Post Category → Dim Sum

Fu Er Dai

Fu Er Dai

If your idea of a proper Penang breakfast involves bamboo baskets, king prawns, fluffy buns and enough food to make lunch completely unnecessary, put Fu Er Dai 富二代 on the list. This lively dim sum restaurant on Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah serves a broad Cantonese-style spread, but the king-prawn siew mai and molten salted-egg lava buns are where I would start. Add har gow, chee cheong fun and a plate of Golden Emperor Mee, and suddenly “just breakfast” has become a full-blown yum cha session.

The location is another winner: easy enough to combine with a George Town heritage walk, and with parking available—a small miracle in this part of Penang. Come hungry, order for the table, drink plenty of tea and remember that one basket is never really one basket.

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Tai Tong Restaurant

Tai Tong Restaurant Penang

Tai Tong Restaurant is the kind of George Town institution that doesn’t need to reinvent itself. At Lebuh Cintra, the attraction is old-school Cantonese dim sum served with steaming baskets, rolling trolleys, endless tea and just enough breakfast chaos to make you feel you’ve wandered into another era.

Come hungry and look beyond the obvious: salted egg yolk custard buns, har gow, siew mai, silky chee cheong fun, bao, egg tarts and the hefty Imperial Glutinous Rice Pao are among the dishes worth hunting down. It can get busy, parking is predictably Penang, and the service can be brisk — but if what you want is traditional trolley-service dim sum rather than a polished modern imitation, Tai Tong remains one of George Town’s more compelling stops.

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Four Hands Penang

Four Hands Penang

Four Hands brings a more polished side of dim sum to Jalan Burma, pairing Cantonese favourites with creative touches like crispy-prawn chee cheong fun, gold-leaf har gao and Guinness pork belly buns. It’s less chaotic banquet hall, more comfortable modern yum cha—and that’s exactly why it works.

Come hungry, order for the table, and don’t pretend you’re only going to have one basket. The har gao deserves your attention, the pork belly bun is dangerously easy to like, and the whole experience makes a convincing case for adding a little refinement to your next Penang breakfast.

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