Two Cents Sharing on Penang

[Andrew Lee]

Hi there everyone!

Thank you for taking your time to read this thread and to see what I am sharing over here. Always feel free to comment if you have any enquiries,doubts,suggestions and new ideas. I hope to keep this thread for as long as this forum is popular so that more people are able to gain more knowledge and insights of what to expect when visiting Penang now or in the future.

Well, as the title suggest, I will be sharing on basically almost everything in Penang as a true blue local Penang boy. Yes everything from the food,cultures,heritage,people,traffic,kopitiam,hotels,transport and etc.

Yes!! I know some of you might not believe it,but if I really miss out on anything,feel free to ask me here!Some might ask,why I need to do so?
Well,sharing is caring right?haha!

For a start,let me treat everyone with one of Penang's Famous Cookies...haha!Good night!

 

[Bak_Chor_Mee]

Hi Andrew, thanks for the sharing is caring! Fell in love with Penang on mine first visit. Will be heading over again next year for the 3rd time

 

[leefang]

Uhuh! finally u willing to share your experience in Penang.
Penang Laksa please~~~

 

[Andrew Lee]

Hi Andrew, thanks for the sharing is caring! Fell in love with Penang on mine first visit. Will be heading over again next year for the 3rd time

Hello there Bak Chor Mee! U are welcome. The reason for having this thread is to give an idea of what to expect and look out for while they visit Penang.

Great to hear that u fell in love with Penang on your first visit and going there for the 3rd time soon!! Wow wow!! Enjoy your visit and do post some pics or sharing some nice food or places you visit here too!

 

[Andrew Lee]

Well,if you are wondering where to buy some cookies,tarts back as souvenirs for your friends,families or colleagues, you can go to Ming Xiang Tai. Another option to bring home as souvenirs other than the usual Tau Sar Pneah. For those who have been to Penang few times,i think you might not want to bring back Tau Sar Pneah again and again everytime you visit Penang.

Either at their shop in Armenian Street Ghaut or Burma Road. Armenian Street Ghaut shop is more popular as they baked the tarts and cookies there and those are fresh from the oven if you are there during peak hour whereas Burma Road are more like done,packed and they sent there to sell.

Delicious and smells good!

Ming Xiang Tai:

 

[Andrew Lee]

Last Oct I brought a group of friends to explore this lovely Penang Island. 8 of them altogether and all of them are from JB. Most of them never step their foot in Penang before and just like most people here,are curious and don't know what to expect during their visit to Penang.

Questions like where to eat,where to go,what to do,what to see,where to stay,how to go around and much more lingers around my friends head when they are preparing for this Penang trip. Here I will share about all the places that we visited,all the delicious mouth watering food that we explored,all the pictures that we took and so much more.

Well, I brought my friend to experience the mamak food in Penang. For your information, mamak food is also one of the famous food in Penang and seriously,the best mamak food in Malaysia can be found in Penang. My intention is to let them experience how different the taste of Nasi Kandar in Penang compared to the one in JB.

This mamak Nasi Kandar stall is actually located at the roadside,yes roadside (most of the time we will eat our Nasi Kandar in a restaurant or kopitiam) along Air Itam road. This stall may be small and doesn't really look attractive but the Nasi Kandar is really TOKONG i tell you!

I ordered a plate off Nasi Kandar,add one big bowl of rice,with vege,toufu and squid in curry. I asked the guy for mix gravy to be in 'tsunami' style onto the rice,meaning mixing all kinds of curry and make the whole plate full with curries,just like how 'tsunami' wet the land. It is a local term when you want to ask for the quantity of gravy or curry to be poured onto your rice. There are few more terms like 'basah':wet-just a lil gravy will do and 'banjir':flood-wet the rice with gravy haha! Well,how much a plate cost? ONLY RM 8!! We shared it among 8 of us. At first,everyone procrastinate about this Nasi Kandar,but once they start,they never stop eating ah!!! Hahaha!!

This is the plate of Nasi Kandar that we ordered:Now you SEE it......

4 minutes later: Now you DON'T!

 

[withluck]

One of the best nasi kandar is located in Kampung Melayu flat area. Buses are not accessible to the flat but one may need to walk at least 5 minutes.

They operate from morning to afternoon. If you guys have chance to step into Kampung Melayu area, you can ask the local people where the famous nasi kander is. The food price is much lower than many franchisee nasi kandar restaurants in Penang.

