It’s about Nyonya food in a casual environment for Chinese New Year!

Ivy’s Kitchen is offering two Happy Chinese New Year menus to usher in the Chinese New Year festive season. Priced at either RM488++ and RM688++, the menus come with a wide range of comfort Nyonya dishes, free flow of rice and ‘Tee Kun Yeam’ Chinese tea.

We had the pleasure of enjoying the RM488 menu consisting of nine dishes – kerabu pomelo, fish assam pedas, kari kapitan chicken, prosperity salty duck soup, chicken roll, assam prawns, assorted mushroom in mix vegetable, joo hoo char and soya bean jelly with longan. The kerabu pomelo has pomelo, chili padi, coriander, Chinese chives and plenty of ginger flower. The taste was appetizing with offerings of sour and sweet notes and heat from the cut chilies.

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Tags: Assam Pedas, Assam Prawns, Assorted Mushroom, Casual Environment, Chicken Meat, Chicken Roll, Chili Padi, Chili Sauce, Chinese Chives, Chinese New Year, Chinese Tea, Duck Meat, Duck Soup, Fish Assam Pedas, Happy Chinese New Year, Herb And Spices, Ivy'S Kitchen, Joo Hoo Char, Kari Kapitan Chicken, Kerabu Pomelo, Kiam Chai Ark Thng, Lettuce Leaf, Moist Chicken, Prosperity Salty Duck Soup, Red Snapper, Soya Bean, Style Dish, Sweet Notes, Tangy Flavor, Thng

 1881 Chong Tian Cultural Hotel 中天酒店 is a restored Chinese heritage hotel, located along Jalan Pintal Tali (Rope Walk), Penang. This cultural hotel on PENANG’S UNESCO world heritage site features a rooftop bar, Eastern and Western restaurant, function hall, library and a museum with antique collections dating back to the 18th century.

I first arrived with some friends for a tour and a meal prior to its opening in December 2011. One gets transported back in time the moment you walk in the door of the refurbished pre-war house which was once a thriving hotel in the late 1800s.

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Tags: 1881 Chong Tian Cultural Hotel, Antique Collections, Antique Collector, Boiled Melon with Hasma, Braised Goose Web, China Dynasties, Chinese Heritage, Chinese Motifs, Chinese New Year Reunion Set Dinner, Chong Tian, Colorful Fabrics, Complimentary Breakfast, Fine Chinese Antiques, Hall Library, Heritage Hotel, Jalan Pintal Tali, Peonies, Pre-War House, Rm2, Rooftop Bar, Rope Walk, Suet Kap, Tables And Chairs, Unesco World Heritage, Unesco World Heritage Site, Unique Antiques, Vintage Furnishings, Wooden Doors, World Heritage Site

Roti canai is available in numerous stalls around Penang and each stall has its own variations such as the roti sardin, roti telur and the paper-thin roti tissue. They serve it with their own curry dishes, from the simple dall curry to the meaty curry.

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Tags: Aroma, Ayam, Business Hour, Chicken Curry, Crispy Edges, Curries, Dishes, Egg, Flat Pan, Flatbread, Gravy, Indulgence, Kuah Banjir, Kucing, Mutton Curry, Nbs, Nbsp, Pan Service, Penang, Poached Eggs, Ramadan, Roti Canai, Roti Prata, Roti Sardin, Roti Telur, Slow Pace, Special Famous Roti Canai, Spices, Teh Tarik, Telur, Tender Pieces, Torn Pieces, Transfer Road, Variations

A sure sign that New Year is here is the arrival of excellent cuisine at Parkroyal Penang Resort.

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Tags: Banana Pudding, Batu Ferringhi Beach, Beef Tenderloin, Buffet Dinner, Buffet Lunch, Cherry Compote, Chocolate Delight, Course Gourmet Dinner, Crab Meat, Creamy Dressing, Dinner And Dance, Festive Lunch, Fresh Oysters, Gala Dinner, Grand Ballroom, International Cuisine, Local Flavours, New Year Fare, Parkroyal Penang, Prawns, Red Wine Sauce, Sea Urchin, Seafood Lovers, Set Dinner, Skype, Sparkling Wine, Tamarind, Tiffins, Wagyu Beef

Wish Everyone Merry Christmas & Best Wishes for a Beautiful New Year 2012!

With Christmas and New Year around the corner, nothing spells the celebrations better than with excellent feast and cuisine. Hope everyone have a great time rejoicing the stomachs and taste with your favorite holiday dishes from what2seeonline.com list of Penang’s restaurants.

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Tags: 3a, 8a, Abbey Road, Abbey Road Bistro Restaurant, Agua, Agua Mediterranean Cuisine, Air Itam, Amp, Amp Spa, Batu Feringghi, Batu Ferringhi, Batu Ferringhi Beach, Bayan Lepas Penang, Berlin's Bier Houz, Bistro Restaurant, Bukit Jambul, Cassis Restaurant, Chinese Cuisine, Chocolate Flavor, Christmas, Christmas Celebration, Christmas Cupcakes, Eastin Hotel, Ferringhi Garden, Free House, Georgetown Penang, Golden Sands Resort, Gourmet Guide, Gurney, Gurney Resort Hotel, Hard Rock Hotel, Hisago, Holiday Dishes, Hotel Equatorial Penang, Hotel Penang, Jalan Tanjung Bungah, Japanese Restaurant, Mediterranean Cuisine, Nbsp, New Year, New Year Celebration, Parkroyal Penang, Penang, Penang Food Guide, Penang Hotel, Penang Malaysia, Penang Parkroyal, Penang Road, Pulau Pinang, Qe Ii, Qeii, Rasa Sayang Resort, Seri Tanjung Pinang, Skype, Soho, Solok, South Quay, Suffolk House, Sunway Seberang Jaya, Tanjung Bunga, Tanjung Bungah Beach Hotel, Tanjung City Marina, Tanjung Tokong, Tenggiri, That Little Wine Bar, The Sire Museum Restaurant, Victoria Station, Vintage Bulgaria, Year 2012

* This article was published in the New Straits Times (Life & Times) on 26th November 2011

Recently, I was invited to a cooking session at Tropical Spice Garden Cooking School in Teluk Bahang, Penang. The school offers cooking classes for Nyonya, Chinese, Malay and Indian cuisine and is set in a building surrounded by the lush Tropical Spice Garden.

