Considering all the Asian restaurants in Chinatown, this was OK. I am giving it a 2-star b/c of value, service, price and quality of food. For Malaysian food: there is not a competitor/ restaurant who specializes in Malay food in that area. I believe Penang is the only one; therefore this restaurant may do well for that reason. In addition to, I believe the inviting decor and signage may have provided that attraction, however, don't let that fool you (It fooled me!!) For what we ordered....the food was bland. If you like bland food, this is the place for you. If you like flavor and spiciness this isn't the place for you. I felt like our curry dishes lacked spice and flavor. Curry was bland and not spicy, even when we asked for extra/extra spicy..... I will attempt to check this place out in the near future& will provide an updated review then, that is if I ever come back. read more

Because I come here every week and order the same thing, Pad Thai and Diet Coke, I feel compelled to write a review. The service here is everything I personally desire from a dining establishment: unintrusive and respectful. The humble staff make one feel at home and I really appreciate the fact that you can eschew propriety by just saying what you want, getting it, and avoiding the fuss. Since I have only ever really tried their Pad Thai and something else, which I can't remember, I have given the restaurant three stars (the Pad Tha, though delicious, could come more generously). read more

Started with the roti canai , Indian pancakes(more like crepe ). Then had mee Siam rice and Nadia gore d noodles. And asparagus shrimp (salty) but good. All delicious. Casual atmosphere , attentive service. Great lunch. read more

Penang - Mee Siam rice - Malaysian Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

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I love their Roti Canai and Mango Chicken. The only bone I have to pick with them is their portion size. The portions are quite small and the prices are expensive for the quality of the food. read more

Great place to get some nice noodles for lunch. Service is friendly (especially by Chinatown standards). I particularly like their mee siam and they make it spicy if you ask. read more

Went back to Penang, and I'm so glad they have their original indian pancakes back! Hainan chicken was still good and i still feel like their portion is going smaller and smaller. read more

The food at Penang is consistently good. I've been to the one in NY and its almost the same here in Boston. The Roti canai was really delicious! I had the Nasi Lemak and that was really yummy-- the chicken curry was flavorful and the fried anchovies gave the dish a delicious flavor kick. My boyfriend had beef noodles which were also very good. We will be back for sure! read more

I super love this place, and for my own experience, it's five stars...but my companions are not always as pleased. The menu items are unique and-dare I say it-often exotic. If you order the right thing, I think you'll be very happy. If you order the wrong thing, you're not going to understand what the hype is over this place. Although there are always weekend crowds, I've rarely waited more than 15-20 minutes for a table. There's not much room in the waiting area, but you'll likely survive. I like to start with the roti appetizer. The bread is the best when it's crispy! We've tried the stuffed tofu before, and I'm not that into it. Even though I've found a bunch of items on the menu that I love, I've gotten to a point at Penang where I always order the same thing: the entree version of Curry Mee with Young Tau Foo. Two different kinds of noodles, bitter melon stuffed with fish paste, and the most delectable spicy green curry broth on the planet. The serving is really big, and I always bring a takeaway bag home with me after eating this dish. For around $8 a bowl, it's also ridiculously low priced for dinner. Other dishes I enjoy (and encourage companions to get so they won't walk away unhappy) are the Mee Siam noodles (not very spicy, very flavorful), the seafood Tom Yum, and the pineapple fried rice. There are some really fun drinks on the menu too; SO and I like splitting Taro shakes. You may not have room for everything! read more

They give you a hell of a lot of food for the price. Or maybe the delirium caused by my stomach made me hallucinate this fact. The three of us split everything from a whole chicken curry, to a paratha appetizer, some satay, a prok ribs dish, and a seafood noodle soup. Nothing was gross by any means, all quite delicious. The bones in the chicken were hard to navigate though. My only problem was the service. It was so. freaking. slow. And I on the other hand was so freaking starving. This was a problem. Also I wish they had at least a few waitresses/waiters who could explain the dishes when asked. Everyone was so aloof. It was slightly awkward. read more

