Big Elephant Penang Signature (Havelock)

From Big Elephant Penang Signature
Savoury plate of braised pork rice.
Blue butterfly pea flower coloured rice.
Home cooked braised pork.
Really flavourful sambal chilli.
Not bad indeed.

Having been around the Chinatown neighbourhood quite often, one spot that we have been wanting to hit up for a while now is Big Elephant Penang Signatures — for those whom are unaware, Big Elephant Penang Signatures is located at the ground level of Havelock 2; they occupy quite a prominent stalk unit at the building considering how they are located right at the main entrance facing the junction of Eu Tong Sen Street, New Bridge Road and Havelock Road. Big Elephant Penang Signatures takes up a rather oddly-shaped unit; the windows following the curvatures of the architecture of the building — this also meant that the seating capacity at Big Elephant Penang Signatures can be described as rather limited to say the least — most of its dine-in seatings being located slightly outside of the space around the aisles of the shopping gallery instead. That being said, there seems to be an attempt to create a bit of a rustic vibe here with the use of wooden furniture and fittings with a slight element of life with the inclusion of faux plants that hangs around the ceiling lighting within the space. Big Elephant Penang Signatures serves up a rather limited selection of familiar Malaysian Kopitiam favourites — think items like Braised Pork Rice and Penang Assam Laksa; just to name a few. Interestingly, there is a daily dessert of the day offered at Big Elephant Penang Signatures as well — this would include local desserts like Pulut Hitam, Burbur Terigu etc. that are only available on specific days of the week. There are also a selection of cakes and other bakes displayed at the counter that patrons that go for, while beverages available at Big Elephant Penang Signatures includes Nanyang-style Kopi & Teh, fruit juices and canned drinks — just to name a few.

Having been paying attention to the establishment for quite a while, it does seem that the Penang Assam Laksa from Big Elephant Penang Signatures look rather authentic and is quite a favourite with its patrons. That being said, we were not quite in the mood for the Penang Assam Laksa and the Nyonya Curry Chicken was an item that related to us better on the day of our visit to Big Elephant Penang Signatures. The Nyonya Curry Chicken does come with hard-boiled egg by default; we had opted to go for the sunny side-up instead for our order since it was suggested by the lady behind the counter. The dish also comes accompanied with a dual tone portion of rice that comes in shades of violet and white; the former being infused with blue pea flower — they have also included a chunk of potato with every portion of the Nyonya Curry Chicken as well. Considering how the item only needs to be plated since it has already been prepared beforehand, the item is served pretty much at the same point of time of which it is being ordered. Digging into the Nyonya Curry Chicken, we did find that the curry gravy itself is incredibly rich; a good balance of curry spices with a rich flavour coming from the addition of coconut milk — this makes the rice a perfect vehicle to mop all of the curry gravy up, especially considering that the rice does not bear any flavours of its own except for how some grains have been infused with blue pea flower here. The chicken drumstick was easy to have with the meat requiring not much effort to come off from the bones; the flesh having absorbed all of those flavours of the curry gravy it was cooked it.

There was also not much chewing required for the potatoes considering how it was cooked to a soft texture, while it does seem like the folks here have trimmed away the crispy, browned edges of the sunny side-up — perhaps in an attempt to appeal to the health-conscious ones. That being said, the sunny side-up still comes with a molten egg yolk that eagerly bursts as one pokes the yolk excitedly with a fork. Apart from the Nyonya Curry Chicken, we also have had the Coffee Swiss Roll which was stocked in a cake display at the counter; the Coffee Swiss Roll came with ample buttercream slathered around its inside swirls whilst being pretty fresh, soft and fluffy with a whiff of coffee aroma. The Kopi was also decent, though we would preferred it to be a little bolder with a punchier body to balance against the sweetness that it came with from the addition of the condensed milk. Overall, Big Elephant Penang Signatures presents itself as a rather homely establishment serving up local favourites that one could easily appreciate — the quality of its food seemingly exceeds that of a coffeeshop / hawker / food court stall without being wildly expensive at the same time — the main dishes at Big Elephant Penang Signatures being priced from $6 for its Nyonya Curry Chicken and Braised Pork Rice to $9.90 for Japanese Ramen. A spot that definitely would work well for those looking for a quieter spot slightly away from the main hustle and bustle around Chinatown to settle at without breaking the bank for lunch.

Located at the front beside the entrance to Havelock II, you will find this small shop serving just a few food items.

They have some authentic Penang cuisine such as the laksa. But if you want some rice option, definitely go for this Nyonya curry chicken rice with blue pear steamed rice; come with a piece of curry chicken, potato and egg.

The curry was spicy and flavourful