Boat Noodle, Sunway Carnival Mall @ Seberang Jaya

Boat noodles originates from Thailand and if you are in Victory Monument in Bangkok, there are plenty of boat noodles restaurant to choose from. My personal favourite is the one where the staffs wore orange shirts. That is the original or most popular restaurant serving boat noodles in Bangkok to go for. Boat noodles are actually noodles served in bowls by sellers on boats along the river. But this has been modernised and we now have them served in air-conditioned restaurant in shopping malls. So, unlike what my friend had in mind, the noodles are not served in boat shaped noodles. There are few variants to the original dish when it comes to its broth - usually pork based with pork blood or clear and light soy sauce. 

Anyway, this little humble dish invaded Penang just a couple of years ago on the island side at Summerton, Bayan Baru (near Queensbay Mall) and recently, it is now opened in EAT at Level 2 of Sunway Carnival Mall in Seberang Jaya. Yay for home turf! Good news to my Muslim friends, it is halal! Double YAY! 

Common condiments for boat noodles for chilli lovers.  

 The other side of the menu

 This is actually the whole menu. 

Noodles or rice as mains and they have other side dishes and desserts, too. 

 The kitchen where the noodles are made. 

 The drinks counter and cashier. There is an order form on each table and you just have to fill up your own order and hand it to the waiting staffs. FYI, the service is a bit slow. From order to meal on table, it took around 15-20 mins during my visit. 

 Signature side dish - grilled chicken meatballs. RM3.90

Seriously?

 The rest of our order. 

 The drinks are by Chill Chill and you can actually bring home the container if you can't finish it or just as a souvenir. There is a lid and the cashier can give you a little plastic carrier for the drinks. 

Iced Lemon Tea RM6.90 and drink of the day RM3.90. The drink of the day was lemongrass tea. 

The Chill Chill Agenda.  

   We had a late breakfast so wasn't prepared to have more than 2 bowls each. We ordered one of each of broth - Pathumthani and Ayutthaya. RM1.90 each. 

 Ayutthaya broth - strong herbal taste. 

 Pathumthani, lighter soy sauce broth. I prefer this one. 

As a customary end to our meal, we stack 'em bowls up and take a photo. 

As we live, there is a long queue outside of the restaurant. Good thing about this place is that it can cater to big groups. I don't think you can RSVP in advance. 

I would recommend it for first timers and also light eaters. For more information, check out their Facebook page here or its website here. 

Cake Time Penang & Butterworth

Penangites love inventive ideas especially when it comes to food and beverages. Food trucks are not unusual overseas as it is widely accepted and in fact the most convenient way of getting food. You don't have to worry about making reservations or even not having any seats. 

So, when homemade cakes are sold in food trucks, Penangites went bonkers. I heard so many good reviews about Cake Time Penang and now they have crossed over to mainland Penang, Cake Time Butterworth, we now get to eat cakes at designated time and place almost everyday on each side of Penang. The cakes are not available on Mondays so do follow Cake Time Penang or Butterworth Facebook page to get their latest updates on their business location all over Penang. They are always on the move everyday. 

On their inaugural first day on mainland Penang, they parked and sold their homemade cakes beside new Chaw Choon Dim Sum Restaurant along Jalan Ong Yi How. I was very excited to be one of the first few early birds to "pong chan" them. It was not even 10am.

 A variety of cakes, spoilt for choices. However, they are famous for their cotton cheesecake which didn't cross my mind at that point.  

 Cakes of the day - opera (left) and dark brownie (right). Dark Brownie was salty to my liking so I didn't enjoy it very much. Opera, on the other hand, was very nice. Cake is very soft to touch and not sweet at all. The coffee taste is strong in this cake. 

I should have taken photo of the other side of the card. LOL. Anyway, each truck has numbers and each truck has different contact numbers to the person in charge. So, on the mainland side, 2 trucks numbered 3 and 4 are based in mainland and will rotate in locations. Each truck serves and sells different flavours of cake from one another. Well only different in a few flavours of the day.

Few weeks after my first visit to the truck at Butterworth, today I finally get to try more cakes at their location in Taman Sri Rambai in Bukit Mertajam. Apparently they stationed here every Wednesday mornings. To celebrate the durian season, they have durian cheese cake for a limited period of time. Trust me, it is worth the purchase but you must bear durian breath for a good few hours.  

Flavours of the day. Savoury and sweet. You name it. 

You will be surprised to know that chicken floss and cake do work very well. Highly recommended.  

I'll try the Parmesan Cheese Cake next time. 

Their Japanese Cotton Cheesecake is really light and subtle to taste.  

 Durian Cheese Cake. Tasted exactly like durian dodol. I am serious. 

Favourite.  Chicken Floss cake. 

And, a very unique and cake, Vanilla Milky Cranberry. 