A couple comments first 'cause I like to run my mouth off. (1) Now why would a reviewer say that Penang is "not really Malaysian" when she's never had Malaysian before? and (2) don't order pad thai, please. Try something else, especially at a restaurant that's mostly for Malay food! So, I come here every once in a while whenever I get a craving for Malay/S'porian "comfort foods". During my last trip to S'pore, I haunted hawker centres and food courts like none other. I documented every detail I knew about the food, and I've been ordering them one by one at this place for nostalgia's sake. So far, I've had the poh piah, yong tau foo, nasi lemak, mee siam and the Malaysian iced coffee. They've all been up to my expectation except for a couple things. The poh piah was not as good as I hoped. It had a lot of lettuce (which I call "filler"), and I prefer mine to be stuffed with tastier things like bean curd, shrimp and peanuts. The nasi lemak is not like what I've had in S'pore, but maybe that's because Malaysia and S'pore have their own versions of the same dishes. I definitely prefer whatever I've had in S'pore, but I'm in the US ... should I be picky? On my next trip, I'll go for the hokkien char mee and kang kung belacan. After that, it's on to the fancier dishes ... read more

I've never been to a Malaysian restaurant before today. I did grow up with some wonderful Malaysian neighbors who often brought piping hot food over for me after they got home from work. This place almost captured my childhood. Almost. To start we had the bread (name eludes me right now) with curry dipping sauce. The sauce was rather great, with a rich chicken and curry flavor. I would have liked more of this. I had the green curry chicken hot pot. Let me just start with saying that the chicken and vegetables, although plentiful, was quite forgettable. They didn't take on the flavor of the broth at all. They looked and tasted as if they had been steamed and then simply added to the broth. I wasn't very thrilled, but the broth did have some redeeming qualities. It was a lovely coconut green curry broth, and the flavors were actually there. It was rather excited taking a mouthful of that after a couple of mouthfuls of chicken and vegetables, all the while wondering if I had made the wrong decision. Wife got mixed pad Thai, and it was pretty good. It got to be a little sweet about halfway through the meal, but overall not bad. I'd say this was the best plate of the evening, overall. Sister in law got some sort of beef and noodles. It was rather greasy. She ate about half and didn't want to take it home. I guess I don't blame her. Prices were reasonable and we may be back when in the area. There are a whole lot of other plates that in interested in trying. read more

I really like the bamboo decor in the interior. The food here is relatively authentic. I got the spicy seafood noodles, which wasnt very spicy but was very tasty, it had spinach and bean sprouts in it. My company had the pan fried noodles, which is your standard asian pan fried noodles, oily, flavorful and characoal flavor (which was quite good). We also got the thin layer bread for appetizer, the bread wasnt toasted enough but the curry that came was it was delicious. read more

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It's been a while since my last visit....glad I came back around. Didn't realized I'd missed their curry chicken and chow kiew tu (similar to pad thai but not sweet). Their curry chicken is cooked in a thicker paste-like sauce which yields a deeper flavor compared to other Asian curries. Another popular item we'd ordered was the roti - very thin crispy light pancake served with a lighter version of the curry chicken. Though I recommend each person ordering their own - hard to share. =) read more

Penang - Curry chicken rice plate - Malaysian Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

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I had the PRAWN MEE noodle soup, they said it was spicy, but it was very mild, not what I was expecting. Their soup broth was pretty good, but kind of too salty. Food to avoid: SATAY BEAN CURD- save your $$$, this dish is very bland. The tofu is not seasoned, nor is the cucumber or bean sprouts, the peanut sauce is virtually tasteless. Not even remotely spicy!! Take off the asterisk that denotes hot & spicy. Service: Service was average, waiter just put the food down and then ran off, very quickly. Lots of waiters, but no one came by to ask "if everything was alright." I wanted to try the ABC dessert, but I was told they don't have any other dessert, except fried ice cream and glutinous rice, until 5pm. Why?? oh yes, and I got a crappy wobbly table. read more

