HAWKER'S STALL

CHULIA STREET AT NIGHT

Penang island is well-known as one of the world's greatest hawker capitals and for its abundance of superb, authentic hawkers' delights which the local claim cant be duplicated elsewhere. The best food isn't found in restaurants but at literally thousands of food stalls that would usually serve with one and only signature dish, which often a family recipe passed down through generations.

The term "hawker food" can be define as stalls dished out from mobile carts at street corners, much like the American hotdog stand or more usually under one roof called coffee shops or where we Hokkien called it, "kopi-tiam". The arrangement is ingenius. The owner of the kopi-tiam is the one who serves coffee (kopi) and other beverages. Unlike Starbucks or Costa phenomenon, people don't go to kopi-tiam just to drink kopi. We go there for breakfast, lunch, dinner and also supper. The owner would rent stalls stationed inside their shop to individual hawkers.

We Penangites aka Penang Lang are taken to eat at these hawker's stall from the time when we are infants and usually adopt our family's favourite spots from young age. Since Penang is synonymous with good food (eating also seems to be our, the Penangites' favourite pastime), there are many places where one can find a good concentration of hawker stalls on the island, especially in Georgetown, where i was proudly born. Asked local in Penang where our favourite hawker stalls are and every one will give vastly different answers. I can name lots of my favourite spots for each and every food all over Penang, such as the best Loh Mee located opposite the Kuan Yin Temple, Air Itam Laksa, Farlim Shell station curry mee, etc.

AH NGAU WAN TAN MEE

MY OLD HOUSE, THONG BEE

CHEW KEE SERVED THEBEST WART THANG HOR & FISH HEAD RICE NOODLE  SOUP

I lived in Chulia Street over the past 23 years of my growing up times and to be frank, it was the best area in Penang for hawker's food. Along Chulia Street in the evening, there are more then 10 stalls selling different kind of typical Penang foods, from curry mee, wan tan mee, kueh teow theng, char kuih kak, etc. Lots of foreign visitors (thanks to those cheap B&B motels) as well as Penangites love to have their dinner there because of its low price of food, various choices and also the outdoor dining environment which is quite relaxing and comfort in a busy area. Besides that, Chulia Street is also a historical street which it lets the people feels like they are having their meal back in early days, tasting the true Penang feel !