since most of what we ordered were on the spicy side, we separately ordered honey-glazed roast chicken and apom manis for Akira. The honey chicken was actually very good, that we ended up taking not a few bits from his plate. The apom manis, which is traditional Malaysian pancakes filled with either banana, sweet corn, or coconut. The kid chose banana and it was perfect for his, and our, dessert.

Char Kway Teow New Lane Hawker Centre Georgetown Penang Malaysia
CHAR KWAY TEOW ~ MYR 14.00

I absolutely love the char kway teow, which was served with crab meat, huge prawns, and has that signature charred taste achieved with cooking with a very hot wok. I heartily declared it as one of the best I’ve tried in Penang.

Char Kway Teow New Lane Hawker Centre Georgetown Penang Malaysia
OUR VERY FLAMBOYANT CHAR KWAY TEOW VENDOR

There’s actually a famous char kway teow stall at the New Lane Hawker Centre, the Charcoal Seafood Char Koay Teow which has been serving the dish for forty years, but we chose a different one since the line was just too long and the uncle manning the stall we bought our noodle from was very flamboyant. According to him, he’s also about forty years in the business, and if his noodle isn’t as good as that from the other stall, we need not pay, lol.

Hokkien Mee With Lor Mee New Lane Hawker Centre Georgetown Penang Malaysia
HOKKIEN MEE WITH LOR MEE ~ MYR 6.50

The hokkien mee, which is a dry egg noodle dish, was also savory good. But the one we tried was quite unique since it was was mixed with lor mee, which is a soup-based starch noodle dish. That’s two superb dishes, in one go. And again, it’s served by a stall who’s been in the business for fifty two years.

Cuttlefish Kang Kung New Lane Hawker Centre Georgetown Penang Malaysia
CUTTLEFISH KANG KUNG ~ MYR 20.00

The cuttlefish kang kung was a surprise for me, as I initially thought it won’t be any good. The cuttlefish actually tasted like tender squid and it went well with the blanched water spinach. The two are lathered with a sweet salty gravy, prawn paste, and sprinkled with crushed peanuts.



TANJUNG BUNGAH MPPP FOOD COURT & MARKET

ADDRESS: JALAN SUNGAI KELIAN, TANJUNG BUNGAH | OPENING HOURS: 7AM TO 12NN, DAILY | GPS MAP: 5.464207, 100.284935


Tanjung Bungah MPPP Food Court & Market Penang Malaysia
TANJUNG BUNGAH MARKET’S HAWKER CENTRE

Another place I frequented during our recent visit was the hawker center at the Tanjung Bungah Market. I usually drop by the area early in the morning for my daily walk. The market itself is quite interesting, so much varieties of noodles and dimsums. I would’ve bought heaps, but it would’ve been hard to bring it with us back home, us being on just the first leg of our trip.

Roti Canai Tanjung Bungah MPPP Food Court & Market Penang Malaysia Roti Canai Tanjung Bungah MPPP Food Court & Market Penang Malaysia
MY DAILY FIX OF ROTI CANAI ~ MYR 1.50

Since I’m supposed to be exercising to lose weight, hence my morning walk, I usually just limit my meal at the Tanjung Bungah MPPP Food Court to a couple of roti canai—which is quite good especially with a glass of kopi ais.

Noodles Tanjung Bungah Market Penang Malaysia Dimsums Tanjung Bungah Market Penang Malaysia
FOOD BEING SOLD AT THE WET MARKET PROPER

I do longingly look at folks forking their mee goreng and char kway teow while I dunk my crispy-soft roti on curry and chick pea gravies. Also, I heard that there’s a stall hawking a really good hokkien prawn mee here. Pfttt, next time.



KANNAAS BAMBOO MASALLA BRIYANI RESTAURANT

ADDRESS: LEBUH CHINA, GEORGETOWN | OPENING HOURS: 9AM TO 10:30PM, DAILY | GPS MAP: 5.418218, 100.339367


Kannaas Bamboo Masalla Briyani Restaurant Georgetown Penang Malaysia Kannaas Bamboo Masalla Briyani Restaurant Georgetown Penang Malaysia
AT THE KANNAAS BAMBOO MASALLA BRIYANI RESTAURANT

Looking for a place to sit while our son naps the afternoon away as we explore Georgetown, we chanced upon Kannaas Bamboo Masalla Briyani Restaurant at Penang’s Little India area. Of course, we’re not wasting the opportunity to eat while the kid sleeps.

