Midnight disciple of the Ikan Bakar man

Some Penangites pop cili padi like kacang puteh .

We go for our fix after midnight at Song River Cafe . Strange timing right ? Not really when you check out how many disciples are willing to make a beeline here and wait with the patience of a saint just to pay homage to this fiendish dish .

The rojak fellow only opens after 9pm

Update :  If there are too many customers or you have arrived very late , kindly avoid . The taste and hygiene standards will be vastly different . This hawker can only handle a small queue . If you must , come just as they are about to open. Otherwise even the sauce will taste watered down and many ingredients will be compromised or omitted .

There's a difference between food served on the mainland and Penang island . 

On the mainland , rojak could come skewered like below .

Some of the ingredients used on the island are ( L-R ) cuttlefish that's been presoaked in alkaline water , very sour young mango , cucumber with skin on ,turnip , cut cruellers , pineapple , gooseberry ( not in the picture ) the obligatory helping of hae ko , a black fermented shrimp paste mixed with sugar, lime skin , pounded chillies  and fine roasted peanuts to top it off  .

Italiannies - Gurney Paragon

Our feast resembled the last supper. 
While I wouldn't say that this restaurant is one of the cosiest places I've been to , what I can vouch for is that the food is indeed so hearty , you'd never guess that this was part of a chain outlet.

 

Everyone who's been here have been raving about their pastas and I'm afraid I have to agree with them.

No hype, the carbonara is really, really good with generous portions of bacon bits and enough cheesy goodness to burst that zipper .

Mee Rebus and Pasembor Edgecumbe Road

Mee Rebus is not one of my favourite dishes , and yet I found myself raving stark mad, hopelessly hooked over the one sold here.


 

" Neh, this is the beef right ? " ( it's got an awesome smoked flavour to it lemme tell you )

" What style is it cooked in ? "

His reply tells me it's a Top Secret recipe.So forget it, his trap is shut.

One bite of the squid and all the fibres unravel. Omg, damn addictive. Damn, damn addictive.

Set Lunch at Rakuzen

If you think you know what ikan kembung or mackerel should taste like, then you should really try out the grilled Japanese version . The last time I had something as good as this, was many, many years ago in Baiyoke Bangkok ( don't take my word for it, it's different there today , gone downhill since )

The japs call it Saba, but as you know, these waters in Southeast Asia are where the best tasting ones thrive.

Couple that with skillful cooking method and walla...what you get is a fantastically creamy, tender, lightly crisp, juicy piece that can take you to heaven.

Taste Better - Gurney Paragon Mall



You don't need to worry about durians being off season ever again

Just go get your fix from this kiosk called Taste Better at Paragon or Queensbay. Both outlets in Penang by the way, are doing a roaring trade. Yup, it's a hit in Penang !

Rakuzen - Gurney Paragon Mall

Japanese cuisine fans were super excited when the Super Dining group, finally made it's entry up north.

Decided to wait it out, to allow things to settle down a bit.

So they placed us here. In this chic looking basel wood section which allows you to peek at other diners, now and then. Was bothered by the temperamental air conditioning. One minute it's cool and the next minute a little stuffy. Maybe it's because we're near the glass kitchen that's just next to the main entrance.

Kim & Gary - watermelon birthday

Who bats an eyelid over a birthday cake these days ?

But just imagine the look of surprise, should this be brought to the table instead .

Exclusively extended to cardmembers celebrating their special day , a minimum of four paying diners as well as a preset spending amount are required, before you can go ahead and request this free gift . And for good reason because the contents seem to be bottomless !

Celebrity Chef Zam at Sam's Deli

Never expected to see Chef Zamzani at all, but there he was in the flesh, overseeing the smooth running of the outlet on opening day.
 

 

Basically what does this mean ? It means, a US trained, celebrity chef, weaving his magic touch so that teatime treats , even breakfastses, reach a whole new level of deliciousness !
Like this Bristot latte for example. Comes with a morsel of biscotti on the side, though not in pic. Oh nice...almost floated to heaven !

Bee Won Korean Food - Just Food, Gurney Paragon Mall

July 2014 :

Did many of you come stare at them or take their pictures ? Do note down, that if you come here now expecting to see this family, well, you will only see some Bangla staff. Ngeh ngeh ngeh

..............
Tucked away in the upper floors, a real Korean family is running a little stall within the Just Food foodcourt !

No matter how busy they were with back to back orders ,the pretty miss is sooooo polite and sweet, she can make your heart melt. Don't know how she does it, but her hair stays absolutely perfect from morning to night.
She's really pretty by the way .

Set Lunch at Sushi Tei, Penang

Sushi Tei has everything going for it.

Exciting open sushi kitchen, classy looking interior accentuated by massive mirrors and panels, beautiful food, great lighting .

But my goodness, I sincerely hope someone from their Singaporean head office reads this review of mine, because their local ushers and local floor staff have got a huge attitude problem. They absolutely hate interacting with customers and are reluctant to help. 

Luckily I sat in the area where foreign staff were assigned to. Now, these foreigners, on the other hand, were sincerely welcoming and incredibly nice .

Seoul Garden Korean Restaurant,Sunrise Tower (NH)

If you've been to Korea before, you'll know how massively good their street food , as compared to their restaurant fare , is.

But airfare costs good money, so whenever a craving for Kimchi Jeon ($18 ) or kimchi pancake, pops up, I come here.

The obligatory spread of condiments( lobak sweet pickle, small ikan bilis, bean sauce, taugeh, watercress,etc) and salad leaves.

