Khunthai Seafood @ Teluk Kumbar

This is our surprise find in this trip.  A pleasant surprise indeed.     Seafood was good & price was good too!    And a perfect place for some nice beach front seafood with a clean beach for the kids to play!     Better environment than Hai Boey and service is good.

If you are driving, Teluk Kumbar is located after the Bayan Lepas Airport.   There is ample signs along the road to lead you to Teluk Kumbar from here.  And the road leading to Teluk Kumbar is a single lane narrow road with some kampung feel along the way.

I'll just let the photos do the talking.

Khunthai Seafood is located on the right, before Hai Boey Seafood.   There is a huge directional signage once you are at Teluk Kumbar road.  Wont get lost, cos got only one main road.

Hai Boey Seafood @ Teluk Kumbar, Penang

My first time eating here and definately not the last.  Good food at reasonable prices.  And most importantly, is much cleaner than Teluk Kumbar Seafood restaurant.   Also perfect for us cos the beach is clean and the restaurant operators were smart to build a few swings & slides for the kids to enjoy while the parents enjoy the food. 

A decent and clean beach front, for the kids to have a fun-filled time with sandplay.  Dont worry about washing up, cos the toilets are CLEAN.

Cannot remember the names of all the dishes cos we had so many rounds of food in Penang.  But no worries, cos if you are here, you will notice a large noticeboard with all their chiu phai choy indicated there.  

The below coconut prawn curry is exceptionally good.  Very aromatic!  Wish I had some bread to dip into them!!!  MIL could not stop scooping :D

So creative of them to built this aquarium beneath the tap.  So imagine la, how many times Bryan wanted to wash his hands LOL!!

Oh ya!  I heard the men's toilet also similar concept wor ... while you are aiming ah ... there will be fishes beneath where you aim wor!   Too bad I cant go in take pics la!

For 5 adults + 1 kiddo, our bill was about RM130.

Satay Teluk Kumbar

This is probably one of the best satays I have ever tasted.  Past few years and also now.  In KL, I only know how to buy from Haji Samsuri satay originated from Klang but when in Penang, I never ever miss the chance to enjoy this!

Satay Teluk Kumbar is located at the Teluk Kumbar Seafood restaurant.   If you google, you will find plenty of review on it.   But I find the place a bit dirty already.  Place is not well kept and a lot of ants & flies also... aiyoh.  Cheap la but there is also a cheaper place in Teluk Kumbar for seafood.  In fact, there is 2!    Share with you in my coming posts, but this satay ..  I share with you some pics first.   

Big, fat & juicy!!!!

The last time I came, it was RM0.50 per stick.  Now its RM0.80 sen.   Still worth it.  Very moist meat and special cos all the sauce is already on the meat, so they dont serve additional peanut sauce as sides for you.

Lorong Selamat Char Kuay Teow, Penang

If you google for "lorong selamat char huay teow" you will probably end up with hundreds of posts on this.    This is one place you should not miss if you are in Penang searching for good food.

There are 2 stalls in this lane but the more famous one is the stall with this lady.   People say she damn lan si.  Yes she is.    We overhead her telling her customers that they need to wait at least an hour for her char kuay teow.   We immediately moved on to the next stall in the next kopitiam.

The next stall's char kuay teow is cooked by a man.  The plate below cost RM7.50.  Not cheap eh?   Taste wise, ok.  Not bad.   But quite small portion.  

Did you know that if you sit in that kopitiam and eat the char kuay teow but dont order drinks, they still charge you 50 sen per head for drinks?  Yes.  Welcome to Penang's Lorong Selamat kopitiam.    Lagi kau kau than KL man.

Lorong Selamat is also off Macalister Road.   Just after Sunway Hotel on your right, keep extreme left and its one of the lanes on your left.

Look out for my coming posts on a really nice seafood place we accidentally ventured into in Penang!   Love that place!  Will surely go again & again if we are in Penang!!