Visited this place after 3 yrs, good quality definitely gone down. This explains the bad ratings, sad. Used to have really good food

My first night in Boston. My flight was over 2 hours late. My colleague and I rush to our hotels and then scouring for a place to eat; its almost 10 pm. We head down the street, and based on the recommendation of the concierge stop at Penang. Despite it being so late. They seated us, and allowed us to eat and finish without rushing us even though were were the last two people in the restaurant. The good was good. Not spectacular. The ambiance of the place is interesting. The interior looks like it belongs in south east Asia. It adds a nice touch. I'd have given the place 3 & 1/2 stars if I could rate in 1/2 stars. But, the kind service pulled 'em up to a 4. read more

If you're looking for some Good Malaysian food - this is definitely a best bet. Malaysian dish is a mix of Indian, Chinese, Thai, Filipino and Middle Eastern cuisine. Since Southeast Asia is quite a melting pot of traders, the fusion of various spices and dishes are incorporated into both Singapore and Malaysia. Living in Dallas, it is hard to find a good authentic Malaysian restaurant, and Penang says it all! Although we were there on our first day off peak hours - I had to stop myself from ordering everything from the menu, since it brought so much memories. The Roti Canai is definitely a thumbs up! Crispy and well-balanced tatse of an asian bread that should be dipped in the curry. The Hainanese chicken rice is well seasoned, although I prefer the Singaporean version of roasting the chicken instead of the Penang's version where they boil it. The Nasi Lemak (Coconut Rice) has a great flavor. If you don't like fishy stuff, then this dish is definitely a no-no! Coz they made the chili paste with anchovies and onions. Not something Americans are fond of. The decor is OK. Has a Traders Vic look to it, but more of an Asian version. The following day, we came around 11 am, and it turned really crowded by noon. So if you are ready for some Malaysian dish, arrive early - and enjoy the food. As for me, I miss home cooked meal back in Singapore, so I ordered everything that sounds familiar. And I was willing to pay for it. read more

Penang was my first Malaysian restaurant I have been too. I tried the roti ciana and the duck with scallion and ginger rice. All of it was amazing. The duck was very flavorful and have ordered it both of the times that I have gone. Customer service is good as they are very attentive. Water stayed full throughout the dining in. Will definitely be frequenting this place! read more

Great food with reasonable prices, Penang is one of the great Asian restaurant in Boston. OK here are my suggestion Roti, Satay chicken for app. Hainanese chicken, mango shrimp, and Red snapper fish in Thai sauce for entree. A ha they are so great!! read more

I'll admit, I'm pretty ignorant when it comes to Malaysia and anything pertaining to the country. That being said, when I reached Penang, I didn't really know what to expect culinary-wise. My sister and I had spent an afternoon walking around and enjoying the city, and after a bit of power shopping, we were really hungry for dinner. We chatted up a salesgirl at Zara, mentioning that we were thinking of heading to Chinatown for some eats. She immediately recommended Penang, saying that it is one of her favorite spots. Not even really intending to go, by the time we reached Chinatown, all we wanted to do was sit down and start eating. Haphazardly we actually found ourselves right in front Penang, and just decided to stay. The decor and vibe is pretty modern and very bustling, so I took that for a good sign. The hostess was in a total frenzy though, zipping around and not really paying much attention. When she finally approached us, we saw that there was an empty table which was unoccupied during our wait. We asked to be seated there, but she mumbled something we couldn't hear, and then proceeded to seat us in a small cramped spot, sandwiched in between two other tables. So already, this was annoying. During our wait outside, we already chose which dishes we wanted, so as not to waste any more time. We put in our order of a fried rice noodle dish, a soup noodle dish, and the chicken with Thai sauce. From what I could gather, Malaysian food is a culmination of all Asian cuisines, highlighting Chinese, Thai, and Indian. I thought that was interesting. But while the descriptions sounded promising, the food itself just fell flat. It was disappointing. The chicken was very much like Hainam chicken, but not as good. The "Thai" sauce is chutney-like, which wasn't bad, but just not as flavorful as I'd expect. The fried noodle dish was average, much like pad see ew. A bit too oily and salty for me though. The noodle soup was also just average, with two types of noodles (one thick, one thin) and a broth very reminiscent of the Vietnamese soup "bun rieu". One of the upsides is that the food came out at lightening speed, which was appreciated considering how starved we were. But other than that, the food is nothing to write home about. Since my knowledge of Malaysian food is super limited, I can't make any substantial comparisons. Though if this is more or less representative of the food, can't say I'm much of a fan. read more

