• Home
  • FOOD AND DRINK
    • AFTERNOON TEA
    • RESTAURANTS
    • BARS
    • SPECIAL INGREDIENTS
  • OUTSTANDING HOTELS
    • HISTORY OF HOTELS
    • HOTEL REVIEWS
    • SPAS
  • TRAVEL
  • PHOTO-VIDEO-ART
    • FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY
    • Photo Essays
    • Black And White
    • Fashion
    • ARCHITECTURE PHOTOGRAPHY
  • CONTACT US
  • ABOUT US
  • Tags

    afternoon tea Art Asia Bangkok Bar Buffet cambodia cocktail cocktails confession drink Europe favorite food food photography gallery Hanoi heritage hotel High tea History Hoi An Hotel hotel review Hotels Kuala Lumpur Malaysia Mandarin Oriental Melaka nature Penang photography Restaurant review Romantic getaway Siem Reap Singapore Slovenia Sofitel spirit Thailand the best travel Travel story Vietnam YTL
  • Follow Us

Wild 'n' Free Diary - travel food drink hotel review art photography
  • Home
  • FOOD AND DRINK
    • RESTAURANTS
    • AFTERNOON TEA
    • BARS
    • SPECIAL INGREDIENTS
  • OUTSTANDING HOTELS
    • HOTEL REVIEWS
    • SPAS
    • HISTORY OF HOTELS
  • TRAVEL
  • PHOTO-VIDEO-ART
    • FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY
      • FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY VOL.1: FOOD IN PIXELS
      • FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY VOL.2: PEOPLE PROVIDE FOOD
      • FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY VOL.3: BLACK AND WHITE
      • FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY VOL.4: LET ME HELP
      • Food Photography Vol.5: Sweet
      • Food Photography Vol.6: Stack Up
      • Food Photography Vol.7: Sunday Brunch
      • FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY VOL. 8: STUDIO
      • Cocktail Photography Vol. 1: Get The Party Started
      • Cocktail Photography vol.2: Into The Details
    • Photo Essays
      • Arrogance Is The Real Pandemic Photo Essay
      • Photoreport: Bee Hive Bus
      • Wintertime in Vienna – Photo Essay
      • Photo essay: ROCK SHELLS PICKING IN VIETNAM
      • PHOTOREPORT: Singapore through my lens
      • Photo Essay: I Love Plants
      • Photo Essay: Children of Asia
      • Seaside Photography Vol. 1 – Wave After Wave
      • Seaside Photography Vol. 2 – Salt
      • Walking Through Venice – Photo Essay
      • Photo Essay: Pine Forest Walk
    • Fashion
      • Hoi An Dress Shooting Vol. 1
      • HOI AN FASHION SHOOTING VOL. 2
      • Shipwreck Fashion Photography Gallery
      • WALKING AROUND IMPERIAL CITY OF HUE
    • Black And White
      • Black and white photography Vol.1
      • Black and White Photography Vol.2
      • Black And White Vol. 3: Let’s Get Deep Into Shades
      • Black And White Vol. 4: Uncertain Times
    • ARCHITECTURE PHOTOGRAPHY
      • Architecture Photography Gallery Vol. 1
      • ARCHITECTURE PHOTOGRAPHY GALLERY VOL. 2
      • ARCHITECTURE PHOTOGRAPHY GALLERY VOL. 3
  • ABOUT US
  • CONTACT US

Little Kitchen, Georgetown – Dining in a museum PART 1/2

July 25, 2018

As you saw from our previous posts, Nyonyas had a difficult life. The pressure of competition between wives was constant. Bear in mind that cooking for a mixed culture in that era wasn’t an easy task. Today with globalization in full swing, someone from, let’s say Japan, will eat almost anything. Now he or she is used to other flavors than just the domestic cuisine, but in Nyonyas’ time, it was a different story. In their age, ladies were masters of cooking and their recipes are outstanding to this day. Little Kitchen is an amazing restaurant, which offers more than just good Peranakan food.

