Penang Food Itinerary: Two Days of Hawker Stops

Market Street (Lebuh Pasar) and nearby Penang Street form the core of George Town’s Little India, an area linked to Tamil Indian shops and trade. It was an early settlement area for Indian immigrants to Penang, with Indian music, food, spices and goods. Follow the spice trade along Lebuh Pasar, where shops supply spices to businesses and household customers. The area’s food and goods offer a first taste of the Indian cultural quarter before you move on to the hawker streets.

Chulia Street is a George Town evening street-food area, with noodle dishes such as char bee hoon and char koay teow. Curry mee is another hawker choice. Make this your street-food grazing stop: compare the noodle dishes, then try curry mee if you want another local flavour. Small portions leave room to sample more than one stall as you wander along the street.

The Clan Jetties developed as Chinese clans settled by George Town’s waterfront; wooden houses stand on stilts above the sea and link by plank walkways, with some families still living there. Chew Jetty is the best-known of the Pengkalan Weld jetties. Take the long walkway to see the stilt houses and the temple at Chew Jetty, the best-known of the jetties. It’s a change of scene from the food streets, with a chance to look out over the waterfront as you stroll.

Kek Lok Si is a large Buddhist temple complex in Air Itam, with the Amitabha Buddha Pagoda, the Kuan Yin Bodhimandala and several halls. Its seven-storey pagoda combines Chinese, Thai and Burmese design elements, and a bronze Kuan Yin statue stands on the hillside. Look closely at the pagoda’s mix of Chinese, Thai and Burmese design, then visit the halls and the hillside Kuan Yin statue. The temple’s varied spaces make a rewarding contrast with the food-focused stops elsewhere in Penang.

Tours for this stop

Penang Hill and the Kek Lok Si Temple

5.0 (3 reviews)5 hours

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Penang City & Temple Tour with Penang Hill(Fast Lane)& Kek Lok Si

5.0 (1 review)6 hours

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Half-Day Penang Kek Lok Si Temple Private Tour

5.0 (1 review)3.5 hours

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Gurney Drive Hawker Centre is a food centre on Persiaran Gurney. Penang-style choices include pasembur, char koay teow, nasi lemak panas and fruit rojak. Make this your sample-and-compare stop: pasembur brings a different kind of bite from the noodle dishes, while fruit rojak offers another flavour to finish with. Sharing a few plates gives you a chance to try more than one style.