We went there about a week ago for their Chinese New Year's Special. Being born and bred in Malaysia up till our early adulthood, my sisters and I are extremely picky whenever eating at a restaurant purportedly serving Malaysian cuisine. The Chinese New Year's Specials offered at Penang were spot on! We were extremely happy about that. For appetizer, we began with the Lou Sang - a colorful salad with minimal amount of thinly sliced raw salmon, served with a sweet savory plum sauce. It was good. The Salt & Pepper Calamari is always good. We had the steam salted chicken, the 8 treasure duck, two orders of the butter shrimps (they were HUGE), XO sauce fried rice and a stir fry green. I also placed an order for Hainanese Chicken Rice for my mother-in-law who is not too fond of authentic Asian food and a stir fried beef with hor fun. Those came out good, as usual. My sisters proclaimed it authentic, although I can't really recall the exact flavor of how it should be but they tasted delicious, nonetheless. A steal too, if you ask me. For 8 adults and 2 children, the bill came up to $190+. Will definitely go there again for their CNY specials next year. read more

The roti canai was good but it was definitely an appetizer for probably one person. Penang's dishes are decent but for what youre going to pay coming here, you could find better around china town. I felt like the servings were small and did not justify the price. read more

THEY DO NOT OFFER A LUNCH MENU. I was very disappointed when they told me that they do not offer a lunch menu. That being said, I think that this location is a little pricey for an average lunch as most dishes were around $12. I really wanted to try the Thai Lemongrass Chicken Wrap however, they did not offer that dish on the regular menu so I got the Nasi Lemak instead. It was pretty good. The dish consisted of coconut rice surrounded by curried chicken, picked vegetables, sliced cucumber, and a boiled egg. The food itself is good but I felt that they were a little skimpy on the meat. I probably got about 5 pieces of chicken and out of the five pieces, two of them were bone and inedible. The pickled vegetables were good but they're not filling. They service was average and I left the restaurant hungry. read more

I went here for lunch today and was seated immediately. I ordered the curried chicken (bone-in) with rice, and my S/O ordered the hainese chicken rice plate. Our food came out within 5 minutes! I was shocked. I usually order take out but today we had time to actually dined in but I was very disappointed. My curry chicken was really salty, and my rice was a little dry. The hainese chicken, however, was still delicious. I think next time I'll just stick to hainese chicken as usual. Still skeptical about how our food came in within 5 minutes though. read more

First try. I love the chicken so much. I definitely will recommend my friends to come here. I will try mango chicken next time. read more

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I was looking for a place that is a quick walk to the Opera House that I could bring my family to before a show in Downtown Boston so I peaked into Penang and decided to dine there for lunch. First off, I have to give credit to the unusual and original interior of the place; lots of bamboo/wood, a kind of a kitschy hut theme but by no means was the food cheesy. The selections were very varied with a large selection of appetizers, noodles, soups and great specials. My friend and I started off by sharing the yummy Roti Canai (Indian pancake) which is a crepe-like pancake with curry chicken dipping sauce. We then shared the Mango shrimp dish, which was a lovely blend of sweet & sour. The lychee and coconut juices were fantastic and we treated ourselves to some plum wine, which was also very satisfying. If you want to be brave they also have pig's intestines and frog entree's, but we stuck with what we liked/knew. If you go with a large party, I recommend sharing your dishes because they provide one of those lazy Susan's where you can rotate your plates around the table. My only complaint is that the specials are a tad over-priced, otherwise I'd give this place 5 stars. read more

