BEYOND KL: PENANG / IPOH (Lorong Selamat + Heng Huat / Hai Boey Seafood / Lebuh Keng Kwee / KhunThai / Ong Cheng Huat Seafood / Lebuh Carnavon / Line Clear Nasi Kandar / Ming Court + Funny Mountain

SG foodie went on a food trail as you can obviously see... almost immediately after returning from the East Coast of Malaysia, SG foodie went home to Singapore (more of that in the upcoming post) and upon returning to KL, SG foodie was again packing for her annual pilgrimage to Penang (driving pass Ipoh).


We stayed at the newly-renovated Equatorial Penang (superb hotel if you drive as the location is far from almost everything although the hotel provides shuttle services to some places) and then moved to Traders Hotel (great location, walking distance to the Heritage Trail and good food, but the hotel and its furnishing are a bit dated and the rooms may face a construction site and the workers can literally look into your room if your curtains are not drawn).


You may wish to try some of the following places if you're planning a trip to Penang:

HAI BOEY SEAFOOD, BAYAN LEPAS: MUST TRY!

Before & After (Crocodile's Tail)

Wash Basin

A Penang friend recommended this place and the dishes we tried include: Stewed Crocodile's Tail, Butter Mantis Prawn, Claypot Grouper Fish, Beancurd with Mushrooms, Boiled sotong served with rojak sauce and a bottle of Umbra Juice.SG foodie definitely recommends the Crocodile's Tail which although sounds quite gross, was actually cooked in a fantastic stew and tasted like an oily fish such as cod. The Butter Mantis Prawn was this giant mantis prawn that was deep-fried in butter, making it really good for kids of all ages (3-103!) and the Claypot Grouper Fish was just as delicious. We ordered a fried eggplant/brinjal which unfortunately was sold out and hence replaced the order with the Boiled Sotong served with rojak sauce. SG foodie says this dish is for Sotong lovers otherwise nothing spectacular. Skip the beancurd with mushrooms too, a pretty ordinary dish. Umbra/Kedongdong juice comes in a bottle here for those like SG foodie who enjoys this tangy fruit that tastes like green, sour mangoes. Total bill for all these food came up to RM 180 for 4 persons, pretty okay price for seafood.The ambience of the place is great since it's situated by the beach with fish tanks containing live seafood that are taken out when you make your orders. SG foodie loved the handwash sinks which was a fish tank with fishes swimming around as you wash your hands.



KHUN THAI, TELUK KUMBAR - DEFINITE MUST TRY!

Apparently Khun Thai has branches in KL too but this is the 1st time that SG foodie has tried Khun Thai. Situated right next to the sea, you can choose to sit right by the beach which is why when you walk into the restaurant, you wonder why it looks so empty because everyone walks right onto the beach instead. By the way, this restaurant is located next to Hai Boey Seafood.We kinda over-ordered with Miang Kam, Mixed seafood Otak, Belachan Fried Rice with sliced pork, Kangkong Tempura, Tom Yum Red Soup and Prawn Tanghoon. The Miang Kam is quite a popular dish at amany Thai restaurants. Absolutely love the rest of the dishes on our order though. K2 who hates vegetables liked the Kangkong Tempura and SG foodie agrees it was really tasty! SG foodie adored the tangy, spicy yet sweet tomyum soup that even K1 and K2 tried and liked. The Belachan fried rice was flavourful as was the pork slices that came with it. SG foodie was licking the very last coconut-laden mixed seafood otak/fish-paste as it was just oh-so-delicious! By the time, she got to the Prawn tanghoon, she didn't quite have space for the lovely dish but it was still good. SG foodie is gonna seek out the KL branches of this place when she gets hit by a Thai food craving.


ONG CHENG HUAT SEAFOOD, BAGAN LALLANG, BUTTERWORTH - DEFINITE MUST TRY!

 Located in Butterworth, which is the mainland rather than on Penang Island, this is one place that you certainly need help getting to as the restaurant is located within a kampung/village area but you can WAZE it quite easily and get navigation assistance (Thank God for technology!). There are rather standard items on their menu. SG foodie got the fried pigeons, fried beehoon, steamed fish-head, steamed kempar (big la-la) and po-piah (fried prawn crackers). The steamed kempar is good for those who like shellfish but didn't quite appeal to SG foodie although she did like the soupy-sauce that came with it that had that Chinese white wine taste. SG foodie really like the fish head with another soupy-sauce that was more ginger-garlic based and the fried pigeons. The po-piah is something different and crunchy to the last bit.The fried bee hoon is really really good too though it was just plain fried beehoon but it wasn't too dry nor soggy. Total bill for 4 persons including a big bottle (1.5l) of Luo Han Guo drink came up to about RM125, very reasonable.


