Sunny George Town was a pleasant 23 deg C (74 deg F) this Saturday morning, so we decided to take a long walk through the narrow historic streets of its UNESCO World Heritage site-listed old quarter.
Old Esplanade, with Fort Cornwallis (built 1786) on the right.
Penang’s Old Town Hall and the Koh Seang Tat Fountain in its adjoining garden.
Penang City Hall.
200-year-old Cantonese temples on King Street.
St George’s Church, consecrated 1819 - the oldest Anglican church in South-east Asia.
Our lunch venue at the end of our walk was at two-year-old DUAN (二杬), a popular modern-Malaysian bistro that’s just earned itself a MICHELIN Selected 2026 listing.
Very narrow, packed dining area.
Service was super-quick and efficient, despite how busy the place seemed. We got our food in no time at all!
- Nasi Lemak with Beef Rendang. - this is the dish we came for, and it didn’t disappoint: coconut milk-infused basmati rice, some kick-ass melt-in-the-mouth slow-cooked beef rendang curry, accompanied by crisp-fried anchovies (“ikan bilis”), toasted groundnuts, half a hard-boiled egg, crisp cracker, fresh cucumber slices and Penang achar awak pickles, topped with finely-julienned turmeric leaves which echo its use in the spice-blend used in the cooking. A dollop of fiery red sambal on the side provides the explosion of heat that lifted this dish to another level. Must-not-miss!
- Crisp-fried Tofu with Sweet-sour Sauce. - these are blocks of batter-fried tofu, which are pudding-soft on the inside, crisp on the outside. The sweet-sour sauce was lightly spicy, and the finely-julienned cucumbers, red onion and fresh mint leaves provide a fresh, addictive crunch.
We need to come back and explore more of the menu.
Address
DUAN @ George Town
251, Beach Street (Lebuh Pantai), 10300 George Town, Penang, Malaysia
Tel: +6010-372 5353
Opening times: 10.30am-9.30pm Mon to Fri, 9.30am-9.30pm Sat & Sun.