Last Oct I brought a group of friends to explore this lovely Penang Island. 8 of them altogether and all of them are from JB. Most of them never step their foot in Penang before and just like most people here,are curious and don't know what to expect during their visit to Penang.

Questions like where to eat,where to go,what to do,what to see,where to stay,how to go around and much more lingers around my friends head when they are preparing for this Penang trip. Here I will share about all the places that we visited,all the delicious mouth watering food that we explored,all the pictures that we took and so much more.

Well, I brought my friend to experience the mamak food in Penang. For your information, mamak food is also one of the famous food in Penang and seriously,the best mamak food in Malaysia can be found in Penang. My intention is to let them experience how different the taste of Nasi Kandar in Penang compared to the one in JB.

This mamak Nasi Kandar stall is actually located at the roadside,yes roadside (most of the time we will eat our Nasi Kandar in a restaurant or kopitiam) along Air Itam road. This stall may be small and doesn't really look attractive but the Nasi Kandar is really TOKONG i tell you!

I ordered a plate off Nasi Kandar,add one big bowl of rice,with vege,toufu and squid in curry. I asked the guy for mix gravy to be in 'tsunami' style onto the rice,meaning mixing all kinds of curry and make the whole plate full with curries,just like how 'tsunami' wet the land. It is a local term when you want to ask for the quantity of gravy or curry to be poured onto your rice. There are few more terms like 'basah':wet-just a lil gravy will do and 'banjir':flood-wet the rice with gravy haha! Well,how much a plate cost? ONLY RM 8!! We shared it among 8 of us. At first,everyone procrastinate about this Nasi Kandar,but once they start,they never stop eating ah!!! Hahaha!!

This is the plate of Nasi Kandar that we ordered:Now you SEE it......
https://www.dropbox.com/s/w2s837kajp4y3p4/Nasi%20Kandar%20Air%20Itam.jpg?dl=0

4 minutes later: Now you DON'T!
https://www.dropbox.com/s/c2epqrd86v0nrkc/Nasi%20Kandar%20Air%20Itam%202.jpg?dl=0

 

[Andrew Lee]

One of the best nasi kandar is located in Kampung Melayu flat area. Buses are not accessible to the flat but one may need to walk at least 5 minutes.

They operate from morning to afternoon. If you guys have chance to step into Kampung Melayu area, you can ask the local people where the famous nasi kander is. The food price is much lower than many franchisee nasi kandar restaurants in Penang.

Wow wow!Thank you for your sharing Withluck!

Certainly alot of people will benefit from this. Seriously there are so much delicious food to explore in Penang. Good that u share it here as more people can actually go there to try the authentic local Nasi Kandar of Penang. To be frank,i strongly agree with u on the food price of many franchise Nasi Kandar restaurants in Penang. Mostly are pricey and not so tasty where you can actually find those small stalls selling tastier and cheaper Nasi Kandar.

 

[Andrew Lee]

Good morning to all those who read this post in the morning. Thought of sharing this Laksa. Well,lots of places are selling Laksa in Penang,it is like so common. When you go to Kheng Kwee Street,which is the road where you can find the most famous Chendol in Penang, you will get to eat Laksa in their very own shop which are just a few steps down the road. I will be sharing this in the next thread.

So,basically when you are in Penang,you will see stalls with Laksa in nearly every kopitiam. But what makes a BEST Laksa?

Ok,to start it off,this Laksa is super exclusive.Why? Because the uncle ONLY sells this on every Sat & Sun. YES!!

So if you visit Penang on weekdays,so sorry...you don't get to try it. Anyway, this is super delicious and this stall is not known to tourists. Even alot of Penangites didn't know about this stall!Seriously.....and you don't need to queue for it!

People mostly heard of the Air Itam Laksa which is located nearby Kek Lok Si,along the way to the temple. But to be frank,this laksa stall is too commercialize now and the laksa seriously doesn't taste nice and doesn't reflect the real Penang Laksa.

Ya,back to the exclusive Laksa,it is so much more delicious and tasty than the Air Itam Laksa,no doubt about it.So anyone wants to know where is this Laksa and why is it so exclusive?

8 of us procrastinated this Laksa at first (yet again),so we just ordered 4 bowls. But once we started eating....from 4 bowls we added 2 more. Soon,we finish off with 8 bowls of Laksa!! haha!! Cuz it is so delicious esp the soup is enough spicy and sour jz right at the standard. Yummy!!

