Hakka Connexion

If you are in Penang, try not to by-pass Hakka Connexion specialising in Hakka dishes. This restaurant is situated in Jalan Bawasah, just behind Penang Plaza at Jalan Burmah and Dorsett Hotel at Jalan Anson. You may look for Peter Wong or his wife Careen Lim.

Allow me to be a food critic, writer and restaurant critic all in one. I am critical by what I will be eating, and my priority goes to spicy dishes, the hotter the better. I am referring to food at this moment otherwise my mind will stray just as quickly as I can gulp down any delicacy.

So you see, I was not keen to try Hakka food. And since the consensus was to try, I guess why not!

I left the ordering to them with a heavy sceptism that the food would not be any good without spices. As a good cook myself (this is serious) specialising in baba-nyonya cuisines, I thought what was there to offer with the usual Chinese style of cooking.

The first dish reached the table and it was pork leg vinegar.

My god! Priscilla and Dave (Dave is the greatest eater among us but just as thin as a bamboo) were slurping the soup away. They sighed with satisfaction and unable to stop complimenting how good it tasted. The rest followed like sheep to a Shepherd, but not me.

Hesitantly, I tried with the tip of the spoon touching the soup and lifted to my tongue to taste. Well, the rest was history!

You know, the choice of food is rather personal - one man’s meat is another man’s poison. The bottom line is just plain simple. It is either you like it or not, be it the flavour, taste or the price that comes with it.

It is still unfathomable how people will say that no matter how far or expensive the meal will cost but as long as the food is satisfying, they don’t mind. I would rather say no matter how far, I will be there but with reasonable charges.

It is like tossing the coin in the air and if it lands on the side you expect it to be, then it is to your favour. It is the same with cooking whether it is cooked to the way you like it or not. No matter what, when the food is served, just eat it!

As usual, the menu lists the variety of dishes with the usual fish porridge, bitter gourd, fish, meat, and etcetera. However, the way they are cooked and the ingredients used will definitely make the difference.

This dish is unique. Abacus balls fried with a sprinkle of some peppers, garnished with spring onion and red chilli is salivating indeed. It is called abacus balls because it is copied from the abacus seeds used in the conventional counting device.

The food served in Hakka Connexion will go down well with a glass of nutmeg juice. This is where you can be pampered in Penang.

We were tickled by Eric when he said that he was synonymous to MBPP (Majlis Bandaraya Pulau Pinang) when he nibbled everything, leaving every plate free from wastages. We love him!

The environment is conducive despite a little congestion. The colonial building blends well with the classical Hakka songs echoed in the air. It could easily transport me back to yesteryears where I was still running around half - naked in my kampong.

So my friends, when you are in Penang do drop by Hakka Connexion – a culinary nirvana of Hakka food, so to speak. The price is reasonable and what else can we ask for? Yes, the address is, 3, Jalan Bawasah.

From the connecting door, the adjacent building houses a photo gallery. Peter Wong is one of the sons of the late Tan Sri Datuk Wong Pow Nee, the first Chief Minister of Penang.

The legacy of Penang’s first Chief Minister Tan Sri Wong Pow Nee is showcased here in a special gallery.

The gallery in Jalan Bawasah features hundreds of photos from the late Wong's private collection of his patriotic past.

His humble beginning was a simple school teacher from Bukit Mertajam and became a man of great responsibility and repute.

Even when he became the chief minister, he was a staunch supporter of the scouts movement, starting his first jamboree in 1966. Tan Sri Wong Pow Nee, Penang's first Chief Minister, was born in Bukit Mertajam, Penang, on October 7, 1911.

He received his early education at the Anglo-Chinese School, Bukit Mertajam, Penang, before he continued his studies at St Xavier Institution, Penang, where he passed the Cambridge School Certificate examination in 1932.

Penang's first Chief Minister, Tan Sri Datuk Wong Pow Nee, died at his residence in Jalan Macalister at 6.60 am. He was 91, leaving behind his wife Elizabeth Law Siew Kim, 10 children and 17 grandchildren.

Peter Wong operates this restaurant, Hakka Connexion offering traditional cuisine and maintains the prized gallery - the legacy of his late father.