Who else loves tandoori chicken?

One of the many legendary restaurants in Penang is Restoran Kapitan.

While they serve a full menu of curries, nasi kandar, things grilled and roasted, and all sorts of other Indian dishes, they are mainly famous for their claypot biryani, and for their tandoori chicken and naan.

On a day of sightseeing in Penang (video), I stopped in for their tandoori chicken, and it didn’t disappoint…

Kapitan Restaurant
Here’s the menu at Kapitan Restaurant

Ying and I arrived to Kapitan Restaurant just after 12 noon, and since we had been doing a lot of walking around and exploring in the morning, we were very hungry.

I wanted to sit down and order a selection of different curries along with tandoori chicken, but unfortunately our waiter said the curries weren’t being served yet at the time we arrived.

So he mentioned we could either have the nasi kandar (a variety of pre-made curries at the front of the restaurant, also check out this blog post) or just go with the tandoori chicken, served with either naan or with a claypot biryani.

Since I had eaten rice for nearly all meals previously, as much as I wanted to try the claypot biryani, my wife and I both decided to go for the tandoori chicken and naan combo.

tandoori chicken
Fresh naan and juicy tandoori chicken

My platter of naan and tandoori chicken took a few minutes to arrive, but when it was delivered, it was hot and fresh – right out of the tandoor.

The plate came with 1 piece of chicken and as soon as it arrived I knew it wasn’t going to be enough. So before digging in, I immediately called our waiter over and ordered an extra piece of chicken.

tandoori chicken
So good and so flavorful

The tandoori chicken came served with a fresh piece of naan, a side of sliced red onions and a wedge of lime, and with a dipping sauce of daal in one position on the tray and a green minty sauce in the other section.

Although it may look a little dry from the photos – which the tandoori chicken style is always a kind of a dry style of roasted chicken – it was actually one of the most moist and flavor packed version of tandoori chicken I’ve ever had.

The tandoori chicken had the perfect saltiness, with just subtle flavors of dry spices and the yoghurt marinade.

When I was traveling in Northern India, I had some amazing tandoori chicken, and the chicken at Kapitan Restaurant in Penang was equally as good.

Kapitan Restaurant in Penang
Out total bill for 2 came to 27 MYR

Here’s our receipt for out total bill at Kapitan Restaurant.

We had 3 pieces of tandoori chicken, 2 pieces of naan, and a big bottle of water. Our total bill came to 27 MYR ($7.20).

Unfortunately I didn’t get to try the claypot biryani at Kapitan Restaurant, and nor did I get to sample any of the curries on their extensive menu, but I did have some fantastic tandoori chicken that I would highly recommend to anyone.

things to do in Penang, Malaysia
Walking through the streets of Penang, Malaysia

Walking down the street after finishing off our tandoori chicken and naan platters, I only wished I would have ordered 3 or 4 pieces of chicken.

It was that good.

Restoran Kapitan
It’s hard to miss Restoran Kapitan in Penang

Conclusion

Among the list of famous restaurants in Penang, Malaysia, located in Little India of George Town, is Restoran Kapitan, specializing in claypot biryani and tandoori chicken.

After walking around George Town in the morning, my wife Ying and I were ready to sit down and have lunch. We ordered a couple pieces of tandoori chicken and naan.

The naan was fluffy and fresh, and the tandoori chicken was incredibly flavorful – some of the best tandoori chicken I’ve ever had.

Kapitan Restaurant is famous for their tandoori chicken and it lives up to its name.

Kapitan Restaurant – Penang, Malaysia

Address: 93 Lebuh Chulia, George Town, Penang Island 10200 , Malaysia
Open hours: 24 hours, but they may or may not offer everything on the menu at all times of the day
Prices: Tandoori chicken is 7 MYR per piece, our total bill for 2 came to 27 MYR ($7.20)
How to get there: Kapitan Restaurant is located right on the corner of Lebuh Chulia and Lebuh King, just a block over from Kapitan Keling Mosque. When I was in Penang, my wife and I stayed at Armenian Heritage Hotel* and it was just a 5 minute walk from there.

