Auntie Gaik Lean’s

When it happened that both Unilocaler Tzeko M. and I will be in Penang the same weekend, he volunteered to organize a UYE for Unilocalers in Penang. Thank you Tzeko!
Our party of six (including Unilocalers John Q., Ping L. and her two cousins) were comfortably seated at a rectangle table. The place is decent sized and has both smaller tables and big round tables for bigger groups or families.
It was not very crowded when we were there for lunch on a Saturday though there were big groups of families who came in shortly after us. The service was prompt and polite.
The Peranakan dishes we had were all very good.
assam prawns — love the tamarind taste and sweetness of the prawns. (RM 20 for 6 pieces, we had 2 plates of this)
fish curry — a huge portion with both fish head and body. I love how the okra are not cooked together so they are not a big mush though I like that version too.
angmo tau yu fried chicken — it just means worcestershire sauce when referring to angmo tau yu. I like the taste of this fried chicken. Juicy and and full of flavor.
Winged beans — love the crunchiness of the winged beans.
chicken rendang — my least favorite as maybe I am used to beef rendang.
The bill came to around RM 240 for 6 dishes and 6 drinks. I am not sure if it is considered a bit on the high side for locals but for tourists with a stronger currency, it is definitely very affordable.
I love how the names of the dishes are as spoken in Penang (in Malay, Hokkien and English) and that they do not try to anglicize it or use the English equivalent. The description will be in English though so no worries about eating strange sounding food.
E.g.
Kiam Chai Ark (salted vegetables duck soup)
Assam Hae (stir fried tamarind prawns)
Sambal Udang (sambal prawn with cucumber)
Prawns in 2 languages (hae in Hokkien and udang in Malay)
This place is a good choice for an introduction to Peranakan food in an air-​conditioned restaurant setting right in the financial center of Georgetown heritage area. It offers a respite from the heat and yummy street food and is easy to get to if you take the free CAT shuttle.

Pretty good old school eatery located at bishop street, penang within the heritage area. the restaurant has been in the radar for quite some time but i only managed to visit the past week with fellow Unilocaler — carolyn, john, ping and her two cousins.
We ordered a fare share of items from the menu so that we could try most of their bestsellers, from assam (tamarind) prawns, assam curry fish, winged bean salad, chicken rendang and fried chicken. and we’re all set for a good meal!
the assam prawns were amazing, we ordered two servings while curry fish (pomfret) has the sour-​ish taste but not spicy enough, i think. both were stellar and would recommend highly.
They do take reservation so please make sure you book before coming over to avoid disappointment. six dishes + 6 portion of rice + 6 drinks = RM239, comes up to RM40 per pax. Good deal!

This is a Nyonya-​style restaurant in downtown Georgetown. The dining area is designed to serve large groups in Chinese family style. The dishes match — easily shared portions in two sizes. I visited with a group and tried several dishes. In general, the food is quite nice, especially if you like the sour flavor that dominates most dishes. I recommend going with a large group and sharing several dishes between people.
My favorite surprise was the chicken rendang. Normally, I would expect this dish to be made with beef and had never seen chicken. Nevertheless, the flavor was correct and using chicken worked perfectly well. There are several great vegetable options, such as okra, angled beans, mixed, and so on. Choose any one you want, since they are all similarly prepared in a light chili sauce. Another great choice is the fish curry. Come hungry, since it contains several large pieces of fish, as well as a head. The sauce tastes great and makes a good flavoring for the rice or other items on your plate.