Penang Hawker, Campsie

Only two stores down from the popular Albee’s Malaysian Kitchen Campsie is the recently opened Penang Hawker. We stopped by for a quick bite on a Thursday evening and the restaurant was buzzing. There were no free tables available as we walked in, however staff were able to shift a table of four into two separate tables for us to dine, as there was only one diner seated there. As we sat down and got comfortable, staff were swiftly moving around the busy restaurant, and dropped off some menus and table water to us.

We browsed through the menu, quite impressed with the layout and food photos shown. Penang Hawker’s menu is a representative of its name, specialising in Malaysian Penang food. There was all the local favourites on there from fried kway teow to sweet sauce cheong fun, with a menu that is enticing and not overly large. As we were deciding on what we wanted to order, the diner next to us had his noodle soup delivered. My brother and I peeped over to his table trying to investigate what he had ordered, as the smells from the bowl were very aromatic. We started to flip through the photos in the menu trying to find the dish and at last we worked out what he was eating. We didn’t need to flag down the staff, as they appear within minutes after, and we opted for the Penang Prawn Noodle Soup and ½ Roast Chicken.

As we waited for our food, we looked around quite surprised that a recently opened restaurant was so busy, considering there is a popular competitor pretty much next door, so we had high hopes that the food would be good, and indeed it was. The wait for the food wasn’t long at all, with the Penang Prawn Noodle Soup first to arrive, and not long after, the ½ Roast Chicken.

The Penang Prawn Noodle Soup contained both yellow hokkien noodles and vermicelli, pork belly slices, fishcake, prawns, water spinach, bean sprouts and boiled egg all in a rich spicy prawn broth topped with fried garlic. The dish was absolutely delicious, and we couldn’t stop going back in for more spoonfuls of that broth.

Penang Prawn Noodle Soup ($11.80)

The ½ Roast Chicken looked so good in the menu pictures, which is why we decided to order it, and it did not disappoint. The portion was true to size with the roast chicken sitting on some sweet soy sauce, with garnishes of cucumber and tomato and topped with a heaped amount of fried garlic. It was served with a half chilli sauce and half spring onion ginger sauce. The chicken skin was crispy, and the meat juicy and succulent, whilst the sauces were tasty and complemented the chicken well.

1/2 Roast Chicken ($16.80)

Overall, we had great meals at Penang Hawker, with staff being friendly and efficient, and meals tasty and at affordable prices. We are looking forward to going back and trying out some of the other dishes on the menu, the Malaysian Lala (Pipis) looks promising hehe. It looks like Albee’s may have a new competitor in town.

Penang Hawker

Address: 275 Beamish St, Campsie NSW 2194

Phone: 0421 728 951