Rainforest Bakery: Chulia St, Georgetown (Top Pick)

I'm quite a bit of a 'foodie' and seem to have switched almost entirely to Asian food since I moved here, but then I always found I switched pretty much exclusively to local food wherever I have lived. Often fresher, better and certainly cheaper.  Every now and then though I do get a craving for things not traditionally associated with Asian cuisine and one such instance is Western style bread (as opposed to the more Asian roti style).

Western style bread is widely available here in Penang but the quality of it varies, much of it sold in supermarkets being too sweet for many Western tastes, and / or not 'dense' enough, lacking in substance.  I have previously written about the bread from Penang Adventist Hospital Bakery (some of which which can also be found at Cold Storage in Island Plaza) and in particular their 'sprouted seed' loaf.  That bread is still a favourite of mine but at times I do find the slices a little on the small side. As such I was always looking for other options, additions rather than a replacement. I have to say that of all the options I have tried the Rainforest Bakery in Chulia Street, Georgetown is by far my favourite and is now pretty much my number one supplier of bread.  Rainforest is situated near the 7-Eleven in Chulia Street, close to its junction with Love Lane.

Rainforest have branches in Taman Desaria and also Taman Mutiara and their shops really bring out the feeling of a traditional bakery.  Nicely decorated and designed, the warm colours and inviting environment provide the perfect combination to linger over the dazzling array of breads, biscuits and cakes.  The Chulia St branch also has a cafe attached so you can grab a coffee while pondering which of the offerings to take home.

Wholemeal Loaf

The breads are very reasonably priced and they produce a full colour double-sided price list, very useful as the bakery even offers a free home delivery service Monday to Saturday with deliveries arriving some time after 2pm.  Orders can be 'phoned through and need to be placed before 12 noon and there is no minimum order.  One of my favourite breads is the 'traditional wholemeal loaf', priced at just RM 3.80 and which is very tasty with large sized thick slices, perfect for a nice filling sandwich or toast.  Other popular breads include 'French Farmhouse', 'Ciabatta', 'English Bloomer', 'French Baguette', 'Sour Dough', 'Croissant' and 'Rustic Onion'.  But there are many, many others, far too numerous to list them all.

Chewy Nut Trail Cookie

Rainforest also produce a wide variety of sweet breads and cakes including 'Chelsea Buns', 'Butter Cake', scones, muffins, brownies and even 'Apple Crumble'.  One of my other favourites are the 'Chewy Nut Trail Cookies', great as a mid-morning snack with a cup of tea.

The useful and informative price list

Rainforest for me is a great bakery, warranting a 'Top Pick' and the free delivery service is a real bonus as getting to and parking in Chulia Street can be a bit of a pain, as a result of which I only tend to go when I need to go for other things.  Rainforest in Penang can be contacted on: +60 4 261 4641.