60 hours in Penang

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Sarkies Corner's dining room is a colonial coffee shop setting looking out on the channel that offers all-day dining and truly celebrates Penang's diverse cultural crossroads heritage and the influence other cultures and spices have had in its foods. Choose from a wide selection of delicious local fare and various international cuisine. It has tables that seat about 150 people.
Breakfast is from 6:30am to 10:30am

All-Day Dining from 10:30am to 11:00pm

Situated in Georgetown at the intersection of Farquhar Road and Penang Road, the Eastern & Oriental is right next to the food havens on Penang Road, shopping complexes and several entertainment outlets of downtown Georgetown.

The owner, Mr. Krishnan, is a great guy who will definately take good care of you with a large menu of Indian and several Malay dishes. Most items on the large menu board are less than $2.

The roti prata is a dish you will want to try at Amitha's, with the curry being spicy and very good - good enough to go ahead and order a 2d plate of it! The chicken briyani and the fried rice is also worth trying.

I was given recommendations for the Kashmir by two different local sources upon arriving in Penang. They both told me it was a place that had very good to really good Indian food and breads and was well worth a visit to dine there. Definitely a good sign when looking for a first night impression on a city's food scene.

The Kashmir is located off Penang Road and under a hotel. It is medium sized, clean and air-conditioned place decorated in typical Northern Indian attire and the owner was super friendly and talked with me a while. And that is about where the similarities to other Indian restaurants in Penang ends - because the food was even better than the recommendations made it out to be. Do get some of the different naan breads that are offered - and dip them into the northern style curries that are offered. The chicken briyani was the best I have had anywhere - with the rice being as close to perfect as you are going to find. I give it my highest recommendation for an item you should try! The sambals were all very good - and I did try several of them as well.

So besides the cab drivers, doormen, and desk clerks - add me as giving the Kashmir a recommendation as a place you should stop for dinner at!

Fort Cornwallis is laid out as a star-shaped fortification with thick brick and stone walls. From 1804 through 1810, the fort was rebuilt with bricks and stones by Indian convict labor during Colonel R.T. Farquhar’s term as governor of Penang and completed during Norman Macalister’s term as Governor of Penang at the cost of $80,000.

Even though the fort was originally built for the Royal artillery troops and the military, its actual function was more an administrative rather than defense role. In its entire history, the fort had never been engaged in any battle. Apart from being used for basing some British Royal artillery troops, the fort was also occupied at one time by the Sikh Police of the Straits Settlements during the 1920s.

The remains of the fort are worth seeing for the cheap admission price charged. There is a lot that could be done at the fort to make it a much more interesting historical site, but it seems the interactive historical approach has not yet made its way to Penang. Several of the old rooms in the walls house artifacts dug up from recent digs at the fort. But some parts of the fort are in disrepair, with horses grazing on the back walls.

Fort Cornwallis could be a great attraction if it became a showcase area, and the government or nonprofit organizations improved what is available there already to become a really good living museum.

SS is a fun enough time that even I found myself closing it out 2 nights in a row. Getting a cab back to a hotel from the Garage complex is not a problem, being Penang Road is right out front.