Special thanks to Ban Thai for extending this food review invitation.
Update: This business has ceased its operations.
The former location of Paper Pepper at Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling has been converted to a Thai restaurant called Ban Thai (บ้านไทย). The word “ban” (บ้าน) means “home”. The kitchen of this eatery is handled by a chef from Thailand.
Although the dining area looks small, there are more tables upstairs. Fancy wall mural decorates one side of the wall. The upper floor also provides access to an adjacent female dormitory.
As the proprietor of the restaurant remains unchanged since Paper Pepper, Ban Thai continues to provide the “future mail” service. There are many postcard designs to choose from. To utilize this service, simply pick a postcard of your liking and write your message as well as the intended delivery date. Then, drop it in a mailbox which corresponds to the delivery year.
Basic fee for this service is RM5.00. There is an extra charge for each additional year into the future, up to 10 years ahead of time! A wooden panel against the wall allows the staff to keep track of delivery dates. Imagine the delight on your face when receiving your own mail several years later!
Ban Thai offers buffet-style rice with dishes for RM5.00 per helping. Additional helpings will be charged accordingly, so take what you need in one go.
This buffet is available between 11:00am and 7:00pm every day except Sundays. Should customers prefer to eat at the comfort of own homes, take-away boxes are also provided. The buffet usually provides around 4 dishes at any time. Actual dishes may vary from time to time.
Today’s buffet includes Stir-Fried Chicken With Ginger. Cooked with wood ear fungus, the chicken is flavored by julienned ginger.
Stir-Fried Pork In Sweet Chili Sauce is served with onion, scallion and chili peppers. The sauce is quite intense in flavor because it is meant to be eaten with rice.
As for fish, the tray of Spicy Sardine Fish does the heavy lifting in terms of spiciness. The gravy contains lots of chili peppers as well as other seasoning.
My personal favorite is Fried Chicken Wings, which boasts a succulent layer of crispy coating. Fried garlic is used to enhance its aroma and well as its taste.
As for condiments, there is a bowl of chopped bird’s eye chili. Most dishes are spicy own their own, it is unnecessary to use this sauce unless one prefers fierier sensation on the tongue.
Besides the buffet, Ban Thai also has an à la carte menu. This is usually handy for customers who are here to enjoy beer. One example from this menu is Fried Chicken With Garlic & Pepper (RM10.00), which comes with sweet chili sauce.
The chicken is quite salty as it is meant to be eaten between rounds of beer. I personally prefer to have the chicken cut into thinner slices, so that the seasoning penetrates the meat more thoroughly. In addition, some kind of marinade would be nice too.
Name: Ban Thai (บ้านไทย)
Address: 70, Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling, 10200 George Town, Pulau Pinang
Contact: 016-465-9581
Business hours: 11:00am-9:00pm, closed on Sundays
Website: https://www.facebook.com/paperpepperalways
Coordinates: 5.41759 N, 100.33804 E
Directions: Ban Thai is located along Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling. It is one of the shops between Kapitan Keling Mosque and Kong Hock Keong Temple. Street parking is available along the service road in front of it, or at Little India across the main road.