Mee Goreng Chapatti Kannaas Bamboo Masalla Briyani Restaurant Georgetown Penang Malaysia
MEE GORENG AYAM MYR 8.50, CHAPATTI SET MYR 3.00, KOPI AIS MYR 2.30, TEH TARIK MYR 2.30

While their specialty is bamboo masala biryani, we ignored it and ordered our favorite plate of mee goreng ayam. We mistakenly thought it would come with a fried chicken on the side. Instead, the ayam was chopped and was mixed with the noodles, bones and all—making for a very hard to eat noodle dish as we kept on getting bits of bone with every forkful. Nevertheless, it was still very very good and very very spicy.

Two orders of their chapatti set and a lovely cold pair of kopi ais and teh tarik completed our meal.



DUCK BLOOD CURRY MEE RESTAURANT

ADDRESS: 223B JALAN BURMA, GEORGETOWN | OPENING HOURS: 12NN TO 10PM, CLOSED THU | GPS MAP: 5.423771, 100.321023


Duck Blood Curry Mee Restaurant Georgetown Penang Malaysia
OUR SPREAD

We mentioned to Steve that we like curry mee, and he immediately scheduled an eat-a-thon at one of the best curry mee restaurants in Penang, the Duck Blood Curry Mee Restaurant. It was walking distance from The George where we were staying, so to burn a few calories in reserve for what’s ahead, we walked.

Duck Blood Curry Mee Restaurant Georgetown Penang Malaysia
DUCK BLOOD CURRY MEE RESTAURANT IN GEORGETOWN PENANG

The restaurant is simple and unassuming but their dishes are some of the best I’ve had in Penang. Well, they do have a Michelin Bib Gourmand plaque on their wall which are awarded to superb restaurants with affordable price tags.

Pork Intestine Congee Duck Blood Curry Mee Restaurant Georgetown Penang Malaysia Roasted Pork Duck Blood Curry Mee Restaurant Georgetown Penang Malaysia
PORK INTESTINE CONGEE ~ MYR 11.00 | ROASTED PORK ~ MYR 12.50

The first on our table was the pork intestine congee. The porridge was fine and creamy with the chopped green onions adding a bit of zest to the dish, but the star of the show, really, was the really crispy and savory pork intestine. It also went really well with the roasted pork—the crispy skin on that one was just wow.

Curry Mee Duck Blood Curry Mee Restaurant Georgetown Penang Malaysia Century Egg Duck Blood Curry Mee Restaurant Georgetown Penang Malaysia
CURRY MEE ~ MYR 9.00 (BIG) | PRESERVED EGG ~ MYR 3.00

A plate of Hainanese chicken, bean sprouts, and bowls of curry mee soon followed.

Indeed, the curry mee was really delicious. Along with what seems like flat rice noodles, it has shrimps, tofu, gizzards, and, of course, duck blood—this is where the restaurant got its name. The bean sprouts were a good palate cleanser—the curry mee was very spicy. As for the Hainanese chicken, well, I’m really not a fan of this dish, but my companions quite liked it.

Special Dry Curry Mee Duck Blood Curry Mee Restaurant Georgetown Penang Malaysia
SPECIAL DRY CURRY MEE ~ NOT ON THE MENU

Next on the table was a plate of preserved egg and a special dry curry mee—this last one was not on the menu and was given to us on the house for us to try. The preserved egg or century egg, was really tasty, in fact, it was too delicious that you can only consume a slice at a time. The special dry curry mee was as good as its soupy counterpart, but it was extremely spicy. I mean, I like spicy, but this is probably the spiciest noodle dish I’ve ever tried.

 

Backpacking With A Kid 2023




 
• BOOK DISCOUNTED TOURS IN PENANG •

You Might Also Like

2 comments