[2025 George Town Restaurant] Travel Guide for Siam Road Charcoal Char Koay Teow (Updated May)

Address - 82, Jalan Siam, George Town, 10400 George Town, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia Ambiance/Facilities - Caution! It’s gonna to be super hot & humid. please bring along a little portable fan if you could. And a powerbank, it is all for the queue btw. Highlights - Must be that wok hey!!! Avg. Price per Person - RM 11 for a big portion (which is what we ordered, refer to the picture) Rating - 4.5/5 I do miss his dad’s masterpiece! #PenangFood

#wheretogo I believe that those who have visited Penang must have already heard of this very popular Char Kway Teow store known as Siam Road Charcoal Char Kuey Teow. Once you reach the place, you’ll see a long snaking queue and you know you are here! We queued approximately 20-25 minutes and totally worth it. They uses charcoal instead of normal gas stove to fry the char kway tiao. The char kway tiao comes with 2-3 prawns and it is one of the best char kway tiao that I have eaten so far. The prawns were fresh and the kway tiao not too oily. 100% recommend to anyone who is coming to Penang to try it! 💯

I was shocked to see the long queue when I arrived. Even after lunch time on a normal day, there were still as many people. We queued for an hour and fifteen minutes. Those who don’t have the patience to wait should remember to go after 3:30. You don’t have to wait too long, and you can eat in about 20-30 minutes. Fried Kway Teow is mainly divided into egg and no egg. With egg RM9, no egg RM 8. The portion of fried kway teow is just right. It’s not too much or too little for me. Frankly speaking, it’s more fragrant when fried with charcoal fire, but it’s a bit oily. It’s delicious, but it takes too much time. The taste is not amazing, so it’s better to experience it once. (Most fried kway teow in Penang is of high quality) If you want to order, queue up as soon as you arrive. You don’t need to reserve a table first because the queue time is at least 1 hour.

These kinds of stalls are as authentic as it can get in modern Penang. The tables, chairs and air is coated with oil from the frying of the kway teow. There’s said to be many famous kway teow stores in Penang and Sian Road is one of them. Unfortunately, the original chef has passed down the recipe to his son and has since stopped cooking. As agreed by several locals in the eatery, he still needs a bit more practice before his cooking tastes as good as the original. My only gripe for this place is that the biggest price you pay isn’t with your wallet but your time. We queued for at least 1.5 hours for a dish we consumed in under 10 minutes. Portions were small. If you’re planning your itinerary for Penang and are short on time, I’d recommend you give this place a miss. Kway teow is soft and silky with a nice layer of oil. It’s a different kind of noodle than the one used in Singapore. The flavour is strong in aftertaste but weak on your tongue. Solid B+ dish. #penang #tripblazers #foodie