Tea Time @ Batu Lanchang Market

 This is one of my favourite markets for tea time.

Unfortunately I noticed that prices have gone up heaps and the portions are getting smaller and smaller.

If you are a tourist especially if you are non-Malaysian, this place will be something different.

Loads and loads of hawker food, spoilt for choice.

This is a venue that the locals visit, so you will never go wrong.

The reason why this place is always crowded is because there is a day market, so people will come here either before or after their shopping.

 May have trouble looking for a place to sit.

And the drinks stalls get territorial, so you better make sure you order a drink from them otherwise they will tell you off.

So, if you intend to have ice kacang and nothing else, please sit in front of the ice kacang stall.

 This gave me a little shock, ordered the one with egg, portion is small and hardly any egg.

The Tanjung Bungah one definitely tastes better.

All said, the stall was surrounded by customers :-)

 Pasembur by the Chinese stall is nice.

For RM5 there is jelly fish and the prawn crackers, very fresh.

A little on the sweet side.

Overall it was a good outing.

Lots to choose from, great variety.

I noticed that the prices have gone up by quite a bit, with the portions shrinking.

Maybe this is global inflation.

Good mix but nothing really stands out.

Good place to bring tourists friends who wants to have a go at everything ...

Eat here if you wanna be a Sucker

Another post to fill up the NO GO ! list ...

During this festive season, you must NOT go to places that treat customers like suckers.

This is one of them.

The hawker place by the roadside between Jalan Mount Erskine and Lengkok Halia.

This is a brunch cum lunch venue.

This place used to be good, unfortunately due to the swarms of KL TAR college students this place has become popular.

Some tips on how you could be 'conned' here ...

1. The Drinks Stall - tells you there is no lime juice - offers to serve you lemon juice, and conveniently adds a sour plum in it then charges you RM2.50!  Ice kacang here if you don't mention anything - comes with the ice cream, again charge charge charge ...
2. Old ladies selling Laksa - 1st impression poor old ladies, so old still selling laksa, order 2 small bowl, comes 2 large bowls, sorry already prepared err... did you say you wanted small, yes auntie I mentioned 3 times, already made, expensive, so-so taste ... no please don't make the same mistake as me, pitiful old ladies, maybe not :-) Big bowl - eat it at 1pm, by 3.30 I am hungry ...
3. Economy Rice - not so economical, don't believe, try it ... one of the most expensive ones I have ever eaten
4. Sweet tooth - go for the desserts there, careful this lady is not so friendly
5. Look into the drain nearby - totally lose your appetite

Lots of variety here, used to frequent this place regularly, sorry changed my mind.

Absolutely over priced with rude people, feels like a war zone eating here...

Some good write ups of this place if you want to visit ...

Po Pia and Pasembur here quite nice

Only thing good about this place is the Fresh Fruit Stall - reasonable

http://kyspeaks.com/2012/04/25/ky-eats-laksa-and-curry-mee-at-mount-erskine-hawker-center-penang/

http://penangstreetfood.com/2010/05/mt-erskine-hawker-center/

By the way, if you are a person who loves sarcastic remarks and criticism, this is a blog you could visit, I bumped into it and thought this person is rather interesting ...

http://borhochiak.blogspot.com/

Happy Reading :-)

don't be a hawker sucker !

New World Park - What's Still Good There ?

 New World Park Food Court

This is a food court so it is rather difficult to do the regular rating.

In the past if you mention Swatow Lane, the first thing that comes in mind will be the Ice Kacang, Curry Mee and Pasembur.

So, is everything still the same ?

The food quality still as good and delicious ?

I suppose not.

Well, let us mention the good stuff first.

A very nice and clean place to enjoy hawker food, also a huge variety, some may not be so authentic though.  

For tourists who want to try a good variety of street food with limited time, here is the place to go.

If you have a fussy palate, hmmm... maybe not that great a place then

This is the man in charge of the food court stalls, the main person who collects the rental . 

Rumour has it that 16 million was spent to set up the whole area inclusive of the shop lots ...

As a kid, I remember this uncle preparing my ice kacang, now he is the man-in-charge of the food court.  It is nice to know that there are some with humble beginnings who do not forget their roots and remain as humble as ever.  Mr Ice Kacang, still takes orders from customers and on special requests, he will make it for you :-)

 If you are a diabetic, you can opt for fresh milk only, not the best but at least you don't lose out on this yummy treat.

Foodie's Choice
Ice Kacang add Mango, no ice cream prepared by  'The Man'  himselfRemember to order only after you finish your main course otherwise it will all melt away by the time you get to it

Good idea

Next we move on to the Hokkien Mee
Foodie's Choice - Add Pai Kut  RM 4.50
Good value for money
Piping hot soup

Ice Kacang stall also sells fruits on the side, just like the good old days, but a cleaner version 

Then you have a variety of other stuff, including the ridiculously priced Mee Goreng for RM 5.00! Nothing special about it.  Forget about the pasembur, really waste of your time...

Tang Hoon Fish Ball, So-So, taste a little like it is prepared by an Indonesian Maid 

This one is overpriced with super diluted Ang Tau Thing and Yam Cake with no yam. Used to be really good but I guess sometimes profit overtakes all cause...