THE MUGSHOT CAFE/ RAINFOREST BAKERY, LEBUH CHULIA

 SG foodie took a Heritage Trail walk around Penang Island and came upon The Mugshot Cafe, right next to Rainforest Bakery (they both belong to the same owners). Apparently this cafe is popular for its homemade yogurt that comes at about RM10 per container, pretty steep for just yogurt and condiments but worth a try. SG foodie ordered a Jackfuit Gula Melaka yogurt and the cafe recommended Walnut-Raisins yogurt (apparently a best-seller?), a Bacon and Egg Bagel (bagels and other breads can be bought from Rainforest Bakery) and a double shot espresso. SG foodie wouldn't mind a 2nd serving of the Jackfruit Gula Melaka yogurt which was smooth and the contrast of sweet and sour with the jackfruit and gula melaka really hit the right spot; But not so much the Walnut-Raisin yogurt where the texture was rough and really sourish even with the condiments. Took a long while before the bagel arrived and another long wait before the coffee appeared but then the cafe was really crowded and even we had to share a table that is really old school carpentry. But while you're waiting, enjoy taking a mugshot of your own with height measurements at the back too and take a rest from all the walking you will be doing around town.


LORONG SELAMAT + HENG HUAT - NOT AS GOOD AS BEFORE

Previous pilgrimage to Penang always ends up with many plates of Char Kway Teow (CKT) from Heng Huat and Ice Kacang with Peanut Butter ice cream from the Lorong Selamat coffeeshop just a short distance away and other accompanying street foods like kangkong with cuttlefish drenched in sweet rojak sauce and Hokkien Mee (which is prawn noodle soup in Penang. Note this is unlike the Singapore's Hokkien Mee [fried prawn yellow noodles with thick beehoon] or the KL's Hokkien Mee  [fried broad yellow noodles with pork lard and black soy sauce]). The Hokkien Mee is not fantastic but a filler while you wait for other food to arrive. This trip was no different where we would go to Heng Huat for CKT then walk to the coffeeshop to have other food. Except that SG foodie felt the Heng Huat Char Kway Teow, the main star of this place has lost its "wok-hei" somehow, it just wasn't as tasty as before and this time the CKT certainly lacked salt too... and for RM8 per plate you certainly expect the CKT to taste great (surprisingly even the Lorong Selamat coffeeshop CKT stall charges RM8 per plate). Our ice kacang came with Vanilla ice cream instead this time though we asked for peanut butter so it wasn't a very satisfying trip.

LEBUH KENG KWEE (CHENDOL, ASSAM LAKSA) - MUST TRY!

This stall is extremely popular for its chendol and at RM2 per bowl, it's a pretty good deal. Only gripe is SG foodie prefers the coconut to be less diluted and more creamy though she knows some people like it the way this stall serves it. There always seem to be a queue at this stall which is in a small lane that isn't quite so easy to find but it's around the KOMTAR area. We saw some cars drove up to the stall and order takeaways too which is quite an interesting local sight drive-through concept. While you sit and wait for your Chendol to be served, try the Penang Assam Laksa - it's good with enough sour and sweet, sardines and shredded cucumber, pineapples and chillies.



LEBUH CARNAVON - PING HOOI COFFEESHOP (TIGER CHAR KWAY TEOW, HOKKIEN MEE SOUP, CURRY MEE) - DEFINITE MUST TRY!

Curry Mee

Tiger Char Kway Teow

Hokkien Mee

SG foodie has been hearing talks about Tiger CKT and managed to find this place this trip. And of course when you're in a coffeeshop and on a food trip, you certainly should order other food that are served within the same shop. So Hokkien Mee and Curry Mee were added to the buffet spread on our table. We wanted to order Lor Mee but it was sold out at 11am (must be good?). SG foodie highly recommends this place as the Tiger CKT (RM4.50 for small, RM5.50 for big) is absolutely saliva-drippingly delicious! SG foodie understands that they use salted duck eggs to fry the CKT here hence the extra boost in flavour. Even the Hokkien Mee here was great, the rich prawn soup just hit the right spot. The Penang Curry Mee is the non-coconut-rich type that has its own uniqueness to it. Try also their Milo Cham (Milo with Coffee), the kopitiam version of Mocha. This is one place SG foodie will certainly return to on her next pilgrimage to Penang.