I've had some really good meals here and consider Penang one of my favorites in the Boston area for Southeast Asian cuisine. Why, do you ask? -- Fun atmosphere. Its a cool space that's always buzzing with activity. It just feels alive. It is one of the better chains out there with two locations in MA, three in NYC, one in Philly, and another in Reston, VA. It doesn't come off feeling like a chain though. -- Good service. All of my servers have been prompt, friendly, and really professional. -- Expansive menu. Lots of options featuring Malay cuisine (which itself is a fusion of Chinese, Indian, Thai, and unique Malay selections) -- Food. I've tried several delicious items on their menu...we esp. liked their soft-shell crab specials when they are in season as well as their Hot & Spicy Crab dish. Tasty. I'll be back. read more

Out of towner, stumbled upon this restaurant while out for a walk on a winter's night. Plus: They serve food, Malaysian food to be exact and it is pretty tasty, which is desirable when paying for food. I had Pad Thai, my coworker had a Beef Dish. It was incredibly tasty. Con: They don't have refillable soda or liquor. Otherwise it was an exceptional experience, tasty food, reasonable prices, and friendly and courteous wait staff. Almost wish I was staying in Boston longer so I could eat here again. read more

What to order: roti canai. 3 orders if you must. Fill yourself up on it. Soooo good. That will be my strategy next time. What NOT to order: mango chicken. I've had this dish at a few other Asian restaurants and it's been delicious, with nice spices coupled artfully with the mango flavor. Penang is NOT equipped to do so. A tomato based sauce does not belong anywhere near a mango. It tasted like someone took a mango, cut it in half and scooped out the fruit, dumped in chicken, and slathered it in KETCHUP. tasted like pure ketchup. It was very unpleasant and I could barely eat it. I saw another couple That being said, I think Penang is great if you know what to order. Go with knowledgeable diners. Also the Philly location is better than Boston's, just saying. read more

The Kang Kung belachan was very good. The hainanese chicken is weird but tasted alright. The beef rendang taste like a weak curry with little flavor. The durian shake was weak and overly sweet. Service was mechanical with zero smile and no pleasantries. Won't be going back for sure. read more

Nicely decorated Malaysian restaurant with average food and average service. As everyone else says, try the roti canai (thin pancake with chicken curry dipping sauce). We also got the Hainanese chicken, sizzling beef, kang kung belacan (Chinese watercress with shrimp paste sauce), and chicken flavored rice. Everything was simply okay. Penang is usually packed during dinner time, so they must be doing something right. However, if I'm going to be fighting the crowds and hunting for parking in Chinatown, I'd rather eat somewhere else like Shabu Zen or Crave. read more

I had my first experience at Penang a few weeks ago, and I don't think I've ever had worse service at a Boston restaurant. My two friends and I were seated around 11:20. We were the second party in the restaurant. The waiter took our order around 11:30. Then the waiting game began. With a small army of employees working (and not so many customers), one would think that the food would come out within what would be considered a normal wait, if not quickly. Not so much at Penang - one friend got his meal at 12:05 (we had to leave at 12:15), I had to get my meal to go, and my other friend couldn't wait any longer because we had to go so she didn't end up eating. For lunchtime in downtown (when people don't have the time for long leisurely lunches), one would think they would do business faster. We had a sneaking suspicion that our waiter forgot to put our order in, because several similar-sized parties who came in after we did were served their food before ours came out. Regardless, we only bothered him at noon to ask what was up with our order. We got the runaround from there. They didn't apologize for the delay, or to my friend who didn't get her order, or even offer any sort of acknowledgement that they had screwed up. It's a shame, because when I got back to my office, the food was actually really good. Just not worth the hassle of awful service. If I ever get the craving for Malaysian food and wanted to give a place that treated its customers so shabbily my business, I'd make sure to order takeout. read more

