Monday, June 4, 2012

YummY! TekSen Penang

You are atJotaro's Blog / FootSteps / YummY! / Chinese Food / Tek Sen Restuarant
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(Views& ratings are my own, based on my travels, tastes & experiences)
TEK SEN RESTAURANT (RATED - 8.1/10)
George Town, Penang, Malaysia
I was up in Penang, on one of my regular visits to my parents and decided to try out one of the Foodie place much talked about by food blogger EAT OUT WITH SAM (for full write-up and location, see Sam's Blog).

My brother James together with his son picked me & my parents up and we proceeded straight to quaint Carnarvon Street, where Tek Sen was located. We were joined by James's wife Sarah.

Tek Sen recently relocated to these two shop-lots and was given a spanking new look. The food served is traditional Hokkein and Teochew dishes. This excited my mum, and she did make recommendations for what to order. Based on this and tips from friends and also SAM we did manage to get a good and satisfying spread, such as:


Braised Yam Duck (Arr-Orr)
This dish has such a nice rhyming Hokkein name "Arr-Orr" and it tastes delectable too! Served in a clay-pot, the duck was just nice and not too soft. The yam though could have been cooked longer to make it softer and the overall dish more starchy.


Fried Belacan-Chili Potato Leaves
The potato leaves were once a poor man dish but now makes it to the normal fare. The leaves were fried with grounded chili and belacan (shrimp paste). The balance mix of belacan and chili seeped well into the vegetables and prawns and added a "zing" to the dish.


Lak-Bee Soup (Six-Smell Soup)
This is not a smelly soup (pardon the translation from Hokkein) but a soup made from six Chinese herbs and pork ribs. Others call it Six-Flavors Soup. The clear soup added a good complement to wash down the spicy food.



Ham-har Sam Chan Bak
(Steamed Pork Belly with Salted Fish)

We wanted to order pork belly with cincalok but they were out of it and we settled for this based on mum's recommendation. It was delicious but a tad salty and should best be eaten with rice.


Steamed Pomfret - Teochew Style
Pomfret steamed the Teochew Style is one of my favorites. The fish was steamed with salted vegetables, tofu, and preserved plums to give it a sour tangy oomph! The pomfret used was "tau-tay" a more expensive version of the white pomfret. Expensive it was as it made up 60% of the bill. (Pardon the half-eaten pix, my guest just couldn't wait to get their hands onto this).


Review / Rating :
 Overall Rating : 8.1/10
Recommendation : Fantastic Eats. 
1. Taste :  
(Rated 45/50) - Good, tasty and authentic dishes from many available on the menu.

2. Location : 
(Rated 7/10) - Good location, within walking distance of close-by budget hotels/hostels. Parking could be difficult though.

3. Cleanliness: 
(Rated 7/10) - Clean and no unwanted smell although close to a wet market.

4. Presentation : 
(Rated 7/10) - Nice but nothing fanciful.

5. Value For Money : 
(Rated 7/10) - Good value for money, but some locals may say slightly expensive.

Recipe Links :
Click on following links for recipes of above dish (can't guarantee that they will be as good as TekSen's).
Braise Yam Duck (Arr Orr)
Fried Chilli-Belacan Potato Leaves
- Lak-Bee Soup (Six Smell Soup)
Ham-Har Sam Chan Bak
Steam Pomfret - TeoChew Style


You may also like:


Delightful Ice-cream made from coconut milk, George Town, Penang, Malaysia

Authentic pandan jelly in coconut milk - George Town, Penang, Malaysia

Delicious Nyonya pastries from a simple road-side stall - Fettes Road , Penang, Malaysia



A simple but unique style Wantan Mee - Pulau Tikus, George Town, Penang, Malaysia

 A grand clan house with impressive art & architecture.

You are at - Jotaro's Blog / FootSteps / YummY! / Chinese Food / Tek Sen Restuarant
If you like this, view my other blogs at Jotaro's Blog
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4 comments:

  1. Thanks Joe, I will give it a try the next time I am back there.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sin, Click on the italic words "EAT OUT WITH SAM" to get location map and many other recommended dishes.

      On top corner click on Back To (???) to navigate to other pages.

      In the post text, words italicized would link to other sites for more info. Just click on the italic words.

      Delete
  2. the sio bak is super nice! so is the sam wong tan (steamed eggs). very expensive but worth every penny.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Julia. Click on italic words go to other sites for more info. Click on to Back To (???) to navigate to other parts of my blog.

      You are my official critic. So let me know how to improve. Thanks.

      Delete