Two days in Malaysia’s food heaven

Just off Malaysia’s west coast, on the Straits of Melaka, Penang island is a key Southeast Asian crossroad that historically brought together traders, armies from across the world and created a huge repository of culinary delights.

Friday

4pm: Drop your bags off at one of the stylish boutique hotels in Georgetown, Penang’s historic commercial heart, where temples, 19th- century shophouses and British colonial government buildings compete for space.

6pm: Do as the British colonials did. Gather at the Eastern & Oriental hotel’s Farquhar bar to escape the humid weather, sip a gin and tonic and soak up some history. Built in 1885, the hotel was among the finest in the British Empire.

7pm: With nightfall, Penang turns into a street-food paradise. To take it all in one go, make your way to Lorong Baru with its huge sprawl of food carts.

Saturday

9am: Go for a classic Hainanese coffee-shop breakfast at the Toh Soon Cafe, on Campbell St: thick, black coffee and charcoal grilled toast with lashings of coconut jam.

10:30am: Trot over to Lebuh Armenian and soak up Penang’s budding arts scene. Private galleries dot the street of two-storey shophouses.

Noon: Lunch at Mama’s Nyonya Restaurant, on Lorong Abu Siti, specialising in the spice-rich cuisine of the Peranakan community – descendants of intermarriages between ethnic Chinese and Malays in the 15th century. The family-run restaurant dishes out old-time favourites such as curry kapitan (dry chicken curry) and otah-otah (spicy prawn paste baked in banana leaves).

2pm: Visit the very haunted Penang War Museum in the fortress of Batu Maung. Built by the British in the 1930s, it fell to a surprise attack by the Japanese in World War II and was turned into a place of torture.

4pm: Take in a bit of the Penang countryside in Balik Pulau, with its picturesque Malay kampung houses on stilts and lush orchards that bear durian in June and July.

6pm: Look for Chew Jetty, a centuries-old waterfront settlement that is home to the Chew clan, whose fore-fathers came from China’s Fujian province and are mostly fishermen. Wander around the wooden houses, temples and boats. Have a few beers on the stilted boardwalks and ease into the cool night.

Sunday

9am: Hang out at Batu Ferringhi, or Foreigner’s Rock, for some rays or water sports on a beach strip of big-name hotels, seafood restaurants and cafes.

2pm: Check out Swatow Lane, which used to be home to striptease joints and cabaret shows in the 1950s but now has a variety of restaurants and hawkers jostling for your attention. Cool off with ais kacang, an indulgent concoction of ice shavings, rose syrup, condensed milk and sweet corn.