66 comments. I'd love to hear from you!

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  • Tiny Fishing

    3 months ago

    amazing

  • io games

    3 months ago

    This blog is good. It’s a work of art! I’m glad I found this

  • Rainbow water

    6 months ago

    I found the post to be excellent, and I greatly appreciate the shared information.

  • Dynamons World

    11 months ago

    At first, the color of the chicken is quite confusing, but when eaten, the taste is very special.

  • backrooms

    1 year ago

    Delicious food is getting more and more popular all over the world.

  • fireboy and watergirl

    1 year ago

    Delicious cuisine is gaining worldwide popularity.

  • basketball stars

    1 year ago

    The places with delicious food are gradually becoming famous all over the world.

  • color tunnel

    1 year ago

    You have my sincere gratitude for sharing this important information. Checking out your webpage is quite interesting. I find it rather astonishing how much information you have supplied on your page.

  • bob the robber

    1 year ago

    The food looks so tempting. And the price is too reasonable. I will definitely stop by here when I come to Malaysia.

  • cookie clicker

    2 years ago

    I love chicken dishes

  • vishal kaushik

    3 years ago

    Nice food blog. Thanks Mark!!

  • sankar singh

    3 years ago

    amazing content writing nice food blog along with picrues,Blogging is hard because of the grind required to stay interesting and relevant.
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  • VapeSpring

    3 years ago

    Good images displayed plus, Really impressive post.

  • Jin

    7 years ago

    Bad Service, Bad Food and Never want to go into this restaurant again. Firstly, while I doing order, I already simplified what I going to order for example “Tandoori with Cheese Naan” and with a cup of “Teh Tarik”, but the waitress can walk away and want to serve others customer, and mainly they will focus on visitors. From this point, I am not happy with the service at all. Because they do not have “First Come First Serve” service at this restaurants and yet they just walked away. Secondly, I have to wait for my drink like 15 mins to ask them again, “Where is my Teh Tarik?” then only they serve it, and then they already start serve chicken for the Visitor. Can you see from this point? I have no mean to be racism, but this is horrible and terrible! I have to keep waiting until someone who were came in later than me already finish their meal! And then I need to ask again, “Where is my chicken? it took almost 1 hour?” then they only serve us.
    I got myself a drink took 15 mins, I got myself a food that took 60 mins? then the waitress tell me:”Lambat tapi Sedap” mean that “it slow but tasty”. Sorry, I have to said, your tandoori chicken is not tasty but instead is salty!!!
    I used to be this restaurant regular customer, but after the service like this. I would never step into it

  • jason

    7 years ago

    poor service, they just ignore what ever we request, just focus on visitors, when they food coming the waiter just show a confident face said “barang sedap mesti kena tunggu lama” meaning that the delicious food must wait and queue, but when I order only 3 customer in the shop & need to take 1 hour to deliver the food? omg…. the taste is totally not like before… salty tandoori chicken… will pull out from my recommend list today onwards.

  • Leesa berlin

    7 years ago

    Verry bad service..they know their restaurant famous…then when customer ask to wipe table..they just ignore..order drink also past and past to other..what the fucking service.the food i admit verry nice..but please ask the staff be nice

  • Rafal

    7 years ago

    Thanks for sharing! Now this restaurant is on my list when I get there next year. Can’t wait! 🙂

  • Vincent

    7 years ago

    Coming from North Malaysia myself, not Penang but Kedah, I will definitely go to Kapitan Restaurant when I go back. Now Iiving in Sydney Australia and missed Penang food so so much.

  • paul beard

    8 years ago

    My favourite in Penang, chicken tandoori Biriani with naan bread, beef rendang was also good. Good price as well. Theres anoither shop near the scond airport as well.. Went to many on your list Chinese, Malay and Indian Thanks!!!