Contents

  • Good Nyonya Food Here in Penang
  • Little Kitchen Has a Great Story Behind
    • Grandmother as a Kitchen Boss
    • Secret Recipe
  • Tradition
Peranakan doors
Peranakan doors at Little Kitchen are a wow factor.

Good Nyonya Food Here in Penang

I did some research looking for where in Penang can we could eat good Nyonya food and found this gem – Little Kitchen. It is open only for dinners and for small groups, that is why I recommend making a reservation as there are just four or five tables. We showed up at the door around lunchtime, and boy, we were lucky. JJ, the owner of that place was there, and he had some free time to talk to us. We talked for a few hours while he shared a bit of Peranakan history, the story of his ancestors, and explained the Nyonya cuisine to us.

Peranakan ornament
Peranakan ornaments. Can you imagine a kitchen with these tiles?

When we entered his home/restaurant, we stepped into the dining room. My first thought was that the house looks like a museum. It’s in Peranakan style and most of the furniture is originally from his grandparents. The house itself is about 100 years old and was built by his grandfather, who was a contractor and businessman. He was rich and like all Babas, he wanted to show off his success. There were a few well-known ways to show your wealth.

Little Kitchen Penang
Little Kitchen Georgetown looks like a museum. But when you get the food…

Little Kitchen Has a Great Story Behind

First, they had tiles on the wall. Then there were the ornaments around windows and doors and the quality materials used in the construction. After that was all done, but still, not enough, the writing on the wall came in handy to make a statement that they are rich and educated. We saw all these wealth indications and more. He didn’t stop at luxurious building materials, he also made his house bigger than neighboring ones. His father was an interesting man with an interesting way of looking at the world.

Peranakan tiles
Peranakan tiles on the floor

He married three times and every time under a different religion. Because the Buddist religion allows only one wife, he married his second wife under Taoist principals. The third wife was JJ’s grandmother, and he married her under a Christian oath. A life with three wives was a prolific one resulting in a big family.


Grandmother as a Kitchen Boss

JJ’s grandmother was the kitchen queen and she is the reason for today’s restaurant. As we said before, between Nyonas there were always some schemes and competitions going on. Cooking was important for the reputation of the house, which wasn’t all up to the furniture and decor. Can you imagine cooking for Chinese, Thai, English, and Malay guests in the same meal?

Little Kitchen ornament
They also serve birds nest soup, which is known in Peranakan cuisine.

And don’t forget that all the other wives are waiting for something to go wrong so they can report how incompetent you are! Trying to accommodate all tastes and preferences in one meal and only one kitchen was just part of the pressure. As if it were still the old days where shops weren’t that common, we headed to the family garden. He guided us from one herb to the other and all of us enjoyed the herb smelling, feeling and of course picking.

Bird nest soup
Birds nest soup has healing power.

He was even a little surprised that we knew some plants, but there was no way we could know about all of the flavors for the cuisine. And if you want to know about some flavors and cuisine, it’s crucial to start with its origin, history, and the ingredients which are used in that kitchen.


Secret Recipe

His grandmother was the best cook in the house and she had a secret weapon, which brought her fame – rice salad. With this salad, she impressed JJ grandfather’s guests and also us. Vivi had the honor to make the salad by herself and it wasn’t an easy job. Pre-cooked rice is the main ingredient in the salad, but in Nyonya cuisine nothing is simple and there is a trick to make sure that the rice grains don’t stick together.

Herbs in the yard
Herbs are growing at the backyard.

The seasoning of this salad is very well thought out as it is supposed to bring out the color and enrich the taste. The thin cuts have to be executed with precision so the texture of the herbs doesn’t get in the way of the rice. She sliced the seasonings 100 times to make a statement that she made that dish with all of her heart and put 100% effort into making it. It sure is difficult to thinly slice the kaffir lime leaf roll 100 times!

fine chopping
This fine chopping is a serious skill. However, Vivi did her best.

