Penang New Lane Hawker Center

Penang, Malaysia, is said to be a food paradise, especially for its hawker food.  New Lane Hawker Center, is ranked as one of the must-visit places in a Penang itinerary.

New Lane Hawker Center is just a short walk from Komtar, the tallest building in Penang.  Walk along Jalan Macalister, then soon you will be there.  You can't miss it, the huge mural on the wall of 118 Hotel is menacingly prominent.  Just take note, New Lane is its English name, while its Malay name is Jalan Baru.  Jalan means road, street, while Baru means new, that's why in English it is called New Lane. The road signs in Penang are all in Malay, because we are in Malaysia!

For first time visitors, it is a bit daunting to figure out how things work.  Basically you will see lots of chairs and tables.  They all belong to the drinks stall.  You can sit anywhere, just order a drink, then you get the 'right' to a table.  After that, you just go around to order your food from the street hawkers.  Some will deliver the food to you, some are just self-served.  

My first option was Chee Cheong Fun.  Haha...my Cantonese nature at work again.  I just can't resist Chee Cheong Fun.

Chee Cheong Fun, RM4.50

The Chee Cheong Fun is hand-made, unlike most in Singapore, which are factory mass manufactured.  The layers are thinner, the size is smaller, but the fragrance of the rice that it is made from is stronger.  Unique in Penang Chee Cheong Fun is their sauce.  Do you see that black sauce?  It is seafood sauce, made from some prawn paste.  As such, it has a bit of fishy smell, very much an acquired taste.  Using seafood sauce with Chee Cheong Fun is unique to Penang.

Char Koay Teow Stall

One of Penang's famous dishes is Char Koay Teow.  It is the Hokkien version of Cantonese Hor Fun (河粉).  If you have not tried any Char Koay Teow in Penang, you can't be considered to have been to Penang.  I chose to order from this uncle's stall.  There was a long queue there.  Locals and tourists alike were queuing up for his Koay Teow.

Satay Stall

The wait was long, about 20 minutes, and the queue was just next to a satay stall, with all that smoke and fire from the satay stall, man....

While waiting, I observed how the uncle cooks the Koay Teow.  He will pour plenty of oil into the wok, heat it up, then put in some prawns.  Once the prawns are done, scoop them up and put them aside.  Next, bean sprouts, koay teow, egg and others.  What surprised me most was he pour in 3 spoonful of soy sauce!  I was like: My God, it is gonna be super salty!  Anyway, this stall's popularity comes from the fact that the uncle fries his koay teow using charcoal fire, not your usual gas.

Char Koay Teow, RM5.00

Some food blogs recommends porridge from this place, but I didn't get the chance to try it.  While there, I also saw many locals order roasts, chicken wings, etc.  They looked good too, maybe next time I can give it a try.

New Lane is a hawker center to its truest form.  There is no roof to shelter the hawkers and patrons alike from sun or rain.  The food stalls are literally on the road side.  When you walk around, don't be surprised cars, motorbikes pass by frequently.  Don't forget it is a functional motorway.  Hot exhaust from the vehicles, hot air from the hot weather, and the smoke from the satay stall, and charcoal fire, wow, it was quite an experience.

Ah Soon Kor Hokkien Mee Penang

Ah Soon Kor Hokkien Mee is located at a coffee shop on the corner of Lebuh Carnavon in Georgetown.

If you walk along Lebuh Carnavon, you will never miss it, as it probably is the only shop that is open so early in the morning (7.50AM).  There are a few stalls, selling Lor Mee, Ho Fun, etc.  There is only one stall selling Hokkien Mee.  There is no name at the stall, how did I know it is called Ah Soon Kor Hokkien Mee?  Actually I don't know, at least not known for sure.  According to "Georgetown Treasure Hunting Map" that we got from the airport, the one at this corner is the Ah Soon Kor Hokkien Mee!  Haha...get used to it.  Nothing is for sure in Malaysia.

The coffee shop setting is very old-fashioned and layback.  I suspect even time runs slower here.  Nobody seemed to be in a hurry.

I ordered the big portion (RM5.00), and added pork ribs (RM3.00).  The presentation is very normal, but the first sip of prawn soup blew me away.  Wow...it was very sweet, not by adding sugar though. I always wonder how they prepare the soup.  I think they remove the head and shell of the prawns, then fried the heads & shells.  After that, add water and pig big bones to cook the soup.  It takes hours for the soup to be ready.  In Singapore, they usually use big prawns, which give very good presentation.  Here in Penang, it seems they like to use small prawns.  There are plenty of small prawns from the nearby fishing ports.  I still remember when I visited my friend's home, a fishing village in Taiping, there was a small mountain of small prawns when the fishing boats came back in the morning.

Using the freshest small prawns may be their secret to cooking up the best prawn noodle soup in town!  I would say this is the best Hokkien Mee I have ever had so far.  It had that original taste from the ingredients, not from any artificial flavoring.  Good!

We had our Hokkien Mee for breakfast at around 8am.  Then later when we passed by again at 11am, the stall was already closed.  Noir!  If you wanna try this stall, please be early:-)

Penang Famous Teochew Chendul

If you have never tried the Famous Teochew Chendul on Penang Road, Georgetown, Penang, then you can't claim to have been to Penang!  Ok, that Teochew Chendul is that famous.

What is Chendul in the first place?  Chendul, also spelt as Cendol, or Chendol, is a very common dessert in South East Asia.  Basically you have some shaved ice, plus red bean, palm sugar syrup, and some green-colored jelly made from sago.  Last but not least, coconut milk.

Our famous Teochew Chendul stall is nothing but a vending cart located in a side alley along Penang Road (Jalan Penang) in Georgetown.  Somehow you will not miss it, as there is always a queue there. Tourists and locals, money in hand, waiting to get their favorite Chendul.  There is a grand total of one and only person who handles the preparation of food and cashier duties.  No wonder there is always a queue!

One bowl costs you RM2.70, that is around S$0.90, pretty cheap.  For take-away, it is more expensive at RM3.20, still affordable.

There are no place for you sit around the vending cart, but if you walk inside the alley a bit, there are many shop houses there, all of them belong to the owner of the Chendul stall, so you can sit anywhere in any of the shop houses.

I am not an expert on Chendul, but still I have tried many different Chendul over the years, and I also tried Chendul once in Penang.  I was wondering how good this Chendul will taste.  Would it be a disappointment?  With many questions marks in mind, I took a spoonful.  Wow...I was quite surprised.  I think the secret is in their coconut milk.  The fragrance of the coconut milk lingers in your mouth, teasing your taste buds; ascends to your nose, stimulating your smell sensors.

I must say it doesn't disappoint.  It is the best Chendul that I have ever had.  You can easily find Chendul elsewhere, but somehow they lack of the taste and sensation.  The ingredients may be the same but just somehow there is some difference.  Probably that explains why secret recipes are so valuable in the world of food.