    • Mark Wiens

      8 years ago

      Thanks for sharing Paul. Making me so hungry thinking about the food in Penang!

  • martin

    8 years ago

    Hello Mark
    Thanks for all the great food reviews, we arrive yesterday in penang ,and the first thing i did is check what you suggest in penang ,so we went to the kapitan and it was delicious ! ! ! Best tandoori ever !

  • Andrew Calvert

    8 years ago

    Thank you for your great videos. We had the chicken tandoori with garlic naan , here, today. It was as good as you said it would be. Carry on the good work. The price has gone up to 9 MYR. But still wonderful value.
    Andrew

  • Saifudin

    8 years ago

    This one is a gem. Went here two times; once for tandoori naan, the second time for chicken briyani. The chicken was very flavourful. Briyani was good too, but may be a bit hot for some. Service here was a bit lacking. Be sure to keep reminding the waiters on your orders; otherwise your food will come late, and cold. Will be coming back here again. Highly recommended.

  • Rob @ (Nairobi Park)

    8 years ago

    That Chicken looks deliciously red. Tandoori has always been a favorite among the many other Indian delicacies.

  • Apple1

    8 years ago

    Hi Mark!

    such a nice review. In any case you’ll be back in Penang, you can stay at our Apple1 Hotel.. we would be glad to accommodate you. Our budget hotel have 2 branches, one is near the Airport and Queensbay mall, and the other one is located in Georgetown, near Gurney Paragon Mall and Gurney Plaza.

    Best of luck.

    • Mark Wiens

      8 years ago

      Hi, nice to hear from you, thank you for the invitation!

  • Swati & Sam

    8 years ago

    Looks so yum!!! We tried Nasi Goreng when we were in Malaysia. Do check our article on street food in Malaysia.

    http://thetalesofatraveler.com/2015/06/28/top-10-malaysian-street-food/

  • Bryan

    8 years ago

    hey Mark first great work men !

    Did they have a spicy sauce like you and i love when eating almost anything to eat whit the chicken?

    • Mark Wiens

      8 years ago

      Hi Bryan, thank you. They had a few sauces, not too spicy, but the minty tasting sauce was good. But could have used some more chili for sure!

  • Tony Sutton

    9 years ago

    Hello Mark i have watched your youtube videos for some time now and was so happy to see one on Penang. My wife and i are in Penang as i write this and where out for dinner last night in Georgetown and i thought let go to the tandoori place Mark went to. OMG so worth it. We had tandoori naan set,mutton
    Beriyani tandoori Beriyani with dahl, garlic naan and a Rogan Josh mutton. It was by far the best Indian food we have had.thank you for the heads up.

    • Mark Wiens

      9 years ago

      Hey Tony, so cool to hear that, thank you for sharing. Glad you enjoyed the food at Kapitan, they really do have some of the best tandoori chicken I’ve ever had as well. Enjoy your time in Penang.

  • Chicks

    9 years ago

    Chào chú Mark !
    Bài viết của chú rất tuyệt vời với hình ảnh bắt mắt điều đó làm tôi muốn đến đấy để thưởng thức. Tôi sẽ đến vào một ngày ko xa. Hãy ra mắt nhiều video và blog nữa nhé !
    Have a good day!!!

    • Mark Wiens

      9 years ago

      Hi Chicks, great to hear from you, thank you for reading!

  • charlie

    9 years ago

    HI MARK
    I am Charlie from China,it is grateful that watch your nice video
    I consider that come to China to try wonderful Chinese food here,i am sure that you will have great trip if possible

    Charlie

    • Mark Wiens

      9 years ago

      Hi Charlie, good to hear from you. Thank you very much. I hope to visit more parts of China in the future!

  • Tom Yum

    9 years ago

    Awesome. I love your blog.

  • Milt Valler

    9 years ago

    (Tandoori chicken plate at Restoran Kapitan in Penang, Malaysia)
    That picture is fab! The food looks even fabber. Gotta find Tandoori tonight.

