Line Clear Nasi Kandar
Line Clear Nasi Kandar has ladled curry down its famous alley off Jalan Penang since the 1940s, Penang's round-the-clock nasi kandar rite of passage.
Bistros, trattorias, taverns and neighbourhood rooms: the mid-tier places where Penang actually eats.
Where to eat well, no fuss
20 places
Deens Maju Nasi Kandar
Deens Maju is the nasi kandar Penang locals queue for, a midday-opening Jalan Gurdwara canteen where the ayam goreng line often wraps the block.
Hameediyah
Hameediyah has served nasi kandar on Campbell Street since 1907 and holds the Malaysia Book of Records listing as the country's oldest, a Penang icon.
Book food experiences in Penang
Guided tour · 4 hours
Penang: Morning Food Tour with 15+ Tastings in George Town
Discover the favorite local brunch foods on a guided tour of the George Town district.
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Guided tour · 4 hours
Penang: 4-Hour Penang Plates Food Tour with 15+ Tastings
Take a deep dive into Penang's rich food culture and history. Meet the people behind the food, salivate over 15+ tastings, and discover what makes up this island's vib...
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4 hours
Penang: Spice Garden Tour with Hands-On Cooking Class
Explore a tropical spice garden and learn to cook South East Asian dishes in a fully hands-on cooking class. Enjoy a personalized experience with individual stations a...
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Restoran Kapitan
Restoran Kapitan keeps its tandoors lit around the clock at the Chulia Street corner, four decades into serving Penang's benchmark claypot briyani.
Woodlands Vegetarian Restaurant
- ★ 4.0
- South Indian
- $
- Little India
Woodlands Vegetarian Restaurant anchors Penang's Little India with North and South Indian meat-free cooking and a sweets counter facing the street.
Tho Yuen
Tho Yuen steams old-school dim sum on Campbell Street, the veteran Penang teahouse where the first baskets land not long after six in the morning.
Christoph's
- ★ 4.1
- Austrian
- $$
- George Town Heritage Core
Christoph's serves Wiener schnitzel and Austrian comfort plates in a Stewart Lane living-room of a restaurant, Penang's odd and excellent outlier.
WhatSaeb Boat Noodles
WhatSaeb Boat Noodles imports its kitchen team from Thailand and was Penang's first Thai SELECT awardee, ladling proper Bangkok-style bowls.
Bite N Eat Dindigul Biriyani
- ★ 4.0
- South Indian
- $$
- Little India
Bite N Eat has cooked Dindigul-style biriyani on Lebuh Penang since 2014, the Tamil Nadu specialist among Penang's Little India dining rooms.
Fatty Loh Chicken Rice
- ★ 4.2
- Chinese
- $
- Tanjung Bungah
Fatty Loh Chicken Rice is a third-generation Fettes Park shop whose poached birds and chilli sauce set the chicken-rice standard for north Penang.
Where to stay in Penang
A sample of Penang hotels from our booking partner, who list 278 here. Live prices and availability open on their site.
Grand Inn Penang Road
A stay at Grand Inn Penang Road places you in the heart of George Town, within a 5-minute walk of Georgetow...
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OYO 89540 B Hotel Penang
With a stay at OYO 89540 B Hotel Penang in George Town (Gelugor), you'll be within a 5-minute drive of RECS...
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Moustachz Hauze
With a stay at Moustachz Hauze in George Town (Downtown George Town), you'll be within a 5-minute walk of P...
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Tune Hotel Georgetown Penang
A stay at Tune Hotel Georgetown Penang places you in the heart of George Town, within a 5-minute drive of W...
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Goh Thew Chik Hainan Chicken Rice
Goh Thew Chik has carved Hainanese chicken on Chulia Street for over 70 years, Penang's old-guard benchmark for every newer chicken-rice shop.
Tok Tok Mee Bamboo Noodle
Tok Tok Mee still kneads noodle dough with a bamboo pole at its Campbell Street doorway, serving Penang's bounciest old-school wonton mee daily.
Hot Bowl White Curry Mee
Hot Bowl has served Penang white curry mee since 1992, the coconut broth arriving mild with a side bowl of chilli paste you stir in yourself.
Laksalicious
Laksalicious puts every major laksa style under one cheerful Hutton Lane roof, the Bib Gourmand shortcut through Penang's noodle-soup canon.
Bee Hwa Cafe
Bee Hwa Cafe cooks halal versions of Penang's Chinese hawker canon on Lebuh Dickens, a Bib Gourmand family shop begun as a 1992 street stall.
Duck Blood Curry Mee
- ★ 4.2
- Malaysian
- $
- Pulau Tikus
Duck Blood Curry Mee simmers its coconut white curry fresh daily inside a Burma Road cafe, the Bib Gourmand bowl Penang regulars top with cubes of duck blood.
Restoran Sup Hameed
Restoran Sup Hameed ladles mutton soup and oxtail sup ekor on Jalan Penang, the mamak soup counter Penang turns to when the day needs rescuing.
The Pinn
The Pinn hand-makes mackerel fish balls and dumplings opposite the Lee Jetty, a small Weld Quay room mixing Penang, Taiwanese and Indonesian bites.
Kheng Pin Cafe
Kheng Pin Cafe is the morning kopitiam on Jalan Penang whose loh bak stall, five-spice pork rolls fried in beancurd skin, draws half of George Town.
Rasa Rasa
Rasa Rasa keeps daytime hours on Chulia Street Ghaut, pairing pandan nasi lemak sets with Bib Gourmand prices rare even by Penang standards.
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