Tradition

What I liked the most at this genuine restaurant was that it is based on real traditional recipes and local ingredients without any substitutes. They are preparing the food just like his grandmother did. This way her legacy is secure. We found that there is something in old-school cooking that the modern approach can’t replace.

Nyonya Rice Salad
Nyonya rice salad was delicious.

Mr. JJ and his family are extremely nice and warm. Spending a few hours with them made it clear that the profit is not their priority, the natural spices and quality ingredients have that spot. The idea is to keep the Peranakan culture alive and to show what the Nyonyas were actually cooking. This is not a restaurant where you go for a quick meal.

Here you leave with a view of the bigger picture and a full tummy. That educational and delicious meal is worth spending some time off the streets because when you leave, you feel more connected to the place and its history. I heartily recommend visiting if you want to taste authentic Nyonya cuisine and to chat with a kind Baba. Here is our second part of this Little Kitchen review.


AsiaMalaysiaNyonyaPenangperanakanRestaurantreview
Share

RESTAURANTS

Ian
An artistic soul who catches the beauty with his camera. A photographer with restless feet and wish to get intimate with the unknown.

You might also like

Tea in Vietnam
February 25, 2023
My Mai Chau Trip
January 21, 2023
Majestic Saigon Hotel Review
December 7, 2022
  • Categories

    • AFTERNOON TEA
    • ARCHITECTURE PHOTOGRAPHY
    • BARS
    • BLACK AND WHITE
    • FASHION
    • FOOD AND DRINKS
    • FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY
    • HISTORY OF HOTELS
    • HOTEL REVIEWS
    • OUTSTANDING HOTELS
    • PHOTO ESSAY
    • PHOTO-VIDEO-ART
    • RESTAURANTS
    • SPAS
    • SPECIAL INGREDIENTS
    • TRAVEL
    • XYZ
  • FOLLOW US

  • Tags

    afternoon tea Art Asia Bangkok Bar Buffet cambodia cocktail cocktails confession drink Europe favorite food food photography gallery Hanoi heritage hotel High tea History Hoi An Hotel hotel review Hotels Kuala Lumpur Malaysia Mandarin Oriental Melaka nature Penang photography Restaurant review Romantic getaway Siem Reap Singapore Slovenia Sofitel spirit Thailand the best travel Travel story Vietnam YTL
  • Archives

    • March 2023
    • February 2023
    • January 2023
    • December 2022
    • November 2022
    • October 2022
    • September 2022
    • August 2022
    • July 2022
    • May 2022
    • April 2022
    • March 2022
    • February 2022
    • January 2022
    • December 2021
    • November 2021
    • October 2021
    • September 2021
    • August 2021
    • July 2021
    • June 2021
    • May 2021
    • April 2021
    • March 2021
    • February 2021
    • January 2021
    • December 2020
    • November 2020
    • October 2020
    • September 2020
    • August 2020
    • July 2020
    • June 2020
    • May 2020
    • April 2020
    • March 2020
    • February 2020
    • January 2020
    • December 2019
    • November 2019
    • October 2019
    • September 2019
    • August 2019
    • July 2019
    • June 2019
    • May 2019
    • April 2019
    • March 2019
    • February 2019
    • January 2019
    • December 2018
    • November 2018
    • October 2018
    • September 2018
    • August 2018
    • July 2018
    • June 2018
    • May 2018
    • April 2018
    • March 2018
    • February 2018
    • January 2018
    • December 2017


  • Recent Posts

    • Kurentovanje Carnival
      March 13, 2023
    • KURENT IN BLACK AND WHITE
      March 6, 2023
    • Tea in Vietnam
      February 25, 2023
  • Popular Posts

    • Mandarin Oriental Bangkok Hotel
      February 15, 2019
    • Four Seasons KL Review
      March 30, 2019
    • Majestic Hotel KL
      October 12, 2018

© Copyright Wild 'n' Free Diary Cookie settings Policy Page

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. The button is on the bottom of the page. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are as essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
SAVE & ACCEPT