  • Fendy

    9 years ago

    Agree. My taxi driver recommended me to go here for lunch. And I’m so Glad that he brought me here. Must try when you visit Penang

    • Mark Wiens

      9 years ago

      Cool to hear that Fendy, glad you enjoyed it too!

  • Britt

    9 years ago

    Delicious! Penang is one of my favourite food destinations. The street food is so amazing and diverse!

    • Mark Wiens

      9 years ago

      Thanks for sharing Britt, glad you enjoy the food in Penang!

  • Karma

    9 years ago

    Hi Mark! I would like you to visit Secunderabad, India to try new dishes like “Masoor Bhajji”
    And Iam also a big foodie tell me some interesting combinations to try in non-veg as well as veg.
    🙂

    • Mark Wiens

      9 years ago

      Hi Karma, thank you very much. I would really love to visit in the future, thank you for the invitation.

  • SUSAN

    9 years ago

    First, was so broken hearted to hear what happened in Bangkok last night and hope is all well with you and yours! 2nd, I am a huge fan of all Asian food. I am fortunate that my Filipino daughter in law has her mother close by so I am treated to yummy, authentic food from the Philippines.

    • Mark Wiens

      9 years ago

      Hey Susan, thank you for the concern, really sad news about Bangkok. My family and I are all well. Great to hear you daughter in law is Filipino and you get some delicious Filipino food. Have you visited the Philippines?

  • quocpham

    9 years ago

    oh, look goods.
    @ Mark Wiens : I think you should visit Viet Nam in order to enjoy many food very good

  • Manu

    9 years ago

    Mark, that chicken looks good. Good photos. It doesn’t seem to be on the menu though.

    And talking of the menu, it’s obvious the restaurant is popular, from the frayed edges of the menu-card!

    Is that red colour natural? A coating of red chilly powder or food colouring?

    • Mark Wiens

      9 years ago

      Hey Manu, thank you very much. I think the tandoori chicken at this restaurant is so standard they don’t even need to include it on the menu as it’s something nearly everyone orders. I think they typically add a few drops of red color to get it that red.

  • ilovfridays

    9 years ago

    that looks really awesome. i signed up for your bkk food guide last year and am so psyched to see that you have written about food in penang too, as i’ll be heading there with my family this thurs. CAN’T WAIT!!!

    • Mark Wiens

      9 years ago

      Great to hear that, glad you’ll be visiting Penang soon. The food is amazing!

  • Steph (@ 20 Years Hence)

    9 years ago

    Yesssssss. There is no shortage of good Indian food in Penang, but Kapitan is definitely a “can’t miss”. I’m pretty sure it’s the one place in Penang that we’ve eaten at the most; we’ve been to Penang twice, but I’m pretty sure we’ve eaten at Kapitan’s three or four times… Their tandoori chicken is amazing, and I also really loved their biryani (it wasn’t too aggressively spiced, so the flavors just dance on your tongue).

    • Mark Wiens

      9 years ago

      Hey Steph, great to hear from you, and glad you loved the chicken at Kapitan as well. It’s such a convenient place, and that chicken is so good. Next time I have to try the biryani.

  • Matti

    9 years ago

    Hi there Mark!

    Great blog and great videos.. I have been in Penang for a couple of times and it is truly a haven for food fanatic…Will be there again during chinese new year in february…

    Greetz from Finland!

    Matti

    • Mark Wiens

      9 years ago

      Hi Matti, thank you very much, and glad you’ll be returning again to Penang. It really is a food paradise. Enjoy your next trip!

  • Renuka

    9 years ago

    My mouth is watering! Would love to grab a bite of that roasted chicken and naan. Lovely! And it’s not too expensive!

  • DeJavieur

    9 years ago

    Looks oh so good and a cheap price. I must make my way to that part of the world.

    • Mark Wiens

      9 years ago

      Thank you for reading. Hope to see you in this side of the world soon.