Best part of all, it is only RM10 a tub. You can purchase as many as you like or even pre-order them if you know their location in advance so that you need not queue to buy cakes when you arrive. 

You can also read more about Cake Time Penang in Chinese here. 

Marlons+Co. Cafe @ Raja Uda, Butterworth

It reminded me of Jack & Co. The colour choice, the design - all sleek, rustic and modern (with a container door on one wall). The coffee bar is elevated and encourage patrons to have their drinks at the bar. Not all cafes do that these days. It is encouraging consumers to be aware of how their drinks are made and also to chit chat with the barista at the same time. 

Self-service order and you will be given a number. We ordered yogurt cheese cake and pork chorizo sausage. The cafe is relatively new so everything including the service is "new". So, be patient as great things take time. 

 It did hit some of us hard especially during tough times. Thanks for the thought. 

When I asked the barista what is their signature drink, he said there isn't any as their signature is the coffee beans. Rhapsody. It sounded sophisticated and we bought the idea. My mother ordered their toffee nut rhapsody coffee and just the smell of it, captured my senses immediately. It was unlike those in Starbucks and Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, this pungent coffee smell was unlike any other. For a non-cafe drinker, I found the smell really good and packed a punch! 

 My chocolate was not bad either. Rich and strong. I wonder if all these chocolate drinks came from the same vendor like all other cafe I've been. 

Don't ask why a spoon for sausage. The boss, Alan Khor, is a good chap and he came to explain to us (via Instagram too). He was nice and friendly, checking on each table to make sure our experience are alright. Sure enough, my mother went back to the cafe again just a couple of days ago, with my sister this time.  

To Alan, I was just pulling your leg and I hope you get your set of knives already from the supplier! All the best to your business! 

My favourite from Marlons+Co is this yogurt cheesecake! 

A nice location, very near to Coffee Venture and plenty of parking as it is located at the new shop office premises at the top of Jalan Raja Uda. So, don't accelerate the moment you enter this road otherwise you'll make a lot of u-turns. 

Facebook page here. 

Coffee Coffea @ Automall, Karpal Singh Drive, Penang

Coffee coffea is a franchise from South Korea. I've not seen any when I was in Seoul, Busan or even Jeju-do. 

When you are alone and in a cafe, do take some time to ponder upon what is it that you want. What is it that you are searching for and whether whatever that you are doing now makes you happy. Why are you still doing what you are now? Is it worth all your time and attention? 

All these thoughts lingering in my mind as I waited for my friend, JC. We were legal practitioners and we have our own problems to solve. Nonetheless, we shared something in common at this moment that is this cup of hot chocolate and the view outside. It was great catching up with JC again now that she is a mummy to be. Congratulations! 

This hot chocolate gotta be the most expensive I've paid for a franchise. RM14.60 including GST. My two cents less 6% GST. =)

Facebook page here. 

Gold Choice Barista Cafe @ Raja Uda, Butterworth

This franchise was opened by an acquaintance (though not publicly announced) but with social media, this cafe gained popularity not just because of its coffee but also because of their waffles and puff pastry pizzas. 

A colleague of mine frequented this cafe almost every night on weekdays and sometimes even over the weekends just for their chocolate waffles. It was a shame that the chocolate waffles were sold out the night I visited. So, for an optimum experience and enjoyment of the menu, do drop by on weekdays or nights. Biasness aside, the environment is really warm and the tables were designed for 2 or 4 patrons each. There are few comfortable seatings for bigger groups at the front or the back of the cafe so, timing is really important or perhaps just delegation of attendance. 

Anyway, unlike other cafes I've been in Raja Uda (Arnold Cycling Cafe aside), it is packed. Really. Even though they've opened for some time now since the Chinese New Year yet the response they get is overwhelming even until today. I took my colleague's word for it. So, this is a throwback post as it has been a month ago since I've visited Gold Choice. The same day since I've visited Coffee Venture, too. So, Gold Choice is located near Aroma Hotel and the Library. So, if you are familiar of this location, you should also know that Maoz Cafe, Armor Cafe and Shunka Japanese Restaurant are also near this establishment. Parking could be a pain but if you don't mind walking, you can walk nearer to the karaoke joint or at the empty shoplot units opposite Gold Choice. 

Italian cuisine inspired menu. Their take of pizza or pasteleria is a lighter version of even New York Crust Pizza. You get less crust and more ingredients in a mouthful. Belgian waffles are brilliant as it comes in few flavours - original, chocolate and coffee. 

 The emblem of the barista cafe is of a rosetta, one of the basic latte art in coffees around the world. 

 Many well wishes and congratulatory bouquets at the counter. 

Hawaiian Pasteleria 

  Coffee flavoured Belgian waffles with bananas and chocolate ice cream. 

Awesome comfort food on any day! 

