Prawn Noodle, or commonly known as Hokkien Mee in Penang, is a local hawker food delight that one should not miss when in Penang. There are many Hokkien Mee stalls around the island but most of them offer classical type of Hokkien Mee and lack of creativity for the newer generation.
T & T Prawn Mee shop is one of the old timers in Penang that sell Hokkien Mee. The founder of T & T prawn mee shop Mr. Tan Chui Kee has dedicated his life to selling Hokkien Mee for the past 50 years. At that time, a bowl of Hokkien Mee was only at 10 sen per bowl.
As you can see on top of the picture, Mr. Tan (in the middle of the picture) the founder of T & T Prawn Mee shop is still very strong and energetic. He is still helping out in the shop. However, most of the managing part of the business has been handed over to his son.
Surely curiosity will come into mind by Hokkien Mee with creativity. Most of the time, the Hokkien mee that we have are classical. Therefore what is Hokkien Mee with creativity?
Claypot Hokkien Mee with Egg – RM4.70, Hokkien Mee is usually served in a bowl rather than in claypot, and the noodle is usually the yellow egg noodle and bihun. However, Mr. Tan managed to think out of the box by serving the dish in claypot instead and also by substituting the usual yellow noodle and bihun with “yee mee”.
“Yee mee” is more flavourful compared to yellow noodle. The little prawns were slightly salty in the delicious prawn-based soup and topped with slices of pork. The dish was finished with a raw egg on top so that it was cooked while the claypot was still hot.
For claypot hokkien mee, there are choices of noodle like “yee mee”, yellow noodle, bihun or maggie mee.
Claypot Loh Mee – RM5.00, this Loh Mee in claypot is also a new concept. The usual yellow noodle and bihun are covered with starch. The ingredients include prawns, pork slices and a semi-raw egg to be cooked inside the claypot.
The taste is acceptable. The starch was too thick due to the heat from the claypot. It would be much better if it is changed to a bowl instead.
Claypot Jawa Mee – RM5.00, the sweet and sour gravy of Jawa is served together with the yellow noodle and bihun. This dish is complemented with tau kua (dried tofu), egg, a touch of crunched peanuts and chopped vegetable.
This dish is designed for those who prefer non-spicy food and also for kids. The taste is good, the only drawback is that there are no slices of deep-fried prawn “biscuits” like the classical type.
Claypot Pan Mee with Ribs and Egg – RM5.00. The handmade pan mee is cooked together with minced meat, pork ribs, prawn in curry-based soup.
The curry was slightly too thick and when served in claypot it was till hot which is good, but at the same time it also made the curry dried out and thickened. The spiciness was overwhelming and covered the taste of the other ingredients. It is not my cup of tea. For those that still want to try this dish, my advice is to eat it while hot.
Original Hokkien Mee – RM3.00 (Small), RM4.00 (Large). The usual classical hokkien mee is still available here. It was served since 50 years ago. The soup base was cooked with pork ribs stock and served together with bihun and yellow noodle, kangkung (water spinach) and bean sprouts.
Hokkien Mee with Big Prawn – RM11 (depending on market price of the prawn). The classical hokkien mee was served with a tiger prawn.
The price is worth for such a big prawn, the portion of this prawn is equivalent to 5 – 6 normal prawns. The prawn was very sweet and fresh.
Hokkien Mee with Crab – Rm12 (depending on market price of the crab). Traditional hokkien mee cooked with crab.
The volume of the meat in the crab and also the freshness is very depending on the postion of the moon. When full moon usually there will be more crabs and will have more options. However, the crab meat that I had that day was not as good due to non-full moon period.
Hokkien Mee with Squid – RM8 (depending on the market price of the squid). Again, classic hokkien mee cooked with squid.
The squids prepared were fresh and just nice. However, eating hokkien mee with squid is not my cup of tea.
Fried Chicken Wing (2 pcs) – RM4, the fried chicken wing was so crispy and delicious.
The drawback of the chicken wing is there are not much meat and the portion is very little.
Deep Fried Sambal Pork Belly (per plate) – RM4. The pork belly was covered with sambal batter and was deep fried until crispy.
The roast pork was so delicious and crispy, the only negative point about this dish was it was oily.
Breakfast Set 1 (Bread Toast, Half Boil Egg & Kopi ‘O’) – RM3.30
For those who are not in favor of Hokkien Mee or any types of oriental serving above for breakfast, below dishes will suit your need. The local breakfast with usual Kopi-O, kaya/butter toasts and half-boiled eggs will definitely bright up your day.
Fried Chicken Nugget (per basket) – RM3, French Fries (per basket) – RM3
Snacks for those who are still not full after the main course or even just some finger food when chilling out with friends.
Breakfast Set 7 (Bread Toast with Ham, Fried Egg, Nugget, Sausage and French Fries) – RM5.30
The heavier type of breakfast for those who want to have a heavier breakfast.
Overall, this place serves both creative and classical type of Hokkien Mee and some additional western breakfast to suit everyone’s needs. Personally I love the creative way of Hokkien Mee. The taste of the Hokkien Mee soup is thicker compared to classical type. For those that have a stronger taste bud, this is the place to try out the dishes. The only drawback to this place is the parking space is limited.
Editor’s Review (5 Stars Rank):
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Quick Facts:
| Family Friendly |  |
| Parking |  |
| Pork Free | |
| Alcohol | |
| Credit Card | |
| Smoking | |
| Reservation | |
| Private Room | |
| WIFI Available | |
Operation hours: 8:30am – 5:00pm (Mon – Sat); 7:45am – 3:00pm (Sun)
Contact: 04-226 3407
Address: 127, Lorong Selamat, 10400 Penang
GPS: 5° 41′ 67.86″ N, 100° 32′ 44.59″ E
Wah….. these Hokkien mee really makes me wanting to go back & eat. Will try bro & thanks.
Christmas is around the corner and your blog is snowing..cool!
the claypot hokkien mee look good…putting in my dine list.
I had no idea that the quality of crab depended on a full moon. I learned something new! Thank you!!
Dionne
Hokkien Mee makes me think of home. Thanks… will make sure I try it when I next go back to Penang