Kimchi is as expected, of any respectable Korean run restaurant.

Still incomparable to my former flatmate, Robert's Korean wife's recipe ( her kimchi is so addictive, it is to die for !!!)

Ah yes, I have had some good fortune to meet such people in the course of my life.

Seoul Garden is a specialist when it comes to spicy korean soups .

Delightfully teeming with full bodied, rich and very satisfying flavours

Tong Pak Fu - what boycott ? ( NH )

Whose bright idea was it to boycott the chain ?

Because nobody in Penang is listening

Durian Snow ice with grass jelly .

Features small pieces of cornflakes, a few pieces of exploding pearl balls, tiny chopped fruit, grass jelly and most important of all, D24 durian flavour hidden within a soft cloud of shaved ice !

Xuan Xin Restaurant - Gurney Plaza ( NH )

Every dish here, bears a sticker with the name, of the respective Master who concocted it.
Most dishes start off nicely, only to turn unbearable before you're even halfway through .

Lotus root fried with mok yee, snowpeas and carrots. Although everything had a nice crunchy texture , it was a sad case of taste overload.
Too much wine, fermented red bean overdose.

3 quarters left uneaten.

So many rude hawkers at Gurney Drive

26th October - Public Holiday.... yet I suffered from temporary amnesia when I suggested that we eat here tonight.

As we walked from Gurney Plaza towards the hawker centre, it became apparent that I had chosen the worst possible time to eat .
Scream ! Look at the crowd ! All I saw was a sea of heads bobbing up and down, ahead of me. Still we dove in.

Passing the first koay teow thng stall, I witnessed a drink stall hawker forcing a 20 something non customer, off a chair that he said belonged to him. Where did he expect him to sit ? He didn't care if he had to stand eating. Oh boy.

Weaved our way out of this mad sector and finally found a space somewhere in front of  Pasembor stall in front of G.P.Soon Rojak ( my fav) . Only problem was, the table was laden with every kind of dish, bowl and utensil which remained uncleared.

A 'looking' match began between us and the drink hawker next door to the pasembor. After a while it became obvious that they DID NOT want to clear the table for us and we had to do it ourselves. Giving up, we used a tissue to wipe the surface clean .

While my partner,  joined the queue at Stall no 71 (nice ckt for $5 with 3 huge prawns ), the owner (male) finally came over and showed me the menu.
Still seething over the 'waiting game' which I had lost earlier, I told him I didn't want to order. It was then he unleashed his barrageful of nonsense in Mandarin ( 3 quarter of which was lost on me but not the meaning ).

"You mean after having to clear the table FOR YOU, you now want me to place an order ??? LATER ! I'm waiting for someone to return "

He backed off leaving the menu behind on my table. I must have been loud as the table of Ah Bengs across me had begun grinning, after seeing our 'little exchange' as though I was some Ah Cher about to parang him in half and they were just waiting for action to unfold or tables to topple . Whatever.

Undettered by the promise of fat profit, this time he sent his wife in to eyeball me. I swear she looked deep into my iris to come to some sort of analysis.
" Wait ..." I told her. She swiped the menu. Someone's pissed..... No, She didn't take it out on me since her hubby probably warned her about my ' nice mood ' . Probably she saw the growl in my eyes . Instead, she took it out on a new arrival in front of G.P.Soon.

" Are you ordering any drinks " she asked them . I didn't hear their reply but I soon heard her banging plastic chairs she had pulled from them to stack up . She even went to the extreme extent of folding up the table,right under their noses as they looked on in shock .
Wow....real gangsta this woman. Repulsive behaviour.

It was only later, that I discovered that they had the audacity to compell me to order drinks, even though the table I was sitting on, belonged to the Pasembor stall ....not them. While that explains why they refused to clear the table at the time, it's certainly no excuse for them to force drinks down our throat.

So how'd I not get the short end of the stick ?
First of all , I was sitting on another person's table.But most important of all, when in Penang, you have to show some balls and give a loud rebuff with a good measure of outrage thrown in.
It's perfectly acceptable to show and sound ( don't bang, don't get physical, just use verbal)  your displeasure publicly , especially to hawkers or traders who like to shortchange or ill treat their customers.
Or else you will be clearly bullied like that family and man above.

Location : Gurney Drive Hawker Centre

Chowtime : night

Golden Gate Steamboat ( NH )

This restaurant has been around for some years already.

Some people having been patronising it from their childhood days

It's housed in a grand old bungalow....

T.G.I.Fridays ( PF )

How to spend what the courier brought in. 



Head here

Eng Lee Grilled fish stall- Song River cafe ( PF )

This stall is actually more reknowned for whipping up the most spicy small shellfish (lala) on Penang island, but you have to come later due to some agreement he has with another stall owner not to sell this bestseller earlier

Not to worry, his ikan bakar is just as crazily addictive.
It's nicely charred, tender, moist,sweey and spicy with tons of garlic slices encased in banana leaf.

The more you eat, the more water you'll need,yet you just can't stop.

Know what I mean?

Morganfield's Feast Platter, Gurney Paragon ( NH )

Hard luck trying to land a table here, if you walk in without reservations .

As opposed to a diner's corner , this place is by and by a drinker's heaven.

Very nice for slouching around on a high stool and getting hit on even .

Max Gourmet,Gurney Plaza ( NH )

Take Note : This Outlet Is No Longer In Operation


Although Max Gourmet has been around for some time already, I'm trying it out for the first time today.

At first we sit outside with the crowd, but then I spy some box seats inside, so we shift inwards.