Ferringhi Coffee Garden (Penang)

Having brunch in the midst of greenery is always an enjoyable experience. 

We read reviews online saying that it's often crowded. However, when we were there, there was plenty of space- go there early before the lunch crowd streams in!

We headed straight for the comfort of air-con because the heat outside was unbearable.

I ordered the "FCG Breakkie" (RM 25.80) which got served on a really big plate. This kept me full for quite a while. Standard brunch food, although what was more special was the sweet glaze on the ham. The chicken sausage was also something new- as opposed to the normal sausages where the texture is uniform within, this sausage tasted more like minced meat put together.

A nice place to spend your morning/afternoon.

Ferringhi Coffee Garden
43-D Batu Ferringhi
Penang

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Living Room Cafe Bar & Gallery (Penang)

Sad to say, our best meal in Penang wasn't spent in some roadside stall slurping down a piping hot bowl of Penang laksa or enjoying a bowl of chendol in the sweltering heat. Rather, it was a delicious meal at Living Room Cafe Bar & Gallery. 

Lots of greenery at the outdoor space of the restaurant.

We ordered a Veg Curry Capitan (36 RM) which is a typical Malaysian dish. Robust curry flavour served piping hot was perfect with the rice.

Everybody loved the Thai Style Fish (22 RM). You won't go wrong ordering this- a sweet and sour, thoroughly appetising sauce is laid below the crispy fish without the fish going soggy.

The Salt and Pepper Squid (20 RM) was so chewy and not difficult to tear apart unlike some served at other restaurants. Lightly seasoned to bring out the natural freshness of the squid.

The Sizzling Prawn in Oyster Sauce (29.50 RM) was the only dish that I felt may be a slight disappointment to our otherwise great dinner. The smell that surrounded us when the sizzling plate of prawns came was insane, but the taste that followed was pretty ordinary.

Reasonably priced and delicious food. Friendly service as well. If you are getting here from Golden Sands Resort, keep walking down till you pass Holiday Inn and Park Royal. It will take approximately 20-25 minutes to walk here.

Living Room Cafe Bar & Gallery 
43C Batu Ferringhi
Penang

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Golden Sands Resort (Penang)

It is always nice to wind down at the end of the year, so we decided to go to Penang for a short trip. We booked Golden Sands Resort which proved to be a rather good choice. 

1) Location 

Golden Sands Resort is located in Batu Ferringhi which is famous for its beaches. Just venturing a few steps out from the resort will bring you to the beach. 

2) Hotel room
The room was not carpeted and this was actually a plus point for me. Imagine if all the guests came back with sand and the sand got trapped in the carpet, that would be pretty gross. Good thing about housekeeping is that they stock up four bottles at one go, twice a day. This means you will not need to buy your own bottled water.

3) Food
The breakfast and/or food in general here is very average. There is a wide selection of food items, such as waffles, pancakes, nasi lemak, roti canai, cereal, dough fritters, muffins etc. We also tried the lunch selection which was ordinary.

4) Amenities
Golden Sands is very families friendly. Even if you didn't venture out of the place, there would be sufficient entertainment within the resort- swimming pools of varying depths, a lounge where there is a selection of books to choose from (although I've to say the selection was quite bad), games such as scrabble, gym, table tennis facilities etc.

5) Service
Service was a mixture of hits and misses, although leaning towards a series of misses. While we did get a few friendly "good mornings" from the housekeeping service team, the service standards from the rest of the staff didn't meet expectations- slow check in times, rude behaviour from the service staff are something that we do not expect from the Shangri-la brand.

6) What to do
There is a free shuttle from Golden Sands to the Traders Hotel in Georgetown at various timings throughout the day. Book in advance because some slots can be popular and you may not have a seat. The location is far away (around 40-50 minutes) from major attractions (Georgetown and Penang Hill).

In this area, you can visit the beach where there are many activities such as parasailing, banana boat etc. Be careful of the jellyfish if you intend to go into the water though. Also, a note on parasailing. I read that parasailing may not be necessarily safe in this area because many are unregulated- maybe observe how it's done for a while if you are new to it.

At night, visit the night markets where you can haggle for a good price. 

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