Under the guidance of Pearly Kee, who is well-versed in Nyonya cooking, the participants and I gained some insight into Nyonya cuisine. We were handed recipe sheets for otak-otak and jiu hu char and Kee guided us through the two dishes.

Both recipes were simple. The jiu hu char had several ingredients put together, each with its unique flavour and texture. This stir-fried dish was so fresh and light and paired nicely with lettuce and sambal belacan.

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Tags: Chicken Meat, Chicken Stock, Chinese Mushroom, Chopped Garlic, Cooked Chicken, Cooking Classes, Cooking Lessons, Cooking Oil, Cooking School, Cuttlefish, Fried Vegetables, Indian Cuisine, Jiu Hu Char, Lettuce, Lone Grag Villa, Malaysian Cuisine, New Straits Times (Life & Times), New Straits Times (Life & Times), Penang, Recipe Sheets, Sambal Belacan, Spice Garden, Teluk Bahang, Tropical Spice Garden Cooking School, Tsp Soya Sauce

A friend tipped me off to a coffee shop serving hand-pulled noodles on the busy Macalister Road. This fairly new stall offers freshly hand-pulled noodles (la mian) and koay teow th’ng. Other specialties include homemade prawn wanton and fish balls.

The owner Mr Loh starts his day by making the hand-pulled noodles at the kitchen. The hand-pulled noodles have a certain tenderness and texture, which is greatly distinct from mass made noodles. The noodle is available in two sizes – either thick rounded or string-thin. Mr Loh quoted that the texture and mouth feel of the noodles are as important as flavor!

We had several varieties, starting with the spicy “ma la” noodle, which is the highlight in 173. Mr Loh had the hand-pulled noodles dipped in boiling water. The blanched fine noodle is served with black sauce with a dollop of chili-red paste (also handmade), a Sichuan specialty with heat of chilies and numbing Sichuan peppercorns.

Priced at RM3.50, the dish comes with pieces of BBQ pork (char siew), chicken, fish balls, vegetables and aromatic chili paste. With the right thickness and nice chewy bite, the noodles absorbed every drop of robust flavor from the spicy and tingly chili paste. For those who prefer less spicy, be sure to inform Mr Loh.

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Tags: 173 Macalister Road, 173 Ramen Restaurant, Barbecue, Bbq Pork, Boiling Water, Char Siew, Chewy Texture, Chicken Balls, Chili Paste, Chilies, Chinese Barbecue Meats, Coffee Shop, Dollop, Fish Balls, Fishballs, Hand-pulled Noodles, Koay Teow Th'ng, La Mian, Lam Heng Cafe, Light Broth, Loh, Loh Guan Lye Specialist Centre, Ma la Noodle, Macalister, Macalister Road, Noodles, Penang Food, Prawn Wanton, Ramen, Ramen Restaurant, Rm2, Rm3, Robust Flavor, Sichuan, Sister’s Char Koay Teow, Wantons

* This article was published in the New Straits Times (Northern Streets) on 16th November 2011

Poon choi or Big Bowl Feast is an indulgent affair with layers of ingredients in fragrant gravy. It is believed that this traditional dish originated in China, and the name of the dish came from the distinctive basin-like pot in which it was cooked and served.

There are only a handful of places serving this dish in Penang and one of them is Zi Zai Restaurant. Our group of 13 made our way to the restaurant  in Paya Terubong to try its traditional poon choi.

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Tags: Big Bowl Feast, Braising, Broccoli, Chinese Cabbage, Chopsticks, Feast, Fish Balls, Fish Maw, Flavours, Frag, Goodness, Hock, Mushrooms, New Straits Times (Life & Times), New Straits Times (Life & Times), Oyster Sauce, Paya Terubong, Penang, Poon Choi, Pork Belly, Radish, Rich Gravy, Roast Duck, Sea Cucumber, Sesame Oil, Snapper, Soy Sauce, Traditional Dish, Treasure Pot, Yue, Zai, Zi, Zi Zai Restaurant

Secret Alley Cafe is a cozy outdoor cafe located at the ground floor of Bayview Hotel Georgetown Penang. This pork free cafe is gaining popularity from the surrounding office workers, with an interesting menu of nasi campur (economy rice). There are more than 30 dishes of fresh home-style healthy dishes at reasonable prices, with varieties of Chinese, Malay and Indian dishes.

Cost of the meal depends on your choice of dishes. In general, the concept is more akin to an affordable place for economy rice, yet it is housed in a comfortable environment. With its wide variety of ingredients comprising of fish, chicken, seafood and vegetables, the prices of the items are reasonable, staring from RM1 to RM5.

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Tags: Alley Cafe, Ayam Goreng Fried Chicken, Bayview Hotel Georgetown, Bayview Hotel Georgetown Penang, Coffee Tea, Curry Chicken, Economy Rice, Exce, Fresh Juices, Fried Noodles, Healthy Dishes, Indian Dishes, Kari Ayam, Lemon Fish, Nasi Campur, Nasi Lemak, Office Workers, Porridge, Rm1, Sambal Belacan, Savory Soup, Secret Alley Cafe, Side Entrance, Takeout Box, Tempting Dishes