Anyway,the place is hard to find though....deep inside.got to ask the locals around there.

 

[leefang]

Unable to view the picture, can you provide other links?

 

[Habrosus]

Unable to view the picture, can you provide other links?

I right-clicked and opened in a new tab ... it's just a bowl of laksa pic. I believe we need the address here.

 

[leefang]

okay, got to view it!
thanks.

 

[Andrew Lee]

I right-clicked and opened in a new tab ... it's just a bowl of laksa pic. I believe we need the address here.

Haha! Laksa serves as the teaser. Sorry if the link is broken..I'll PM you the address.

 

[Andrew Lee]

Wow! Such a massive jam at both Woodlands and Tuas checkpoints today! Stuck there for 1.5 hours each time I went in and out of the Immigration. My friend stuck at Tuas to Jb custom for 3 hours!

I chartered my clients from SG to JB and back to SG again today. And for those who actually plan to drive up all the way to Penang, kindly don't drive during peak period like year end or even school holiday as you might take 12 hours to reach your destination instead of 6-8 hours!

You can always take a flight,train or bus to Penang. Personally, I would prefer flight as the journey takes about 1 hour 15 mins to 1 hour 30 mins depending on which company you take. There are few airline companies that actually fly directly,yes direct flight to Penang from Changi Airport. Companies like Air Asia,Tiger,Jetstar,Silk Air and MAS. If you are looking for a budget airline, I suggest that you go for Tiger.

I personally like to take Tiger flight as they are very punctual in their time. Most of the time they will reach the destination 15 mins early!

 

[danielkok]

Yo,

For car rental in Penang, do I need to book early? Any recommended local companies besides the usual Hertz, Avis etc? Can I find car rental counters at the airport upon arrival (like Langkawi)?

 

[Andrew Lee]

Yo,

For car rental in Penang, do I need to book early? Any recommended local companies besides the usual Hertz, Avis etc? Can I find car rental counters at the airport upon arrival (like Langkawi)?

Hi,sorry for the late reply. Yup,best is that you book early to avoid disappointment esp during school/public holidays or time like CNY,Raya,Xmas & Deepavali. I Pm you already for more details.

 

[joeey]

What are the rates for car rentals in Penang?

Sent from GAGT Android App

 

[Andrew Lee]

What are the rates for car rentals in Penang?

Sent from GAGT Android App

Hi Joeey,

It depends on whether you prefer a self drive or personalised tour with driver, or we call it local Tour Captain.Also, take into consideration on the number of person that are visiting Penang together with you plus,the type of car that you prefer.

There are various range of cars available for rent from 4 seater,5 seater,7 seater,10 seater,11 seater to 12 seater. If you prefer self drive around Penang, you can rent the particular vehicle for 24 hours a day but you need to pay for the petrol usage,parking fees and also any toll incurred.

If you don't feel like driving in Penang and would just like to sit back,relax and avoid facing the traffic jam in Penang plus are afraid of getting lost in direction, then you can hire a local Tour Captain to bring you around on a tour in Penang for a certain rate. Hiring a driver meanwhile is only for 10 hours/day but still your time is flexible,not tied up and you do not need to go on tour with the people you don't know. Hiring a driver also eliminates the cost of paying for petrol usage,parking fees and toll charges.

At the end of the day,it is what makes sense to you. I have PM you for more info.

 

[focus1974]

I booked a toyota suv from eurocars and collect the car immediately from penang airport's eurocars booth.

I've calculated the cost before hand and i find it to be much cheaper compared to hiring a car+driver ...

Anyway.. don't feel stressed driving in penang island...
just remember to bring along your own GPS NAvigation device with penang map.
PEnang is like old singapore in the 70s-80s... very easy to drive actually
and it's also a freaking small place... like singapore

 

[withluck]

I booked a toyota suv from eurocars and collect the car immediately from penang airport's eurocars booth.

I've calculated the cost before hand and i find it to be much cheaper compared to hiring a car+driver ...

Anyway.. don't feel stressed driving in penang island...
just remember to bring along your own GPS NAvigation device with penang map.
PEnang is like old singapore in the 70s-80s... very easy to drive actually
and it's also a freaking small place... like singapore

When you meet traffic jam, most GPS navigator can get you out from the jam. With a local driver, he normally knows which route is good to take and shorter your traveling time.

Driving in Penang, you have to watch out motorcycles left and right. The motorcyclists behavior just like Bangkok.