We flew Air Asia before in 2004 but this was a first for a direct return flight from Hong Kong to Penang. Not a disappointment at all! Agreed, one has to walk a bit more to get to the airplane and you have to walk up a flight of stairs to get in the plane. So what? Even the POTUS has to do that on AF1!
3 hours and a few minutes after take off we walked through immigration, got us a taxi ticket and were on our way to savour Pg Food Paradise for a week. After getting rid of our luggage at mom’s place, we took the car and went for FOOD!
Kedai kopi Sin Hwa, Burma road, Pulau Tikus: here we come!
It happened to be “Malay New Year” this Monday 21st, so the place was crowded. No problem to wait for about 30/40 minutes because at the end of the tunnel there was something better than light: namely Char Koay Teow!
In the mean time we had some refreshing drinks and then, 75 minutes after landing + 40 minutes waiting:
However, the CKT was ok but did not convince me as being one of the best. Maybe the cook was under much pressure because of the many customers that day. It seemed to us that the dish was a bit off balance and a little too oily. I noticed he made batches for 4 to 5 plates at one go. Perhaps that influenced the finesse of the taste?
Then again: hear, hear… are we too picky? We will try again on a next visit. And yes, even if we are critical, the CKT still was tasty!
At the corner of the street, facing Kopitiam See Kong was a hawker stall selling Malaysian pancakes. A big crowd around was telling the best marketing publicity story ever… One day I’ll try the pancakes, even if I don’t have a sweet tooth!
Hey JP – I have been told of that CKT, but have never try that stall. Usually I go for the one in Lorong Selamat, but to me that is overrated as well. I prefer CKK (Char Koay Kak).
Great video on Penang landing!
The Sin Hwa CKT used to be one of the best in Pg. The original cook was the lady in the background (2nd pic), and yes, she probably did not teach the young cook everything. However, you may visit her brother’s stall at the pulau tikus hawker centre (evenings only – behind this Sin Hwa Cafe).
Correct Gary> We know the hawker stall on the Pulau Tikus evening market very well and I like his CKT.
Without being the best (according to my taste), quality wise it’s on the better end of average.
JP