Rojak & Fried La-la @ Esplanade, Padang Kota Lama, Penang

Rojak is one of the favourite hawker food amongst the Malaysians. When we talked about Penang rojak, we basically referring to a plate that consist a mixture of sliced fruits, crispy prawn cracker and squid, topped off with rojak shrimp sauce and drizzled with minced groundnuts.

A visit to Penang is not complete without tasting their rojak. However, which stall really serves good Penang rojak since there are so many around? On my previous visit to Penang, I was being introduced to this rojak stall located at Esplanade Hawker Centre a.k.a Kompleks Makanan Padang Kota Lama.

Stall No. 46, Penang Rojak Stall

This is my very first time being here. But according to my friend who live to eat, this is her personal best rojak in Penang. That statement really 'wow-ed' me even before I had my first bite and keeping me in wonder how great the rojak is.

Penang Rojak at Esplanade (RM 3 for small, RM 5 for big)
Firstly, the fruits were fresh. Secondly, came the best part where I particularly like their fragrant shrimp paste which remained thick enough even after I had finished the rojak. The drizzling of the minced groundnuts were generous too, adding extra fragrant to the already aromatic shrimp paste. And yes, I couldn't agree more, it was indeed the best rojak I'd ever had in Penang. It was so good, that I ordered two plate. Simply awesome!

I was told that the fried shell seafood at Esplande were pretty good as well.

Stall No. 37, Fried Shell Seafood Stall

We opted for the clams instead of balitong as clams required lesser effort to eat.

Fried La-La (RM 8)

A very simple stir-fired sauce version of la-la. However, it does taste good with hints of wok-hei. Topping of on that, the la-la size is decent and offered me a longer chew. The portion of the serving was pretty decent too considering the amount that we paid for it.

This Esplanade hawker square might not be as happening as the Gurney Drive, it however offers a different ambiance of al-fresco dining with the sea breeze chilling your body coupled with the relaxing sound of the beating waves. Al-fresco dining at it's best with the very reasonably priced great food!

Rojak: 8.5/10
Fried La-la: 7/10

Atmosphere: Al-fresco dining, by the seaside
Price: 7.5/10
Verdict: Rojak is the bomb, and must be in the to try list!