<![CDATA[Why Hongkongers are getting a taste for Penang]>
That's good news for Heritage on a Plate, which offers tours of Georgetown aimed at satisfying appetites for both history and food.
Manned by Penangite Danny Mahes and American Jeremy Bernozzi, the tour operator takes guests to some of the best street food outlets in Penang, while explaining the area's history and culture.
"I think many of our guests are very surprised at the cultural connections, because although Penang is well known as a food destination, its place in the Chinese diaspora is not as widely articulated," says Danny, 36.
"Some guests have been taken aback at how long the history of Chinese trade and migration here stretches, and the contributions of the Chinese community in making Penang what it is today cannot be denied."
Heritage on a Plate co-owner, Danny Mahes. Photo: Asyraf Abdul Samad
Although the entire region has had trade and migration links to China since at least the 15th century, Penang specifically functioned as a "metropolitan nexus" of trade, culture, politics and beliefs, says Bernozzi, who has come across historical records that say " anecdotally " that Admiral Zheng He used to stop his fleet here for water, as "the springs here were known to the Chinese to be of higher purity".
The walking tour takes in temples, decades-old restaurants, and old clan homes; but it's not all architecture " Heritage on a Plate also serves up meals rich in history as well as flavour.
The Hok Poe Lye cafe, which has been around since the 1940s. Photo: Asyraf Abdul Samad
Another stop on the three-hour tour is family-run restaurant Moh Teng Pheow Nyonya Koay (or Straits Chinese Snacks). Owner Mook Hian Beng, 64, only decided to open a brick and mortar store when the traditional method of selling these glutinous rice confectionery " tray-laden Indian vendors who took to the streets on foot or motorbikes " became unsustainable.
The family-run Moh Teng Pheow Nyonya Koay is famous for freshly-made treats such as bak chang (stuffed glutinous rice), kuih talam (a pandan and coconut cream dessert), and other tidbits. The mural on the front of the restaurant is a homage to the traditional way the owners would hawk their wares " with the help of hired hands who went from street to street. Photo: Asyraf Abdul Samad
The various treats " flavoured with pandan [screw pine], grated coconut, dark sugar and coconut milk, are a hit with Singaporean and Indonesian crowds.
"Hongkongers like it too, but they have never tried this specific style. Singaporeans are more familiar with the taste, but they say that the way we make it is far better than in Singapore," he joked.
This heritage and history is what elevates the food from being a random assembly of ingredients to something deeper, says Bernozzi.
"The food here tells so many small stories about what has gone on not only in Malaysia, but across the world, whether it was famines or dynastic changes in southern China that sent people overseas, spices brought by Europeans from the Americas, or Muslim Indian nasi kandar [curried rice] vendors feeding the influx of people from South Asia with their local fusion curries."
Pie tee (crispy pastry filled with thin-sliced pork and vegetables), assam laksa (noodles in tangy fish broth) and a selection of the snacks Moh Teng Pheow is known for. Photo: Asyraf Abdul Samad
"I enjoyed learning about the cultures of Malays, Chinese and Indians. Compared to Hong Kong, they are all very traditional. They are quite different and yet live in harmony in a small town together."
The food, Chang says, was a throwback to a simpler time. "Although we have a variety of food in Hong Kong most of it is modernised. Whereas foods in Penang keep the historical taste with not much change."
Etienne Gad, 36, a French expatriate worker visiting from Hong Kong, was surprised to "see that all those regional cuisines were very much alive".
Singaporean Goh KL, 50, enjoyed taking in Penang's rich history, the similarities to his own hometown, as well as the historical clan buildings which reflected the state's close links with China and Chinese merchants.
Heritage on a Plate's visitors come from a variety of backgrounds. Some are in Penang to settle, thanks to programmes like Malaysia My Second Home, which is popular with Chinese and Hong Kong residents. Others come for a holiday, and still others to connect with their roots " but all are keen to discover more about Penang. Businessman Cheah Cheng Hye, 65, still waxes lyrical about his days in Penang despite having long settled in Hong Kong.
"Some of the city streets could be a scene from a Chinese movie set in the 1950s or 1960s. And Penang is best known for its hawker food " the most popular dishes include noodle dishes like hokkien mee and char kway teow, which I used to eat several times a week," he says.
"Malaysian food, which reflects the multi-racial composition of the country, is among the best you're ever likely to encounter, and I'm so happy that it is being increasingly appreciated by people in Hong Kong and all over the world."
The operators of Heritage on a Plate entertain all sorts of visitors, says Danny.
This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (SCMP).
Copyright (c) 2019. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
