15 July 2004

Penang Foodie 3

Another of Penang's must-try is the famous "cendol" tucked away in a small lane off Penang Road.



This is the approach from the opposite end of the lane.



This is the place. A modest push-cart stall parked by the kerbs that belies its reputation. I suspect the young man (in the above photo) currently running the show is the son of the original vendor. He is aided by an Indonesian lady (Indonesian workers are common in Malaysia).



Cendol is a favourite desert/snack/drink among locals. Cendol is green-coloured pandan(screw pine)-flavoured little flour droplets floating in sweetened diluted coconut milk ("santan") and topped with brown palm sugar syrup ("gula melaka") and shaven ice.

The bowl on the right is the "basic" order i.e. plain cendol with no add-ons. RM1.20 (USD0.30) per bowl.

The left bowl is the "super-size me" order i.e. loaded with all the extras of sweetened corn and red kidney beans. RM2.00 (USD0.53) per bowl.

This is a sweet bowl of icy heaven. Excellent body-cooler for the scorching heat in this part of the world.

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Some readers have written in asking why there's a lack of Korean-related posts of late. I guess I owe my massive readership of 12 an explanation for this state of affairs.

(1) I'm trying to clear the backlog of posts of my recent travel

(2) The digital camera that I use in Korea is now somewhere in Denmark. I should get it back by the end of the month though.

So normal service should resume shortly. Thank you for your patience.