Chowrasta Market Penang is the best Asian wet market experience in George Town for tourists who want a slice of the local lifestyle.
Wake up early for an actual blue Penang experience of shopping at an authentic, lively wet market.
Watch the street vendors set up their stalls just before the crack of dawn.
By 6 am, most roadside stalls would be set up with vans parked and goods offloaded.
Watch how the local housewives shop as they move from stall to stall to do their marketing.
Most of the shoppers and vendors know each other.
It’s the daily chat and mingles they look forward to.
It’s worth the effort to walk through the market even if you don’t plan on buying anything.
Just taking in the colors and smells and people-watching is a great Penang pastime.
The newly renovated Chowrasta Market, fondly referred to as ‘Kalinga Ban San’ in Penang Hokkien, retains its cultural heritage while embracing modern amenities.
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What is the Chowrasta Market Penang?
The Chowrasta Market is known as “Kalinga Ban San” in Penang Hokkien.
Translated, it means “South Indian Market.”
Where is the Chowrasta Market located?
Four roads are bordering the Chowrasta Market.
Most of the market activities spill onto the three bordering roads.
When is the best time to go?
For my excursions, I head there during the weekends.
A fun place to immerse yourself in on Sunday morning.
Where do the locals go?
I seldom go into the Chowrasta Market building.
Like most locals, I prefer the open-air section street wet market along Kuala Kangsar Road.
What do the bargain hunters look for?
I can get fresh meat, fish, shellfish, poultry, eggs, plump juicy fruits, and vegetables.
How do you enter the Chowrasta Market Penang?
Most visitors would enter Kuala Kangsar Road from either Kimberly Street or Campbell Street.
The two shorter roads, Chowrasta Road and Tamil Street connect to Penang Road.
As there are vans and lorries parking on both streets, there are fewer street vendors here.
What is sold prominently on Chowrasta Road?
Dried foodstuff from China and women’s clothes wholesalers are predominant on Chowrasta Road.
What is on Tamil Street?
Along Tamil Street, there are Indian grocery shops.
What can you buy in Chowrasta Market Penang?
Chowrasta Market itself is a haven for tourists looking for cheap bargains and souvenirs.
Food is abundant with a broad range of local goodies.
There are pickles, sweets, dodol, tempoyak, cincaluk, tambun biscuit, and even homemade cookies.
In Malaysia, there are non-Halal sections where pork is sold, reflecting the country’s multicultural society.
Everything can I eat at Chowrasta Market Penang?
It is easy to find good and cheap food for breakfast in most outdoor food markets.
There are five “Kopitiam” (coffee shops) on Kuala Kangsar Road.
These are hidden just behind the umbrella hawkers selling decent, affordable breakfasts.
I head to my two favorite breakfast foods here.
What is the most popular street food found at Chowrasta Market Penang?
There is a popular Chee Cheong Fun cart that serves steamed flat rice noodle rolls is with no filling.
The springy rice rolls are drizzled with oil and three types of sauces.
The pungent prawn paste (hae ko), sweet red sauce (tee cheer), and chili sauce.
Another breakfast favorite is the Chee Cheong Chok, a thick flavourful congee cooked with pig innards and blood cubes.
They top this with loads of white pepper, spring onions, and chopped crispy deep-fried pig intestines.
Is there a good coffee at Chowrasta Market Penang?
I down that with ‘Kopi C,’ a thick local coffee with the thin evaporated milk.
‘Kopi‘ is local coffee with thick sweetened condensed milk. ‘Kopi O’ is just black coffee with sugar.
You could grab a cup of cold soybean milk to walk off those calories.
The elderly Chinese man impresses the watching crowds as he skillfully guts fish while squatting on a small stool.
First-time visitors may find the sights and sounds of an Asian wet market intimidating, but filming the locals selling fresh fish and poultry can be a fascinating experience.
Exploring the Morning Chowrasta Market
It takes a while to get used to the smell of a wet market.
Sidestepping the puddles and not tripping over the tripod legs of giant umbrellas soon becomes second nature.
It takes about half an hour to walk the length of Kuala Kangsar Road.
Prepare for an Authentic Malaysian Experience at Chowrasta Market, Penang
For a genuinely Malaysian experience, watch out for the motorcycles balancing containers and goods riding through the crowd of pedestrians and shoppers!
Seriously, no one seems to care as everyone goes at their own pace as they jostle for space on the narrow road.
A few kids take turns pulling each other as they ride in discarded boxes on the pavement.
Despite motorcycles weaving through pedestrians, kids continue to have a great time. I captured the scene up close with my camera!
A variety of dried foodstuff and Chinese herbs, essential ingredients for traditional cuisine and herbal remedies.
Affordable Cotton Pajamas & Bras at Chowrasta Market, Penang
Even though there are plenty of shops selling clothes at wholesale prices, no one seems to mind the pajamas and women’s underwear on display overhead.
Do walk into some of the regular clothes shops to look around if you want to buy some cheap clothes.
There are batik dresses, nice shirts or souvenirs.
Some of these items you won’t find at the Batu Ferringhi night market.
Despite Chinese superstitions warning against it, people seem unconcerned about men walking under a woman’s undergarments.
Quality Sports Shoes and Sandals at Chowrasta Market
There are loads of cheap shoes and sandals that look like the original on display.
I bought two pairs of shoes to pair with my fave jeans for my weekend outings.
One pair of sandals I wore hiking up Pala-U waterfall in Hua Hin, Thailand.
I kid you not!
Seniors often purchase tai chi shoes from this friendly seller, attracted by the vibrant colors and comfortable design.
Bounty of Fresh Fruits and Vegetables
Penangites love a good bargain.
More than that, they love to pick and choose their fresh produce and fruits.
So it’s okay even if you’re picky and take your time choosing.
The vendors are friendly even if you don’t buy.
There are fresh banana combs on sale.
Fresh jackfruits are cut and sold in plastic packets and imported grapes and persimmons.
There’s another morning flea market at Lorong Kulit worth checking out.
A display of fresh plums and juicy fruits at the market, including sweet and crisp Moondrop grapes on sale that day.
Chowrasta Market in Penang showcases a variety of colorful leafy and root vegetables, adding vibrancy to the local food scene.
Chowrasta Market Penang never closes and is opened daily.
This hive of activity with random wet market stalls on Kuala Kangsar Road is now cleared.
They allocate the vendors’ stalls along Chowrasta Road.