Kek Lok Si Temple, Air Itam, Penang

MIL and SIL wanted to see Kek Lok Si Temple.   The last time they visited Penang was close to 10 years ago, so this is a must-see place for them.   For me, I think I must have visited it almost 15 years ago cos I hardly come here when I am in Penang. 

Other than the large kuan yin status (which was pitifully "downgraded") cos I heared it was so massive in size that the authorities had to ask them to bring it down, the most exciting part was actually getting up there to see the status.   You can drive your car all the way up but we took the inclined lift.  Why?  Cos we are tourist ma.  Have to spend some tourist dollars la .. hahahaha.

The first thing that attracted me in this temple .. was its ceiling!  The designs were so beautiful!  Reminds me so much of my visit to the Vatican City ... enjoying the designs in the ceiling sampai neck also pain .. hahaha.

Aren't they really really beautiful?  I really enjoyed the few minutes of peace I had inside the temple enjoying this.

This picture above of me and Bryan ... now I see clearly how his features are so much like mine ..kekekeke.  Sorry hubby :D

A cute moment of bryan and the "stoned" puppy.  Haha. 

The above is the view from the inclined lift going down back to the ground level.  Its just probably a 2-3 minute journey.  You get to see the newly built monk monastries on the way.   The inclined lift cos RM4 for 2-way journey for adults and RM2 for kids 7-12 years old.  So it was free for Bryan la.  Should have sent him up and down for few more rounds since he enjoyed it so much ..  hahahaha.

Assam Laksa @ Air Itam Market, Penang

After breakfast, we drove all the way to Kek Lok Si Temple in Air Itam, Penang.  MIL and SIL wanted to pray pray but me, I was keeping a sharp eye to see if I can catch a glimpse of the world famous assam laksa!   Honestly, after so many trips to Penang, I never made it a point to eat here previously cos I dont really fancy visiting Kek Lok Si la.  But this trip no choice. Old folk around, so go visit lor ...

Wuah!  Imagine my happiness when I spotted this stall with the Malaysian flag!  So happy!   And even more happy when I found out that we could sit inside a cafe across the road in a fully airconditioned place!   Seems just perfect as we were sweating buckets outside in the hot hot sun!

This assam laksa is really really good.   Ngam ngam thick and ngam ngam sourish and lots of fish meat also.  Plus the hae kou .... fuyoh!  

If you are able to stand where I am stading while taking the above pic (Pasar Awan Air Itam), then this is where you can sit inside the cafe in air-conditioned room.   The cafe serves drinks and also has a small stall selling local kuih & cakes.   They can order the assam laksa for you also.

Forgot to take a pics of the soybean stall just next to this assam laksa.  Quite nice also.  Was so thirsty that I bought and drank so quickly sampai lupa ambik gambar.   Damn freaking hot ok Penang!!!



Cheap Dim Sum @ Anson Road, Penang

Breakfast in Penang.   What shall we have today?  Hmmm ....

I have never eaten this cheap a dim sum anywhere in Malaysia.  Not that I am well travelled or regularly cuti-cuti Malaysia but this really really cheap.  So next question, taste good or not?   For the price, I think its totally worth it.   Taste is not too bad but of course not as good as those fine dining dim sum places in KL lah.

This place is a huge open area with tent and had ceiling fans.  Nothing fancy.  Typical old time dim sum place but pretty huge.  At night, its a food court with many different stalls.    One thing that caught my mind was the management hires old folks, aunties & uncles to push the dim sum cart.   I think its good that the old folks still have a job lor, don't you think?

For 5 adults and one kid, the total price was only RM35 including a pot of chinese tea.  Eat until full full.

This dim sum place is right opposite KDU college and next to The One Academy.   The best part is ... it was a short walk from the condo we stayed at.   Perfect!

And oh ya, at One Academy, I found a replica of the famous car wor!   Bryan was excited and shyly posed for a pic.

Pandan Coconut @ Lorong Abu Siti, Penang

Usually people hunt for char kuay teow or assam laksa when in Penang but my all time favourite is the pandan coconut!   I really dont know if the coconuts are locally grown or from else where, but they do have a very flavourful and aromatic taste, not  like those you find in KL, which I think are from Thailand.

