Il Bacaro is an italian restaurant in George Town, Penang.
Editorially verified August 27, 2026 by Lewis Vaughan, TableJourney editor. Source.
Signature dishes: Handmade tagliatelle, Cicchetti
Tip: The owners also run the hotel upstairs; ask what fish came in from the jetty market before choosing your pasta.
Address: Campbell House, 106 Lebuh Campbell, 10100 George Town, Penang
Jaloux hides Chef Hong's hand-rolled pasta behind greenery on King Street; four opening days keep this Penang Italian room permanently full.
Signature: Pappardelle with oxtail ragu, Risotto
Tip: No reservations and only four opening days; arrive at noon sharp or expect the pappardelle to be gone.
Peninsula House serves modern Australian sharing plates upstairs in 1937's India House, the handsomest dinner room on Penang's old Beach Street.
Signature: Wood-grilled sharing plates, Sourdough with cultured butter
Tip: The stairway entrance is easy to miss beside the old bank facades; look for the India House lettering and head up.
Sambal reworks Malaysian favourites with European technique at 300 Beach Street, a halal-friendly modern dining room in Penang's banking quarter.
Signature: Lap mei fun, Sambal fried rice
Tip: The lap mei fun twist is the signature; come at lunch when the set menus make the kitchen's fusion ideas cheapest.
Bao Teck Tea House steams dim sum in a tiled heritage house with an indoor moss garden, Penang's prettiest room for a slow Cantonese yum cha.
Signature: Har gow with local shrimp, Honeycomb yam puffs
Tip: Weekends run longer hours but fill by 10:00; midweek at 08:30 gets you the moss-garden table and fresh har gow.
Tek Sen has run its Carnarvon Street dining room since 1965 and holds a 2026 Bib Gourmand, Penang's benchmark for wok-fried Chinese home cooking.
Signature: Double-roasted pork, Belacan fried chicken
Tip: Queues build fast at both services; arrive before 11:30 or 17:30 and order the double-roasted pork first, it sells out.
Jaloux hides Chef Hong's hand-rolled pasta behind greenery on King Street; four opening days keep this Penang Italian room permanently full.
Signature: Pappardelle with oxtail ragu, Risotto
Tip: No reservations and only four opening days; arrive at noon sharp or expect the pappardelle to be gone.
Bali Hai Seafood Market lets you pick your dinner from live tanks on Gurney Drive, then cooks it to order; Penang's classic seafood theatre.
Signature: Steamed fish by weight, Chilli crab
Tip: Prices run by weight and species; confirm the per-100g rate before the fish leaves the tank to avoid bill shock.
Peninsula House serves modern Australian sharing plates upstairs in 1937's India House, the handsomest dinner room on Penang's old Beach Street.
Signature: Wood-grilled sharing plates, Sourdough with cultured butter
Tip: The stairway entrance is easy to miss beside the old bank facades; look for the India House lettering and head up.
Sambal reworks Malaysian favourites with European technique at 300 Beach Street, a halal-friendly modern dining room in Penang's banking quarter.
Signature: Lap mei fun, Sambal fried rice
Tip: The lap mei fun twist is the signature; come at lunch when the set menus make the kitchen's fusion ideas cheapest.
Bao Teck Tea House steams dim sum in a tiled heritage house with an indoor moss garden, Penang's prettiest room for a slow Cantonese yum cha.
Signature: Har gow with local shrimp, Honeycomb yam puffs
Tip: Weekends run longer hours but fill by 10:00; midweek at 08:30 gets you the moss-garden table and fresh har gow.
Tek Sen has run its Carnarvon Street dining room since 1965 and holds a 2026 Bib Gourmand, Penang's benchmark for wok-fried Chinese home cooking.
Signature: Double-roasted pork, Belacan fried chicken
Tip: Queues build fast at both services; arrive before 11:30 or 17:30 and order the double-roasted pork first, it sells out.
