On my last trip back to Penang, I caught up with my sister for late lunch, and since she is a lot more well versed with Penang food than me (not having stayed on the island the past 20 years), I naturally asked her to suggest a place.
We ended up at Hai Beng kopitiam for some good old fashion Hainan Lor Mee (卤面)
Hai Beng kopitiam at Pulau Tikus, Penang
Situated at the junction of Jones Road and Burma Road, Hai Beng kopitiam is a typical Chinese run coffee shop that serves breakfast and lunch with a variety of hawker stalls, including the lor mee and a Malay nasi kandar stall which is rather popular (another post on another day).
Parking isn’t too hard to come by, and with plenty of trees around the premise, the restaurant is rather comfortable too.
plenty of extra ingredients for your choosing
The Lor Mee has been around since the independence of the country, and offers many add ons if you crave for extra porky goodness. This includes lor bak (卤肉), pig’s ear, 3-layer pork, pork knuckle, intestine, and so forth.
wholesome loh mee, we added some pork skin
For lunch, we ordered lor mee with pork skin. It comes with the usual ingredients of noodle and meehun, bean sprouts, pork slices, hard boiled eggs, and those thick, flavorful gravy. Splash some home made chili sauce and fresh garlic paste and you have a bowl of awesome hawker delights worthy of instagram, and your stomach.
Unlike most hawker stalls that offers lor mee in conjunction with Hokkien mee (also known as prawn mee), this stall specialized only on lor mee, all for RM 4 (small), and RM 5.50 (big). Of course, you pay a bit more for additional ingredients.
Now, I need to find a good version in KL.
Address:
Hainan Lor Mee
Kedai Kopi Hai Beng
Jones Road & Burma Road, Penang
GPS: 5.42902,100.314096
The first time I heard about 1926 Heritage Hotel was back in 1999 or 2000, when my late dad actually worked on the refurbishing project as a backhoe loader operator. I remember that back then that it was going to be a quaint little place, a hotel that is not built from ground up, but one that’s converted from real heritage building that makes Penang one of UNESCO’s historic city.
1926 Heritage Hotel, Burma Road, Penang
Originally built in 1926 as a British colonial immigration officers and local administrators of Penang, the 24 linked houses are restored and linked together via long corridors to make up a 90+ rooms hotel.
The building is owned by the Penang state government, and now run by one of my friends, WenQi’s dad, who originally started to get involved with the hotel by operating the Hainanese Delights restaurant within the premise.
the long hallway and the room with parquet flooring
The room I spent a night over was a Heritage Balcony King that comes with a balcony overlooking the pool, parquet flooring, LCD TV, air conditioning, hot shower, and a mini fridge.
Other types of room includes family cottage that houses up to 6 pax and VIP rooms with pool access.
While the rooms and furniture are a bit dated (it’s a heritage hotel anyway), they are clean, comfortable, and quite charming.
the wall at 1926 Heritage Hotel
One of chilling areas at the 1926 Heritage Hotel is the blackboard wall just a stone’s throw away from the front desk where guests can hang out and if you’re up to it, leave some memories on the wall like many does.
swimming pool and surrounding
Other facilities of the hotel includes garden, a pretty good size swimming pool, WiFi, and free parking for guests. Private functions can also be had at the pool area.
Location wise, 1926 Heritage Hotel sits between Gurney Drive and the Penang downtown area. The hotel is accessible by public bus, and there are quite a few pretty good kopitiam nearby (Old Green House is next to it).
Rates start at just above RM 110++ (promotional), a pretty good bargain for hotel at this class. Check it out if you’re heading to Penang.
Address:
1926 Heritage Hotel
227 Jalan Burma,
10050 Georgetown, Penang
GPS: 5.42415, 100.32063
Web: 1926heritagehotel.com
Tel: 04-228 1926
