Pausing for Gluttony

Jyn got a couple of free nights stay in one of the Hydro Hotel, Penang.
I had dinner on Friday night, so Lisa, Jyn & I left KL at about 7am on Sat morning. Without Starbucks. GROAN.


Stopped in Pun Chun Restaurant in Bidor for lunch - didn't have a good time. Don't know why we still bother going back to that old place since the food hasn't been remarkable in a few years now. I mean - both Jyn & I have heard of recommendations of other places to eat, but we always seem to end up going back there. Even independent of each other. I have NO clue why! There's some sort of hypnotic power about it, I guess... Something they put in the food???

Anyhoo... we rock up to Penang at about 11am, and head straight for the hotel. The hotel is pleasant enough - all the amenities, basic TV (that we never used), lights, a/c worked, comfortable bed, etc. Parking was a bit tough - the ramps in the car park were a bit narrow.

Dad called me just as we were pulling into the carpark & asked us if we had just pulled into the carpark. Dad was stalking us??!! *laugh* he had seen the car from the room balcony.

Went up, hugged & chatted with parents, then exited to Shing Kheang Aun Nonya Restaurant in Lorong Chulia for lunch. The restaurant is a smallish concern - only 6 tables downstairs and another 6 upstairs. This is a good thing, because it seems to be run only by 4 people. There was only one (extremely harried and overworked) old lady running the entire upstairs portion. Someone came up to help her clear tables & serve drinks only ONCE in the 1.5 hours we were there, and the man wasn't there long!

The food was good though! We had:
Gulai Tau Teh (Nonya Curry Fish) - one of my favourite fish - fish was very fresh. The curry was lightly spicy & so aromatic that I was DRINKING it!

Assam Heh (Tamarind Prawns) - nonya style, it's fried dry, with no sauce. The prawns were of a decent size, and the burnt tamarind coat was SO inviting. Nice...

Kiam Chai Ak (Preserved Vege Duck soup) - a soothing, lightly sour soup, which I don't normally go for. However, there was a LOT of duck in it & the soup was yum!

Tau Yew Keh (Chicken in Soy Sauce) - chicken marinated in Dark & Light Soy Sauce (and i think I tasted garlic + star anise) then fried. No sauce.

Bang Kwang Char (Stewed Jicama & Carrots) - I've had better. They added coriander into the mix, which changed the taste too much for my liking. I love the traditional dish. Came with lettuce leaves for wrapping.

After lunch, mum & dad went shopping at some plant fair, then headed home. The 2 sisters took an afternoon nap (we had been awake by 6, after all, and it was a long drive). I opted for a lonnngggg, hot, bubble bath with my book. Then I adjourned to the balcony, and continued to read. The balcony had a couple of patio chairs and a table, and offered a glimpse of the sea. It was comfortably warm, and the breeze gently wafted sea-laden air into my face. HEAVEN.

Dinner was at Heng Kee Cafe - a hawker center on the corner of McNair and Presgrave Streets. Fried Koey Teow with Chinese Sausage and Duck Egg, the most GORGEOUS Hokkien Mee (that's Prawn mee to you KL fellas) with Roast Pork and Pork Rind, Penang Chee Cheong Fun with Prawn Paste + Sambal, Loh Bak with actual deep fried chunks of fish, pig's ears and Octopus, negligible poh piah, and ice kacang.

We went back to the hotel and Lisa went to bed. Jyn and I joined her friends Ryan, his sister and Robert for drinks at the lounge later.

Breakfast the next day was at the hotel restaurant. They have the BEST croissants in the WORLD. Mini croissants SO packed with butter they were melt in your mouth. I think we finished half a platter.

Chien arrived close to 12 after we had checked out. We took the coastal road to Balik Pulau. The scenery was Gorgeous. Winding roads, reminiscent of Genting, with views of lush valleys, new housing developments, seascapes and jungle-laden hillsides.

Then the eating started again. *laugh*

There's this lady who sells Hokkien mee and Laksa from off her porch in some remote part of Balik Pulau. The main road in that village tickles me pink because instead of seeing cars parked in front of houses, there's this waterway where they can park their boats. I kid you not! It's one of the main branches off Sg. Pinang. The food of course, is HEAVENLY. Simple food, done Really well. No advertising necessary. We were there early, so we had ample place to sit & time to eat. We noticed later, as we were leaving, that there were a long string of cars looking for space to park & people had started queuing for tables. Aunty was doing a roaring trade!

A little down the same road and across a little blue footbridge, and you're in the dilapidated shack of some nameless uncle that has been making the BEST COFFEE IN PENANG for 20 years. He takes great pride in the simple art, using the best coffee powder and all the kung fu he has amassed since he he made his first cup of coffee at age 10, under the watchful eye of his father. He later found someone to literally teach him the art of making coffee, and has run that coffee stop (just outside his house) for the last 20 years. He's now nearly 70, from my estimates, and I have no idea what he has done all his life. Maybe I'll find out in bits and pieces as I keep returning to his coffee heaven. And you can be sure I WILL.

The passemboh (indian rojak) stall in the market wasn't open, so we high-tailed it to the new bus depot to have nutmeg drink (YUMMY) and fish ball soup.

We took the coastal road back to Air Itam where we stopped at this roadside shack. *laugh* Yes, there's a pattern. The best food is not to be had in air-conditioned restaurants.

This roadside shack's tagline is "We're the LONGEST". Take your mind out of the gutter please! They sell Eu Char Kueh. I have no idea what this is in English. *laugh* I took no pictures, but will take some off my sisters when I can. It's the Malaysian equivalent of Churros I guess - except that we dunk into coffee instead of chocolate. It's an anytime-snack, and is basically deep fried dough. Only this shack splits one side & stuffs it with either meat floss, sausages or tuna! Unusual, and quite tasty! I think I still prefer the Eu Char Kueh from the Bomba-side hawker centre. Theirs are softer and tastier. I think this one is made harder to take the stuffing.

Last stop was at the foot of Penang Hill, near the roundabout. It's not a centre nor a restaurant, rather a collection of mobile food stands. We stopped and had supposedly the best deep-fried white radish cake in Penang. *wiggles nose* Better to be had in Taiping, me thinks.

We only left Penang at about 4pm. and made a lengthy pitstop in Taiping. Got back to KL just before 10pm. Traffic was heavy, but mostly moving. The way Jyn drives, though, was the only reason we got back that early.

Now I need a holiday to recoup from my holiday! *laugh*