LEBUH CARNARVON - PITT STREET KWAY TEOW TNG - AVERAGE
 Penang being Hokkien-speaking call this Kway Teow Tng (broad rice noodles in soup) while in KL it would be called Hor Fun Tong. Either way, this shop was supposed to be good so we went to try it. This is just 2 doors away from Ping Hooi by the way so you can order CKT too if you want. On top of jus Kway Teow Tng, the shop serves up their handmade pork fillet in soups, handmade fishballs and pork intestines. There also a side shop selling egg tarts and such but it was sold out by the time SG foodie got there. SG foodie liked the pork fillets which was soft and flavourful and the handmade fishballs were different in that it is not the bouncy or chewy but the soft in texture; butSG foodie didn't think much about the kway teow tng, the focus of the shop as the soup wasn't as rich as SG foodie would have preferred. There must be a better Kway Teow Tng somewhere else in Penang.


LINE CLEAR NASI KANDA, PENANG ROAD - DEFINITE MUST TRY!

 

 When SG foodie gets a craving for curries when she's in KL, she tends to visit Original Kayu for her fix of Nasi Kandar; Nasi Kandar is popular in Penang too and SG foodie visited Line Clear this time. If you drive, you have to look for the street behind this restaurant and walk in through the back instead. Follow the signs around the area that directs you to the correct car park that leads straight into the back of the shop. It's relatively clean but we did see some rats in the drains nearby... well you do learn to ignore the rats in back lanes after a while (as long as they don't come close!). There are plenty of choices at Line Clear. You choose your rice, white/briyani then the dishes that will be scooped on top of the rice. Choosing Nasi Briyani rice instead of the normal white rice and accompanied by chicken curry, mutton curry, mutton korma, fried sotong telur, this place is a definite must try if just for its soft, fluffy briyani rice alone. SG foodie loved the mutton curry and chicken curry, both on different curry bases while K1 & K2 loved the non-spicy mutton korma. Have a cup of Teh Tarik with your Nasi Kandar for a true Malaysian meal. This is one place SG foodie will be returning to again and again.

IPOH
If you're driving from Singapore/KL to Penang, you'll certainly have to pass through Ipoh. If you choose to enter Ipoh for some food, try some of these must-have favourites that SG foodie frequent whenever she's there. (Note that there are a lot of other good food in Ipoh that SG foodie visit like Ipoh Chicken Rice, Wantan Mee, etc., that will appear in another post soon!)

MING COURT DIM SUM

Most people will tell you Foh San is the most popular dim sum place in Ipoh but having tried Foh San, Yoke Fook Moon and Ming Court a few times now (these 3 dim sum places are jammed-packed on weekends and festivals/holidays), SG foodie's preference is still for Ming Court where the dim sums are bite-sized and in small crates. In terns of texture and flavours, Ming Court surpasses all especially in their traditional dim sums such as Siu Mai, Har Gow. DH can slurp up 3-4 crates of the steamed fishballs on his own as it is soft and smooth while K2 devoured about 3 crates of Siu Mai alone.


FUNNY MOUNTAIN SOY BEAN

 Soy bean drink and Soy beancurd (Tau Huay [Hokkien] / Tau Fu Fah [Cantonese]) is quite common in Singapore and Malaysia. But you haven't tried Soy beancurd until you've tried the one at Funny Mountain (Kei Fung). The smooth and soft Tau Huay is unlike any other even the best that we find in Singapore (Lao Ban, Old Airport Road, etc). AND here it cost RM 1 for a small bowl of Tau Huay. The queue (both human and cars) here is almost always long... locals queue in their cars waiting to be served Tau Huay that they can eat in the car. SG foodie prefers to park and walk to the shop to join the queue. Most people will consume on the spot plus buy some to takeaway. There are other soy bean shops around the area but none with a queue like that found at Funny Mountain. No funny business this.