Tina’s Kitchen in Penang

"The best meal I’ve had in Malaysia! First I tried a local favorite - refreshing ice cold nutmeg juice - sweet with a mild spiced flavour. For lunch I had a small order of Kapitan chicken curry and steamed rice. It was phenomenal- the chicken was tender. Stewed in a thick, rich and spicy sauce - at first I was hit with notes of lemongrass before the fiery gravy set my mouth on fire. It’s a family run restaurant, with Tina in the kitchen cooking and the staff was friendly and helpful. I highly recommend this restaurant to anyone visiting Georgetown, Penang."

"We visited one afternoon by chance from checking out Google reviews and we were so glad to find this place! We were here for hours! The food here is incredible - everything is so carefully prepared and tastes so fresh and authentic. They put a lot of care into every single ingredient. We definitely overate but it was worth it! And the owner was chatting to us loads, she’s so friendly, it was great to hear about the history of this food and the steps taken to create these delicious meals. We had mutton and two types of pork with rice. And then some coffee which is some of the nicest coffee we’ve ever had! And then after hearing about the special king banana dessert we just had to try it and I’m so glad we did, the flavours were exceptional. I would highly recommend Tina’s, you will not be disappointed. The nicest and friendliest atmosphere"

"My absolute favorite was their stir-fried eggplant—it was absolutely delicious! I give it a perfect score! And the nasi ulam was amazing, with such a rich and complex flavor profile! The sambal okra and stir-fried squid were also top-notch. You could taste the care put into every dish. The Nyonya udon was fragrant rice seasoned with various herbs and spices like pomelo leaves, lemongrass, and shrimp paste. It was slightly spicy, and the layers of flavor were very distinct. The Kapitan curry chicken was surprisingly similar to Indian cuisine when I ordered it, but the chicken was incredibly tender, and the pieces needed to be coated in the sauce to absorb the flavors better. As someone who loves rice, I ordered an extra serving of white rice—I couldn't let the delicious sauce go to waste! The braised pork was unexpectedly delicious; it felt like the sausage had been fried again, giving it a chewy texture and a wonderful aroma. Bonus points: The owner was incredibly friendly, and the service was so welcoming! I've already decided to come back again!"

"Tina’s Kitchen is a must try for good nyonya food. Decided to eat here after seeing good reviews. It’s a small and cosy eatery with very friendly and diversely hired staff. Very happy to see that. We ordered the Nasi Ulam, and dishes of the day like green chilli prawn, mutton curry, and had desserts for takeaway. It was our first time trying Nasi ulam and the aunty was really sweet to come over and explain each item in the dish as well as how to eat it. We enjoyed the food so much as well as the service! Definitely will visit again in future!!"

"The sign language caught our attention. We wanted to give it a try. The staff were very warm. The waitress couldn’t hear nor talk, but that didn’t prevent us from getting great service. There were lots of hand drawings decorated on the wall. It was unique and interesting. We ordered “fu yong egg,” which is different from the US version. There wasn’t any gravy, but the waitress brought out some hot sauce to accommodate us. We also tried Nutmeg drinks and Bi Kor Moy. All were great!"

"Food is great and tasty. You can feel the chef is cooking the food with love. I love the kari kapitan chicken and ichi kabin. Also love the bobo chacha. The shop has limited space therefore if come in big group it is better to book in advance."

"A well hiddened gem at Kimberley Street ! 埋藏在Kimberley Street的宝石 Unknow what we are expecting, Tina's Kitchen is near to Jen Pg Hotel and we were thinking of having some road side hawker foods after dinner. We're wrong! We enjoyed our meals so much that we had a repeated order dish, an additional dish and desserts for all too! For all these and 5 persons, total bill was less than RM300! External of the restaurant was nothiny fancy, once entered, it is a warm home ambient environment in welcoming visitors. All over the four walls was filled with beautiful Chinese choreography, hand painted pictures of visitors with lovely appreciative words from visitors all over the world who had enjoyed their meals here. Among the furniture are actually valuable antique 古董家具 such as we learned that the bench chair 板凳we were sitting on is more than 100 years old! We ordered and sample few dishes with simple description of home cook food be it nyonya or Chinese traditional food. Dishes arrived freshly cook and air filled with pungent aroma菜香, taste was terrific and unique which we rarely came across before. That prompted us to repeat a dish 再加点菜and add on another dish. After our full meal, we have no hesitation to order dessert to complete full course dinner! Restaurant was not full when we sat down for our meal. From where we sit, we can see quite some curious pass-by looking inside. Soon when we were about to finish our meal, restaurant is almost full - mostly foreigners and few local visitors as well. I am sure, they will be like us that they have made a great choice to come in for their meal. Tina's Kitchen definitely worth out top recommendation and our re-visit each time we come to Penang for holiday 一定会再来 Our sincere thanks 谢谢to Tina's Kitchen and wish that our write-up endorsement will influence others to decide to enjoy a meal here too Kimberley Street hawker foods? Sorry guys, may be next time 对不起，Kimberley Street 路边小贩美食，下次呗"

"we have a good lunch here. everything was so good. we love the eggplant (until we order 1 more), the fried chicken that so caramelized juicy. and on top of it, first time we tried Black Thron durian and we love it so much (manage to finish 4 kg of durian ). very recommended, surely we will be back. thank you"