Penang

This does not even deserve a one star rating.\r \r The dining experience at this place was awful to say the least. The only item that was good was the Roti. One goes out to dine to relax and enjoy their meals. Here at this place you felt rushed, conjested, and we were subjected to the most discourteous service. Another atrocious thing was they determine what the tip is (more than 15%) and they include this when they give you the final bill. In addition their tax that was included also exceeded the 6.25% mandated by the state. This is highway robbery and one should report this to the authorities.\r \r WE WILL NEVER GO HERE AGAIN and we DISCOURAGE ANY OF OUR FRIENDS as well.\r \r AWFUL, AWFUL PLACE. more

love their skewers (chicken or beef) w/peanut sauce, roti (thin crispy pancake w/dipping curry sauce), hoinan chicken rice (make sure you get the rice cooked w/chicken oil), indian meen goreng (sp?). the sizzling beef dish (the spicy one--they have two versions) is good too, albeit spicy.\r \r i used to love a dish--not sure if it's called ""buddha's delight""--but i love the ""nest"" that holds the food coz it's made with mashed taro that's shaped as a bowl and deep fried. some places do it right but theirs is a bit off on quality. it doesn't have the taste of taro and it's too starchy; either they mash with too much corn starch to cut down cost or they haven't figured out how to maintain the right consistency.\r \r bak kut teh (must have if you ever go to southeast asia)... had better. should go heavier on the herbs, but i understand sometimes food and taste need to localized to suit different people's stomaches. \r \r red bean shake is good too. ...wait, is this a place where i had a fried ice-cream? if i had it wasn't bad either.\r :) \r \r :) Pros: good food, inexpensive, T accessible (orange and green) Cons: parking, crowded at times more

I am a regular at Penang, until a few days ago, I order 2 take out. When I got home I started to eat and soon found a short hair in my rice...eww but thats not it...Then, my father was eating the veggies and pulled out a long hair from his mouth from the other take out box!!! Erk! Be careful and watch your food. I love the taste but not the hair. \r \r more

The food is decent, but the service is completely awful. The waiters are rude .. they kept coming into our table trying to rush us when we kept telling them that we are not ready. And if you are looking to just try out their desserts you better not because they will start yelling at you, telling you that you must order entrees in order to get a table. Apparently because they were really busy when there were a couple of tables in the open. The waitress was pretty rude about it. What a bad day! Pros: Okay food Cons: Bad Service more

caliente! excellente! love the way they set up the place. i normally had the ginger duck soup or their... more

caliente! excellente! love the way they set up the place. i normally had the ginger duck soup or their fried noodle dish. more

I went to Penang in Boston Chinatown this past weekend and was very upset with the service and how they handle our situation. We order Roti with Curry sauce and when I scooped up the sauce, I found a coc*roach in the curry. We presented it to the waiter and he showed the manager. The waiter came over and continuing serving us like nothing happened. We requested for him to change our plates as some of us already place the curry on our plates. It took almost 10 minutes for us to get new plate, but not without getting up and getting another waiter to come over to give us the plates. The appetizer was never removed from our bill, we actually paid for something we didn't even touch. This is completely upsetting. On top of that already lost our appetite of eating when finding the coc*roach in our curry. We never received a simple apology or even appropiate service throughout our meal. This was extremely disappointing as I agree that I do enjoy the food there, but I will have to revisit the idea of ever going to such a place. Cons: Inappropiate ways in handling mishap food. more

I've been to Penang five times in the past year. The food is always excellent. The wine list is too small and they have no hard liquor license, but the food really speaks for itself. Usually the service is very quick, but on my last visit it seemed extremely slow. The staff is not talkative, but always nice. This is a great spot for a large party! Pros: Consistently good food Cons: Always packed, no good parking more

I have been here numerous times over the past 3 years, received prompt service and relatively quick seating. Recently, I ate here with my boyfriend and his family. We ordered 4 Roti Canai (a must if you go). After waiting for 20 minutes, ordering, AND receiving our main courses, the waiter finally realizes that they gave our Roti Canai to the table next to us (whom hadn't ordered yet, let alone even been seated for more than 5 minutes)!!! We were VERY dissappointed, frustrated and downright angry. If it weren't for the excellent food and decent value, I would never ever go back again. They did finally realize that they gave OUR dish to the OTHER table AT NO CHARGE and they didn't offer a discount or even so much as an apology TO US. First time I was ever dissappointed here, haven't been back since. Contemplating ever returning. Pros: Great Food, Decent Value, Decent Wait Cons: Sometimes Rude, Cramped Seating more