Two curry mee stalls here...  In the good old days while still at Swatow Lane, we used to have one of the best curry mee here ... not any more :-(

So your best bet when you come here is Hokkien Mee and Ice Kacang (must be made by the boss) otherwise, quality is not there ...

Another Halal Venue :-)

Food Rating            :     3.5 stars

Value for Money     :     Er ...

Ambience               :     Nice & Cosy

Don't Drink Kopi O, Drink Coconut Water

Kompleks Makanan Persiaran Gurney

Brunch. Lunch & Tea Time

Closed On Fridays

 GPS Coordinates : N5.434161   E100.314981

 Nice place to relax and a good place to bring your halal friends.  Just try to be careful and DO NOT behave like a tourist.  However, if you are a tourist and it is obvious to everyone that you are, then too bad, you might be over charged if you are not lucky...

Nope, just make you know what you have chosen for your mix and match pasembur and be very specific about your order, make it obvious that you are looking at the price list.  Should be no problem if you do that :-)

Also here you have the famous Edgecumbe Road Mee Goreng. Also you have a choice of Mee Rebus.  Very reasonably priced for the regular ones.  Just make sure you don't simply add this and add that, the calculations may differ ... need to be street smart when we eat street food, right?

RM 3.50 for a normal Mee Goreng, nice :-)
Don't forget to order a glass of coconut water or try the 3 layer iced  tea
http://food.malaysiamostwanted.com/venues/kompleks-makanan-persiaran-gurney-famous-edgecumbe-mee-goreng-gurney-drive

There is also a Malay stall selling fried rice and noodles, I have not tried it for a while but I think it should be good, recollecting the last time I treid the Nasi Goreng Paprik and also seeing many people waiting for their turn. 

Overall, this is a very nice place to have a  tea break and relax. If you are a tourist staying at the Gurney Drive stretch, it is worth your while taking a short walk along Gurney Drive and trying out the local street food.
Just be careful and make sure you are not carrying a sling bag and become easy victim to the street snatchers...

Balik Pulau Escapade

Balik Pulau Food Court

Coordinates:   5°21'5"N   100°14'29"E 

Food Quality       :  Laksa & Pasembur   5 stars

                                Koay Teow Thing        4 stars

Kopi O Rating      :   Coffee only 1 star

Must try the Nutmeg Sour Plum  5 stars

Ambience             :    5 stars

Nice, Clean and Friendly

Value for Money    :     4 stars

On a public holiday, not having anywhere to go, we decided to visit Balik Pulau as our support for cuti-cuti Malaysia.  Indeed we made the right choice, once we ventured onto the road and realised that there was no jam.  Excellent.  Skipped breakfast, on arrival at 11 am, it was brunch time.  We decided to go straight to the Balik Pulau Food Court in order to accomplish the list of street food we planned to conquer ....

Started off with the Laksa RM3.00
Order the regular and add 50cents veg - makes it RM 3.50
Ever eaten laksa with fish roe ?
I was pleasantly surprised by the roe and also the chunky fish

Talk about monopoly, there are 2 laksa stalls at the food court.
Both by the same owner, early morning they start at Stall No. 37
Late morning till lunch they move to Stall No. 26
They claim that they are the same as the one at the junction, Nan Guang Kopitiam
http://kyspeaks.com/2012/08/15/ky-eats-balik-pulau-asam-laksa-penang/

Another popular spot is opposite the Nan Guang
http://www.taufulou.com/2011/10/20/balik-pulau-laksa-penang/

I am getting confused now, which one to go to.
But I have a gut feeling that they all taste about the same, being from the same are.
Most likely all of them will get a 5 star rating from me.
If you are a Laksa person, please try every stall and tell me which is the best.
Next time I come to Balik Pulau, I must try the Malay style laksa - Laksa Janggus
http://kucingtanah.blogspot.com/2012/05/laksa-janggus-kampung-perlis-balik_04.html

Ok let us move on to the Koay Teow Thing
RM 3.00 for a regular
The fishball is super crunchy, so if you have already eaten 2 bowls of laksa and still want to try it, don't bother with the carbs - just order 1 bowl of fish ball 10 pieces for RM2.70

Foodie's Choice
Food court so you can have more variety
Skip the coffee, go for nutmeg sour plum
Laksa and Pasembur is a MUST
Fish ball only if you can't eat anymore!

Please leave some space for the Pasembur Balik Pulau
Small RM2.70, Large RM 3.50
I suggest you go there around brunch time, take your own sweet time with the laksa and koay teow thing and around 1130am when the Pasembur opens, attack it.
One of the best I have ever had, just check out the crowd.

Well, after everyone is full and satisfied, go for a car ride to Pulau Betong and along Jalan Tun Sardon.
Nice car ride with beautiful scenery and paddy fields.
You don't even feel like you are in Penang, but you are ...
that is the beauty of our island :-)
We were lucky to have an avid cyclist taking us round these beautiful scenes.
Also we were in a car not on a bicycle with all the Laksa in our stomach.
Was a very good day outing.
Cheap and good ... as always ....