I do understand why my colleague love this place so much, not just because they served waffles but because they have the atmosphere that most cafe don't. It is not as posh as Macallum Connoisseur or Marlons+Co and yet not as shabby as old-school kopitiam so it came right in between these two high and low ends of coffee drinking rendezvous. It is not intimidating and yet you felt welcomed. It fitted the image of Butterworth very well so that's why the place is packed all the time. Warm and welcoming. As a support to this anonymous acquiantance of mine whom I could see almost every morning or any time of day at home, good luck and all the best! 

Gold Choice Barista Cafe  

No. 3, Butterworth Business City Centre,
Jalan Raja Uda,
12300 Butterworth, Penang
Tel: 04-313 7658
Opening hours: 
Monday-Thursday : 10.30am-12am
Friday-Sunday : 10.30am-1am
Homepage 

Coffee Venture @ Jalan Raja Uda, Butterworth

Sleepy town of Raja Uda in Butterworth is getting wake up call from the recent blooming of artisan coffee and cafes especially at the top of Jalan Raja Uda where there is a newly CCC obtained shop offices on the left side (if coming from Jalan Telaga Air or Taman Bagan) of the main road. 

Coffee Venture is a big cafe, occupying two units of the ground floor shop offices and it is visible from the main road. You will not missed it after the Khian Guan biscuit factory heading north towards 7-Village Noodle House or Kwang Hwa Primary School. Parking spaces are plenty as Coffee Venture is the only establishment there. As it is new, so it is crowded especially on weekends during coffee breaks and after-8 at night. 

As most of my friends and family members know, coffee is not my first option and it never will be unless I have no choice or if the cafe is really famous because of its coffee (hint: starbucks or coffee beans or costa coffee). I have a low tolerance for caffeine in coffees that I could not sleep a wink at night as it will make me tense and agitated. Ok, you guys get it right? But, I like teas and I could have them at any time of day and I could still sleep at night, comfortably regardless of how strong it is. Hence, I may not be a coffee connoisseur so do pardon my comments on non-coffee drinks instead. However, I enjoy #cafesurfing and #cafehopping in Penang as there are so many of them. It's like a new cafe open each week in Penang at this rate that the trend is going. 

The internal furnishings of the cafe is geography inspired where you get to know where does coffee beans come from. As you can see from the map, it all came from countries that is below the equator line, notably South America, Africa and some parts of South East Asia. The price in the menu is mid range (between RM8 to RM20).  

It was a quiet Saturday afternoon, where most people will be indoors at home napping but not for us and these guests. 

Free wifi? Do check with the cashier. 

I guess it is commendable of all cafes to offer complimentary water counter such as this. It goes really well with milk based drinks and quench your thirst even more. So, lemon water was really thoughtful for the customers. 

I fell in love with Kaffa's Chocolate Macchiato (with salted caramel laced on top) and when I saw that Coffee Venture has salted caramel milk (top pic, bottom), I ordered it right away. Tasted like popcorn in a mug with milk! Fragrant and smooth to taste. It will do justice to the drink even more to at least drizzle some caramel on top crisscross fashion and laced the drink with sea salt at the rim of the cup. That'll do my good cuppa at any day. 

Croissant with tuna and side salad. 

It is overbaked but nonetheless, smells good of butter. 

Chicken bolognaise

French toast! Good! It's appealing and fluffy. 

As the cafe is big, so it is a good place for big group gatherings over drinks and cakes. Yet to try the cakes for now.

Coffee Venture
23 & 25, Jalan Raja Uda,
Pusat Perniagaan Raja Uda,
12300 Butterworth, Penang
Tel: 013-582 3388
Facebook page 

Winter Warmers, Sunway Carnival Mall

The franchise has changed its menu for some time now and as always, the dining experience is good. Love the ambience and its Victorian inspired decorations and tableware. Love the tea sets too! 

 Tomato Fuscilli is a must try too!

The Hawaiian Club Sandwich is refreshing! 

Calefe Hauz Gastro Cafe

For a 1950s feel and ambience, this is a very decent cafe. Food and drink are excellent. Price of its food and beverages are low to mid range.

Parking tip: 
Park at the top of Lebuh Victoria which joins up to Gat Jalan Prangin. It is not far to walk from there.

Ribena yogurt drink - RM12 

 Mushroom soup - RM10

(the best after Cheers Bierhouse (already gulung tikar) but a bit salty)

 Latte and cappucino - RM8.00 and RM9.00 respectively

The best durian goreng ever!!!!!!!!! Deep fried durian paste served with watermelon, mango, raisins and honeydew salad! the white sauce is its milky dressing.  - RM15.00

Bananalicious! served on pancake and dusted with almond flakes and topped with herb. 

Calefe Hauz Gastro Cafe
51 Gat Jalan Prangin
10300 Penang
Phone 016-494 2886