I had an enjoyable experience eating at Penang--the food was good and cheap too--until they literally shoved me out the door as soon as I was done eating. I got my bill, then ten seconds later someone comes to get my check, then three more waitstaff came by--all within a span of 1.5 minutes. Let me at least get my purse first! I'd understand if they had people waiting, but no one was waiting and there were still quite a few tables empty. I've never been treated that way by any restaurant. It ruined my experience. Pros: Good food more

Granted, Penang does serve decent food at very fair prices, but it's starting to rest on its good reputation. Be warned: You WILL have to wait 20+ minutes in its very cramped lobby, mashed up against the lobster tanks and running waitresses. Their Roti Canai is good and definitely worth ordering, but the Pandan Chicken made McNuggets seem tender and delectable. The Beef Chow Fun and Asparagus Chicken Malaysian style were also good, but delivered by a very hurried and rude waiter. We were keenly aware that he wanted to turn our table as quickly as possible, and when he brought us the wrong dish, refused to exchange it for us. There are still many reasons to go there - but appreciation for their customers is not one of them. Perhaps it's time to give Pinang in Fanueil or Pho Pasteur in the Theatre District a try. Pros: Price, Authenticity of Food, Decor Cons: Service, Wait, Hurried Atmosphere more

Not a lot of vegetarian dishes on the menu (which is organized rather badly), but the staff is willing to sub out meat for tofu and veggies, which is rather helpful. Definitely try their taro & cashew dish. mmmm. And the peanut sauce is exceptionally good at both locations. Pros: tasty food, flexible cooks, value for $ Cons: long wait, ALWAYS, crowded, noisy more

Whether you go to the one in Boston or Cambridge, you'll find great food for a great price. Definitely get the Roti Canai for an app, and the mango shrimp dish is to die for! Also, the seafood specialty dish is awesome. Never had a bad experience there and we've gone there about 15 times now. Pros: inexpensive, quick seating usually, good menu selection Cons: can be crowded more

I would drink the Roti Canai dipping sauce if no one was watching. Great, flavorful food and very reasonable prices. Always packed but the turnover is fast. more

although the wood in the restaurant evoked a sense of being in southeast asia, my first impression upon seeing the waiter wipe down the table with the previous diners' old tea was that I was at a cheap chinese restaurant. my second and third impressions confirmed this feeling since the waiters looked chinese and were talking to each other in chinese, and the food tasted like chinese food! this was when the restaurant first opened, so perhaps the owners have been able to inject more malaysian flavour into the restaurant since then. Pros: not expensive, slightly exotic Cons: no much parking, basically chinese? more

This place surely is all it's cracked up to be. The food is excellent, at an affordable price. It's always crowded so it's a bit noisy, but the service is quite good considering the crowds. more

This place is very busy, very authentic and cleaner than most places in that neighborhood. I eat there often. Try to get near the kitchen so you can watch them make the flatbread. Be sure to order some! Service can be snippy... but they are busy. Soups are HUGE!!! Pros: close to theatres, fast service, good value Cons: can be rude, nix the beef, hustle you to finish more

I've been to Penang several times and never had a bad experience. The service could be a little better, but the place is always so packed, they have a good reason! I always start off with the Indian Pancakes...a nice hot appetizer made with a spicy curry sauce with hunks of chicken, and warm Indian flatbread that you dip in it. Yummm..... By far the best thing entree on the menu is the Buddist Yam Pot with chicken. It's a giant bowl made out of mashed yams (not sure what else,) deep fried, and filled with mixed veggies and chicken in a brown gravy. That coupled with the sticky rice and I'm in HEAVEN! Another great entree is the Mango Chicken that comes served right in the mango shell. I drive the 50 miles to Chinatown just to go this restaurant. I LOVE IT! Pros: excellent food, great atmosphere, inexpensive Cons: little parking, very crowded, service is so-so more

I've been going to Penang for years, and have never had a disappointing experience. Try their mango chicken, pineapple rice, chicken or coconut flavored rice, and of course, the flavored iced drinks. You can't go wrong with any dish there. You can ask them to adjust the spice level of the dishes too. I highly recommend this place. It's conveniently located in Chinatown. more