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Visitors to Penang will seldom ever find themselves in Balik Pulau, which is around a 40 minute drive from the city centre (much longer if you take the islands incredibly incompetent bus services). Balik Pulau is a beautiful town, with mountains in the background and a slow relaxing pace. It is also known for its abundance of durians, during the main season. For vegetarian food, there is only two stalls in town. I will be reviewing Chin Choo today, which has the widest selection of items out of the two eateries.
Chin Choo Vegetarian Shop
Location: 132 Jalan Balik Pulau, MK-6, Balik Pulau, Penang
Contact: 012-577 1195/012-421 9876
Opening Hours: Daily 7.00am-5.00pm. Saturday Closed.
Here is a look at the menu, which is available daily at Chin Choo. This vegetarian shop is well-known by almost everyone living in Balik Pulau, and it has been around for over 14 years now.
Here is part two of the menu.
If you want economic rice and dishes, you can find it here as well. Although the options are very limited.
Unlike in Singapore, Char Hor Fun is a dish that is almost entirely served wet in Penang. Even when I suggested that we order this dish dry (without sauce/gravy), my Malaysian eating buddy looked at me with a sense of confusion. This hor fun was quite flavourful, but didn't have much aroma. There were a reasonably diverse amount of ingredients, and the gravy was decent enough. Nothing outstanding though.
Price: RM4.00. 6/10
I decided to persist with my idea of seeing how Malaysian Char Hor Fun is dry, and sure enough the chef was able to conjure something up. I've always preferred the dry version of hor fun, simply because more smokey (wok hei) flavour is able to be captured when it is cooked dry. I find that the smokey flavour is always lost (or at least significantly reduced) when it is served wet.
Price: RM4.00. 7/10
Next dish was the Nestum Fried Rice. I must admit, nestum has not been something I've come across elsewhere, before visiting Malaysia. Nestum is basically a dried cereal, similar to oats. When added into this fried rice, it gave a somewhat sweet flavour to the dish, which did go quite well with the mock prawn and cubed pieces of mock char siew.
Price: RM4.00. 6/10
Another big difference Singaporeans will notice upon visiting Penang is the difference in the Hokkien Mee. The Penang version is more soupy and intense in flavour. The flavour of the soup is also quite different, with there being a higher level of spice, and a lack of wok aroma - When compared side-by-side with the Singapore version. During my time in Penang, I have tried their version of hokkien mee a few times - Honestly it is not one of my favourite dishes, but worth trying if you visit Penang.
Price: RM4.00. 6/10
Conclusion - Balik Pulau is a great place to visit (if you have your own transport), as it highlights a quieter rural side of the increasingly bustling Penang island. If you find yourself there needing to find a vegetarian solution, then this shop is the best you are going to find.
Overall Rating
Food - 6/10
Ambiance- 6/10
Service - 6/10
Value - 7/10
Clik here to view.
Visitors to Penang will seldom ever find themselves in Balik Pulau, which is around a 40 minute drive from the city centre (much longer if you take the islands incredibly incompetent bus services). Balik Pulau is a beautiful town, with mountains in the background and a slow relaxing pace. It is also known for its abundance of durians, during the main season. For vegetarian food, there is only two stalls in town. I will be reviewing Chin Choo today, which has the widest selection of items out of the two eateries.Chin Choo Vegetarian Shop
Location: 132 Jalan Balik Pulau, MK-6, Balik Pulau, Penang
Contact: 012-577 1195/012-421 9876
Opening Hours: Daily 7.00am-5.00pm. Saturday Closed.
Here is a look at the menu, which is available daily at Chin Choo. This vegetarian shop is well-known by almost everyone living in Balik Pulau, and it has been around for over 14 years now.
Here is part two of the menu.
If you want economic rice and dishes, you can find it here as well. Although the options are very limited.
Unlike in Singapore, Char Hor Fun is a dish that is almost entirely served wet in Penang. Even when I suggested that we order this dish dry (without sauce/gravy), my Malaysian eating buddy looked at me with a sense of confusion. This hor fun was quite flavourful, but didn't have much aroma. There were a reasonably diverse amount of ingredients, and the gravy was decent enough. Nothing outstanding though.
Price: RM4.00. 6/10
I decided to persist with my idea of seeing how Malaysian Char Hor Fun is dry, and sure enough the chef was able to conjure something up. I've always preferred the dry version of hor fun, simply because more smokey (wok hei) flavour is able to be captured when it is cooked dry. I find that the smokey flavour is always lost (or at least significantly reduced) when it is served wet.
Price: RM4.00. 7/10
Next dish was the Nestum Fried Rice. I must admit, nestum has not been something I've come across elsewhere, before visiting Malaysia. Nestum is basically a dried cereal, similar to oats. When added into this fried rice, it gave a somewhat sweet flavour to the dish, which did go quite well with the mock prawn and cubed pieces of mock char siew.
Price: RM4.00. 6/10
Another big difference Singaporeans will notice upon visiting Penang is the difference in the Hokkien Mee. The Penang version is more soupy and intense in flavour. The flavour of the soup is also quite different, with there being a higher level of spice, and a lack of wok aroma - When compared side-by-side with the Singapore version. During my time in Penang, I have tried their version of hokkien mee a few times - Honestly it is not one of my favourite dishes, but worth trying if you visit Penang.
Price: RM4.00. 6/10
Conclusion - Balik Pulau is a great place to visit (if you have your own transport), as it highlights a quieter rural side of the increasingly bustling Penang island. If you find yourself there needing to find a vegetarian solution, then this shop is the best you are going to find.
Overall Rating
Food - 6/10
Ambiance- 6/10
Service - 6/10
Value - 7/10