Penang

Penang Restaurant Review:

Look up when you enter, and you'll see a goddess peering down from her perch on high as if to bless those gathered at this Chamblee restaurant. Penang’s extensive menu seems a challenge for the small kitchen, but chef/owner Ken Lim’s team consistently turns out quality food. Graze on appetizers of beef or chicken satay, or shrimp puff, for which minced shrimp is wrapped in bacon and fried. We like achat, Malaysian pickled vegetables, slightly spicy and sprinkled with sesame seeds. Expect large main courses, such as the pork leg with mushrooms ringed with crisply cooked bright green broccoli or calamari with eggplant and other vegetables in a brown sauce. Lamb rendang may be the star dish, with butter tender lamb chunks in a lovely brown sauce. Desserts make no reference to the West, except for ice creams. But pulut hitam is indeed a hit: crunchy black sticky rice with just slightly sweetened coconut milk. The short beer list offers some regional specialties, such as Singha from Thailand, and is far preferable to the wine list. Also located at 2491 George Busbee Pkwy., Kennesaw, 678-213-4848.