I ordered the Roti Canai for an appetizer and curry chicken with rice. The Roti Canai was good. The curry chicken was spicy and came with a good sized portion of rice for $6.95. It did have bones and was not fun to pick through. Would have been much better with boneless chicken. The service was poor. Hardly anyone spoke English. If you asked questions, another waiter would have to be summonsed to translate. Took forever to place our orders and we were waited on by many different people. The owner (i'm guessing) came over to our table of 5 and was rude. Not what I would call good service. Nothing really stood out and I won't be going back anytime soon. read more

I always go there to get Roti Canai. good food, ok atmosphere, ok service. read more

Solidly "meh." The food was either super sweet or super fishy. The service was alright. Busy place with lots of people. It may be that it is just not my kind of place, and I'm okay with that. read more

Been here about three times and coming from Singapore, some dishes served here are pretty good and affordable like the chicken rice and nasi lemak but others lack the authentic taste or is not really what I know of Malaysia or Singapore food. I tried the basil fried rice recently and the taste was decent but isn't really how Thailand cooks up their basil fried rice. But seeing how rare it is to find Singaporean cuisines, I'll make do with this place. You can find better Singaporean cuisines in NYC, Philadelphia and Seattle. read more

Penang - Beef basil fried rice - Malaysian Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

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Whenever I go to Boston and I am in the mood for Chinese food, Penang is my go-to restaurant. But last time I was there, it was completely what I did not expect!! I ordered Achat...which was okay. It was quite busy but it didn't seem like they are short on staff. Next appetizer, Roti with egg and onions with a curry sauce on side. Horrible!! Who would combine Roti and egg and onion then dip it in a silly curry with no flavor?? Who does that? The dish could have been better if they did not put egg and onion in it. Just roti and the curry sauce...just a suggestion! Next, I ordered a stir fried Malaysian noodle with shrimp, octopus and according to the menu, it has soy sauce. I specifically requested to the server to make it really spicy. I was not sure if he was not paying attention or he just did not care! It seemed like he understood it cause he nodded very well. By the time the food came, I did not even dare finishing it cause it was literally SOAKED in soy sauce!! Disgusting! I felt that each bite will increase the sodium level in my body tremendously. It was that bad. I was so disappointed and did not even finish the food. I left with so much disappointment and of course still hungry! I am done with Penang. Sorry. read more

Our orders for the eat in was great! The only disappointment was my curry noodles take out. The eggplant and fish balls was miniature sizes, the green hot pepper was half size!! I've never been to Malaysian restaurants that skimped on the sizes of this dish. My God! How much more $ can you make out of this $9 curry noodles? read more

Penang - Disappointed with the half size pepper and the miniature sizes of the eggplant and fish balls! - Malaysian Near Me - Boston, Massachusetts

I can assure you that they know their stuff. Most of the food (not the drink) taste quite delicious and the portions were quite decent. The price is quite affordable too. If you are new to this place or Malaysian food, some dishes which you must try are Nasi Lemak or Masak Lemak, Beef Rendang, Singapore Noodles, and Bakuteh (soup). You won't wait for a long time even in busy time. The no-no is the Seafood Fried Rice. I tried once and never want to order it again. read more

This like the food in this restaurant but there are things I don't like. They have a huge menu to satisfy those who love seafood, those who love meat and vegetarians. They have another place out in Harvard Yard too. My favorite is the Roti Canai and the seafood rice noodle. I only gave this place 3 stars even though the food is good - I don't like the live fish as you enter the restaurant. Sometimes you'll see dead ones that have used up all the oxygen in the tank. I trust them not to use these but who knows. Either way customers don't need to see that stuff as you enter the place. read more