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Ali Nasi Lemak Daun Pisang Review: A Must-Try When You're In Penang

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Have Halal Will Travel •  Sep 10, 2020

This review of Ali Nasi Lemak in Penang is written by one of our contributors, Jocelyn. Some parts of the article may have been edited for length and clarity. 

On one glorious Friday morning in August this year, my friend and I decided to hop into my car and do a much needed makan trip to Penang. Unlike the majority of Malaysians, I am from a neighbouring state where I get to wake up after the sun is up, grab my car keys and still reach Penang in time for breakfast.

Whenever I googled for good and halal breakfast places in Penang, Nasi Lemak Ali often popped up but the thought of having ‘just’ nasi lemak in this food heaven made me push this eatery lower down on my places-to-try list every single time. So, what made me finally want to try it out? A simple passing comment about ‘this really good nasi lemak place’ pushed me over the edge. Besides, we were looking for food that we could eat in the car to practice physical distancing although dine-in was already allowed at that time.

P.S. Looking for halal food in Penang? Check out our Penang halal food guide here!

Nasi Lemak Ali is a stall selling only nasi lemak in front of the Sri Weld Food Court along Beach Street. Reviews said that there was always a long line at this stall despite being a grab-and-go place so we were quite relieved when there was only a short line that morning. While standing in line, I watched how each packet of nasi lemak was prepared. What a mouthwatering sight. If the Swiss Alps look spectacular with its snow-capped mountains, the view at Nasi Lemak Ali is just as spectacular with their sambal-capped rice.

P.S. If you're a fan of Chinese food, you'll love these 8 halal authentic Chinese eateries in Penang!

There were five types of nasi lemak there, all priced at RM2 per pack. They were anchovies with hard-boiled egg, squid, prawn, fish and salted fish with hard-boiled egg. We bought one packet of each kind except for the one with anchovies and hard-boiled egg. Each packet of nasi lemak came with a generous amount of sambal which for me, is the deciding factor of what makes a good nasi lemak. As we love that ‘kick’ in our food, we found that the sambal was cooked perfectly to suit our liking but some might find it a little too spicy. The ‘lemak’ in the rice was well-balanced with no chunks of rice clumped together despite the large quantity of nasi lemak they produce every day. Our favourites were the ones with fish and squid.

P.S. Check out these 8 delicious breakfast spots in Penang for your foodie trip!

Not too far across the street from Nasi Lemak Ali, we dropped by Gao Enough Tea because their ice cream advertisement outside their door caught our eye. Sadly, their ice cream wasn’t ready yet so we decided to try out their mango yogurt lassi. I enjoyed biting into chunks of mango in the can and liked the amount of sweetness in the drink. However, I shall be back one day to try their eye-catching ice cream.

Did I ever say it’s ‘just’ nasi lemak? Now I would go to Penang ‘just’ to have nasi lemak!

Halal status: Muslim-owned

Opening hours: Mon-Fri; 7AM-2PM, Sat; 7AM-1PM (closed on Sun)

Address: Sri Weld Food Court, Beach St, Georgetown, 10300 George Town, Penang, Malaysia

P.S. Have you been travelling around Malaysia? Want to share your tips and stories to help Muslims travel better? Email us at [email protected] or send us a DM on Instagram.