Zhen Shi Shen Cafe at Victoria Street, George Town, Penang

Down in Victoria Street in George Town, Penang, one will find a string of cafes and restaurants. If you are looking for one serving noodles and Asian snacks, it is worth dropping by Zhen Shi Shen cafe 真食神. Located in the compound of Boon San Tong Khoo Kongsi, the outlet is a convenient place to dine in with its daily opening breakfast, lunch, and teatime hours (9am till 5pm).

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Noodles are popular in Zhen Shi Shen. If you are a mantis prawn loving person, you will love it with the Shi Shen Misua (thin noodle) 食神面线. It is all about a balance of savory sweet broth, impeccably fresh deep-fried mantis prawns, chopped garlic, chilli sauce, and coriander to freshen it all.

You can also choose to have the Shi Shen Tao Qiam (bean strip) or the Shi Shen Bihun (rice noodle), priced at RM7.80 for a medium-size and RM11.80 for a large serving.

You would be surprised to see how the mantis prawns are being prepared in front of the outlet.

While the noodle appears to be the default dish, the owner also charms diners with traditional snacks such as Steamed Taro Cake 芋头糕 and deep-fried Nishi 西亚煎.

The soft texture steamed yam cake with generous amount of yam comes with plenty of fried dried shrimp and shallots. It is delicious simply dipped in homemade chili sauce with a kick of garlic.

For the deep-fried Nishi, you will find batter with bits of chopped vegetables and a choice of seafood – shrimp, crab or mantis prawn. A serving of shrimp nishi at RM12 comes with four pieces of golden brown nishi with crunchy sides and a good ratio of seafood.