Used to be managed by an old uncle from India.  He is still there but have passed on his skills to the younger generation.  You shd see for yourself how they skillfully cut open the tip of the coconut .. ngam ngam at the right deepness where you can see the silky smooth coconut meat inside .. damn shiok ah!

You can drink them fresh from there or can also tapau for you into plastic bags.  If you wanna tapau with the coconut itself, they can cut off the top for you and their skills, oh my god, cut until ngam ngam one.   You go back & give it a light poke with your knife and the top is opened for you to enjoy fresh at home.   Hmm .. sedap!

Do check them out at the end of Lorong Abu Siti lane, off Macalister road.   Macalister Road is a one way street.  Right after you see Sunway Hotel on your left, do keep right.   Its one of the lanes on your right.  



Desa Pelangi Condo, Penang

Over the long weekend during the Labour Day holidays, we decided on a 4D3N self drive trip to Penang and Ipoh for some makan-makan.

Decided on this place after I found some reviews on the internet and also after a friend of mine shared her experience staying there.   For those looking for a decent apartment within Georgetown area, Desa Pelangi Condo is pretty convenient to all the lovely food and shopping areas in Penang.

It is located at Jalan Logan, which is off Jalan Macalister and just 2 streets away from the world famous Lorong Selamat char kuay teow!     Ain't that super good ... hehe.

I would say the actual place does not look as good as their website or from those you see at Agoda or other online booking sites.  However, it is clean and well kept.   The building itself is pretty old but some higher priced units are with new furniture.   I choose the "Boutique" category and it costs me RM400 per night.   After researching, i found that even online booking sites charge the same as the management office itself, so I booked through the management office since I only need to pay deposit of RM200 as compared to full payment via online sites.

Boutique category comes with full dining and cooking facilities as well as Astro but not all channels though.  Most of the main ones are available.

There is also a decent sized fridge and washing machine plus an ironing board and hair dryer.   Towels, shampoo and body shower gels are also provided but normally I bring my own towel la .. unless its 4 or 5 star hotel .. hehehe.

The unit we took, fits 5 adults comfortably.   There are 3 rooms in total which consist of one master bedroom with private toilet/bath and a queen sized bed.  Another room with a queen sized bed too and a smaller room with a single bed.     Perfect for us as we were 5 adults + 1 kiddo.

Generally ok with the place and would give it a B+ rating.   Star wise, I think its similar to 3 stars, really.   But cleanliness is important and it was clean indeed.   Overall, happy with place.   Upon check out, was surprised to be presented with a discount voucher worth RM60 for next stay wor.  It did not have an expiry date, so yippee!!

If you are planning for a short visit to Penang and you have both the kids and the older folks with you, this is really not too bad a place to consider.

Full contact details for rental enquiries can be found here.

Ben 10 Scooter & Safety Gear!

One of his favourite gift he got for his recent birthday was a scooter.   Actually I dont even know its called a scooter until he told me LOL!!    Grandma bought this from the pasar malam .... cheap, only RM55 compared to those from ToysRUs ... more than RM100! Aiyoh, heart also pain see the price there.

His aunt bought him a set of safety gear, consisting a helmet, elbow pads, knee pads and gloves.  He learnt about this safety gear after visiting the safety campaign for kids at Petronas Science Centre.   Well, glad he actually learnt something that day! LOL!!  But this safety gear, not cheap oh.  Costs RM99.  More expensive that the vehicle itself .. hahaha.  Too bad pasar malam dont have, else I would have asked his aunt to buy that .. reason being, as usual, he only hangat-hangat tahi ayam for a couple of weeks.  

There is a playground and a nice basketball court at our housing area.  Perhaps now I can feel its safer to take him out there to ride on his scooter and/or bicycle, his birthday gift from last year :D

The scooter looks a bit small for him but the height is adjustable.  But for now, its perfect for him.