7 Village Koay Teow Th'ng

Everyone who lives in mainland Penang will know about 7 Village Noodle House (七廊粿條湯). In my bias islander's view, it is the only hawker food you can find in Butterworth that can rival its counterpart in George Town. 

It all started by the owner father in a small typical hawker stall at Kg Paya. Now they really make it big and not just remain as a humble hawker stall. They have expanded to be in a restaurant setting with a branch now in Penang island!  

Unlike most hawker stall in Penang island, 7 Village don't just offer Koay Teow Soup, they have many varieties of dishes to satisfy their customers' taste buds. Among the dishes you may find there include dry/ wet Koay Teow, Ramen, poached chicken, Lobak, deep fried squid, fish ball soup, minced meat and vegetable. 

2012 Recap

Today is the 6th of January 2013, we have lived passed 21st of December 2012. Perhaps the Mayans were simply ran out of paper on the 22nd December when trying to draft their calendar. Whatever the reason was, the most important thing that is truly relevant to us is the fact that we have survived the end of the world!

Let's recap some of the places in Penang that we have visited in 2012. Click on any items below for reviews:

Chu Char (煮炒)

• Chuan Bee Kopitiam
• Air Itam Curry Fish Head
• Chia Yean Cafe
• Bee Wei Seafood
• Sunshine Bay Seafood
• Sun Set View @ Butterworth
• Beach Corner Cafe
• Loke Sok 

Steamboat

• Sawara

Hokkien Mee

• Swee Kong Kopitiam

Koay Teow Th'ng

• Church Street
• Hutton Lane

Bee Hoon Th'ng

• Hor Chiu Hai (鬍髭海)
• Xiang Xia (鄉下)
• Ho Ping Kopitiam 

Tok Tok Mee

• Gurney Plaza
• Burmah Road

Nasi Lemak

• Sri Weld Food Court

Western Food (Penang Style)

• Esplanade
• Harvest Inn  

Duck Drumstick Noodle Soup (鸭腿面线)

•  Green Lane

Chicken Rice

• Green Lane

Thai Food

• Annathai Kitchen

Coconut Drink

• Abu Siti Lane 
• Esplanade

As we are still living, let's have at least one new year resolution that is dedicated to continue our quest for best food around us!

Recipe Of Koay Teow Th'ng

When compared to other Penang noodle dishes, Koay Teow Th’ng (Flat Rice Noodle Soup) is probably the plainest of them all. It comes in a clear meat-based broth accompanied by fish balls, fish cake slices and shredded chicken although some hawker uses duck meat as well.

Stock:

·         2 liters of water

·         1 chicken, quartered

·         1 chicken carcass, in pieces

·         200g pork bones

·         1 teaspoon of smashed white peppercorns

·         1 teaspoon of sugar

·         1 teaspoon of salt

·         600g of scalded flat rice noodles (Koay Teow)

·         180g of blanched bean sprouts

Toppings:

·         300g of shredded chicken meat

·         15 fish balls

·         2 chopped stalks spring onions

·         Lard oil and crisps

·          Garlic oil and crisps

Dipping Sauce

·         6 – 8 sliced bird’s eye chilies

·         3 tablespoon of light soy sauce

How To Prepare The Stock:

After water is boiled, add in the chicken, chicken carcass, pork bones and peppercorns. Bring back to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for 30 – 40 minutes. Strain stock into clean pot and season to taste with sugar and salt. Shred about 300g of chicken meat and set aside for the topping later.

How To Serve:

Bring stock back to a boil. Place a serving of Koay Teow and bean sprouts in a bowl. Top with shredded chicken. Cook 3 or 4 fish balls in the boiling stock and add to the bowl together with the hot stock. Garnish with spring onion, a teaspoon of lard oil and crisps, and a teaspoon of garlic oil and crisps. Serve with the chili and soy dipping sauce.

Hutton Lane Koay Teow Th'ng

This is my second recommendation of one of my favorite Penang hawker food; Koay Teow Th'ng (soup). I consider it to be a healthy choice among the hawker food as it is cooked instead of fried. As such your body won't get heaty and definitely the perfect choice if you are having sore throat or fever and still crave for Penang hawker food!

The place is located along Hutton Lane near Equator Academy of Arts. It opens for business around 7.30am in the morning until noon. Closes on Sunday.

The ingredients are either chicken or pork and one of the must try item is their homemade fish ball. Unlike machine made fish ball which taste like rubber; this handmade fish ball has richer texture and taste and you can definitely feel the difference. Not to mention the silky smooth noodle which made me love this dish.

For my other recommendation of this dish kindly refer to Church Street Koay Teow Th'ng.

If you want to know how to cook this dish by yourself, read here for Recipe Of Koay Teow Th'ng. 

Koay Teow Th'ng @ Church Street

Koay Teow Th'ng or flat noodle soup is one of the favorite Penang hawker food. There are varieties depending on which place you go, some serve with chicken, some with pork while quite a few come with duck meat.Personally I prefer the one garnished with duck meat as the soup taste sweeter and richer compare to others. One particular place that I usually go is situated along Church Street and called Eng Loh cafe.

My favorite time to patronize this coffee shop is around 12 noon as it is not so crowded. Being in an old colonial building, the interior is very much cooler thanks to the thick load bearing walls around it. With cooler temperature, you tend to enjoy your food more, my personal feeling anyway.

I particularly like the silky smooth noodle that gives soothing texture in the mouth. It is a healthier hawker food as it is not too oily compared to the other usual fried dishes which Penang is famous for.

Best to be eaten together with the cut chillies to give an explosive impact and improve blood circulation at the same time. RM4.50 for big bowl.

I usually order big bowl with additional Koay Teow simply because it digest quickly and by 3pm in the afternoon you will feel hungry already if you take the small bowl.

The senior couple that have years of experience in preparing this dish.

The building frontage along Church Street.

After your hearty lunch you can just walk across the road to visit the renowned Pinang Peranakan Museum and savoring some Baba Nyonya culture. This is another reason why I like to come here. It is located right in the heart of George Town's heritage enclave where you can visit many beautiful colonial architecture all within walking distance. Places like Fort Cornwallis, the Esplanade, Town Hall and City Hall are just a stone throw away. However, just a piece of advice that you might want to bring along an umbrella with you as the afternoon sun in the tropics is not very pleasant.

Pinang Peranakan Museum

RATINGS

Food                                           : 4/5

Service                                        : 3/5

Atmosphere                                 : 3/5

Value for money                           : 4/5

Chances of going back for more   : 4/5 

OVERALL                                    : 3.6/5

For my other recommendation of this dish, refer to Hutton Lane Koay Teow Th'ng.

If you wish to learn how to cook this dish, refer Recipe Of Koay Teow Th'ng.