eatandtreats - Indonesian Food and Travel Blogger based in Jakarta: RESTAURANT PENANG

For me, some restaurants are not just a place where I go to dine and leave, some restaurants managed to leave certain impressions in me because I grew up with them, and shared my younger days and memories with. I am honestly very glad to the ones who can survive and make it at the rapidly changing food business and trend, and one of the many that I have in mind is surely Restaurant Penang, and special thanks to my parents for bringing me here the very first time because it's always the parents who kinda introduce us to the good eating places.

My mom is quite a foodie and a picky eater while my dad's more to the chiller side and even until now it's hard to get the approval from my mom and we continuously argue on the 'good' restaurant in our standards, but we both agree that Restaurant Penang got the green light from us, even from that very first visit to their first flagship outlet in Muara Karang (that's thankfully still running until now) we still find ourselves deeply in love for their fried kwayteow, which has been their specialty for years.

I recently visited their outlet in Qbig mall BSD to have quick lunch with my family (minus my brother) on a weekday and it was my first time visiting the Qbig! It was indeed big but somehow felt empty, hopefully along the way there will be more tenants opening and more crowds too! The restaurant is located precisely across Starbucks.

Qbig tour!

That iconic prawn!

The interior was a bit different to their flagship Muara Karang (MK) outlet, this one is a bit more industrial and youthful compared to the more simple and 'proper' MK outlet, but as for their menu everything's still the same.

Anyway if you're a first timer to this brand let me assist you with what they have in store (and I mean the food), Restaurant Penang serves Penang-Asian cuisine and expect to find various wok feast such as fried noodle, fried kwayteow, rice, vegetables, porridge, soup and more! Aside from that, they're also famous for their Roti Canai and Roti Tissue, everything here is still pretty affordable, especially when you compare it to recent's pricing standard for cafes and restaurants! Not going to spill all in this paragraph scroll to read more.

...and oh, they're HALAL!

Roti Canai Kari Ayam - IDR 36.8k // Plain Roti Canai - IDR 26.8k

Maybe after various Roti Canai that I've had so far in my life, both in and out of Jakarta, I think so far they still make one of the best (if not the best) Roti Canai for whatever is in that Roti Canai is something that I'm super fond of! The texture, the fragrance, the moisture, the beautiful balance of sweet and saltiness and on top of all, the thick, spicy and savory curry (with potato and chicken) that's just super addicting. DO ME A FAVOR AND GET THIS WHEN YOU'RE HERE! Even worth going here just for the Roti Canai I mean that.

Kwayteow Goreng Penang - IDR 36.8k

Ugh iconic! If you're familiar with their Kwayteow Goreng Penang (Penang Fried Kwayteow) then I believe you can imagine how fragrant and tasty this is, but if you're a virgin to this then this simple dish is all about flavor! The fresh wokhei aroma was the first to captivate me when it's served to my table, then I realize they put generous amount of beansprouts in it, along with egg, fried fish meatballs and shrimps! Smokey, savory, generous what's not to love?! If you love spicy food then make sure to add in some chili for that kick of spicy!

Mie Goreng Seafood Sambal Hijau - IDR 40.8k

First timer to this menu and I am hooked! Can't decide on which one that I love more - the original Kwayteow Goreng Penang or this - because both are so good but different! They use generous amount of green chili in it so expect to find this a little spicy along with the aromatic and that strong green chili character in this dish, while one might find it very strong, on the other hand I found that to be the quality of this dish, and of course thank goodness for the generous toppings of meat, veges and shrimp!

Mie Udang Penang Special - IDR 38.8k

Disclaimer: this one has this strong shrimp and seafood fragrant and flavor to it that if you don't eat seafood, I kindly advise to order different dish,

...but when it comes to me, well since I eat everything I don't feel like I have any problem with this and same case with the two previous menus: GENEROUS toppings! I feel like this should be highlighted because for the affordable price that we're paying, you really are getting a lot here boo!

I've always been a fan of the Hokkian style yellow noodle that's just chewy and perfect for prawn/curry soup dishes (as well as fried) and the fact that they're using this = extra point!

Soup was light yet tasty, ingredients were fresh, altogether should be comforting for one.

Mie Kari - IDR 36.8k

Even though I kinda expected the soup texture to be a little thicker, but when it comes to the curry flavor, character and toppings, overall this one was among my favorites of the day! They still use the same kind of Hokkian noodle that's used in their Mie Udang Penang (previous), no comments about the toppings and such, but the soup was properly rich (without too much coconut milk that usually bloated me) and not overly salty!

Kway Teow Siram - IDR 36.8k

Do you know what's good about this Kwetiau Goreng Siram? The fact that the fried kwayteow is covered in the generous toppings and that's a good start already, meaning that you're actually getting a lot for what you're paying! The toppings include chicken, various seafood, vegetables, and runny egg! This one was among my favorites that day (and my dad's favorite), everything combined to be such a good combo of flavor, texture (even when you got the thick soup) that rhymes well together and not to mention, still a hint of wokhei aroma to the kwayteow.

Es Kacang

Their Es Kacang is also among of the best ones that I've tried so far, and actually oh so simple! Shaved ice with toppings of red beans, corn, condensed milk and syrup drizzle!

Nature is, they serve the kind of food that I'll always go back for, and hopefully the kind of restaurant that will continue to survive from the loyal fanbase! Restaurant Penang is the restaurant that you have to treasure, good (more like great) food, good pricing, how can you dislike this???