Most Penangites would not be unfamiliar with Hai Boey seafood restaurant, which the names implies the meaning end of the sea. True indeed, the restaurant is located at Teluk Kumbar, which used to be end of the road in Penang. At the same time, it is blessed with abundance of seafood due to close proximity with the fishing village Gertak Sanggul, ensuring the continuous supply of fresh seafood is not disrupted.
We have only been there recently though the name Hai Boey seafood restaurant has been lingering at our ears for years. Probably due to the human natural thinking that the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.
There were too much varieties of seafood and different method of preparation to choose, and we settled with our all time favorite clams with sweet and sour sauce (RM12.00). To our dismay, we waited almost 45 minutes to be served this first dish on a busy Saturday night with our grumpling stomach could not hold anymore.
The kappa tasted good with the sweet and sour sauce impregnated well within, and the garlic slices further enhanced the taste. Nevertheless, the quantity of clams were scant and barely enough for a table of 4.
We waited for about 20 minutes for the next dish, tofu in pumpkin sauce (RM10) 鸿喜豆腐 to be served. We were really delighted with it as the tofu was silky smooth, and the ambrosial pumpkin sauce real embrace the taste buds when having it alone or mix it with rice.
We were introduced to the Guinness Stout Prawns (RM22.00) but it was not really the something topnotch. The prawns were fresh and big in size but the proclaimed Guinness Stout taste were barely tasted.
Then it comes to the bomb of the night - pumpkin cooked crab for a premium price tag RM84.00 for 2 crabs. It was decently cook as the crabs were scented with the sweet pumpkin sauce but the crabs were small in size. We could have given it a skip if we know the price tag earlier.
While we were waiting for the dishes to be served to us 1 by 1 with an interval of 10 minutes or more per dish, we stumbled upon this dish - bitter gourd (RM16.00) with its own special preparation method 梅香凉瓜. Intrigued by its outer appearance, we ordered 1 and it was revealed that meat was actually beneath the bitter gourd. There were only a fragment of bitterness left and the taste is accepted by Shirleen who is not a fan of bitter gourd.
Stir fried Kailan for RM10.00 and the portion is really small.
There are many more exotic seafood dishes offered in Hai Boey such as Empurau fish which could easily cost up to a thousand or above per fish, geoduck or lobsters. If you have some extra pennies in your wallet and willing to spend, here is the place then.
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