Lucky Hole

Dining at an eatery that’s sparked both lavish praise and sharp critique demands an open mind - and a curious palate. Securing a midweek reservation, fortunately, wasn’t too much of a feat. A warm, convivial, genuine welcome set the tone, and my wish to sit at the kitchen counter was gladly accommodated. After some discussion with the very intuitive and knowledgeable Cara (9.9/10) - the “helpful girl with the tats”, I settled on two appetisers and a main, skipping the bread and greens to leave room for dessert later. The counter is undoubtedly the best seat in the house if you want a front-row view of the young, acclaimed chef in action. He may have seemed too cool to crack a smile at first, but after some lively banter, his guard dropped - and by the end, he was all warmth and charm. This chef is no empty spectacle - there’s a lot of thought and quiet brilliance behind every plate. Take the lamb chops: deconstructed into a masterful trio of texture and flavour. The meat, blushing and tender, is roasted medium rare; the bone, deep-fried and caramelised to a golden crunch; the fatty cap, broiled to a crisp, crackling finish. Not a trace of mint sauce, thankfully - instead, a sweet-tart pomegranate and mixed berry reduction cuts through the richness with finesse. Generous to a fault (especially for the price), it’s a dish meant to be shared - though you’ll be reluctant to do so. This dish easily rates a 9.9/10. Their snapper carpaccio is a clever reinterpretation on the classic cured fish - reimagined as a chilled gazpacho-salad hybrid that blurs the line between soup and starter. Its bright acidity, laced with a whisper of Sichuan peppercorns, delivers a sweet-sour-spicy jolt that lingers and teases. This confidently rates a 9.9/10 too. Other dishes, like the polenta (9/10) crowned with uni and bursting ikura, landed as flavour bombs - bold, briny umami jolts that both teased the eye and awakened the appetite. In contrast, both the classic chocolate terrine and banana bread (7.9/10) were quiet finales, understated yet assured - a soothing, sensible calm end to an evening of sensory fireworks.

Food, service n ambiance was pretty good. Only gripe is the good stuff uni oysters lamb I wanna try all not available. Wine n cocktail list limited n no bubbly but overall can go place when in Penang.

One of the best restaurants in town! Great atmosphere and delicious food. The service was excellent, and Chef Raja truly stands out, professional, talented, and everything he cooked was amazing. This place is highly recommended if you’re in Penang! 💯

Love the ambience here, so chill and relax. Made my dining experience comfortable and enjoyable. The hot bread is highly recommended, so crusty outer layer and fluffy inside. Paired perfectly with the house butter. Yumsss. Lychee granita oysters is a real surprise. The aromatic lychee floral note pairs so beautifully with the fruity note from the oysters. Like icing on the cake. Mixed green salad is one of the best salad i had so far. Surprised with the yuzu infused muscat, house mortadella and that touch of dairy flavors from the Brie. Orecchiette with marmite, unagi and egg yolk is the best interpretation of east meet west flavors. Never had something like this before and it's so delicious. Australia Black Angus is cooked to perfect medium rare. That beef fats chimichurri sauce adds depth of flavors to the beef. Paired perfectly with my bottle of Bussia Barolo. 🍷😋 To end with sweet treat, warm banana cake is a must order to complete this wonderful dinner.

The food here is amazing, and the team is warm and helpful. Chef Wayman is super talented and friendly. Each dish had us wanting more, and the portions were generous! We especially liked the cauliflower dish. The space is cool with a really well curated hip hop playlist that had us dancing in our seats

Utterly disappointing. Lychee on the oysters ruined them - did not go well together, only tasted lychee. Ribeye wasn’t available - only sirloin was offered. Unagi pasta tasted like KL hokkien mee - unagi tasted charcoal burnt. Eggplant - don’t even get me started. Came out like fish and chips, sauce tasted like marinara pasta sauce. Salmon tartare was okay, nothing spectacular. Dessert was okay too. Drinks were underwhelming. Vibe is cool tho.

I like the ambience and the arrangement of tables that gives the place a spacious feel. The waiters are also friendly with an interesting dress code. They look more like diners rather than waiters and that gives the place an easy going vibe. Surprisingly I found the bread and butter the best dish in my meal. The bread was hot, with an incredible crispy skin with soft interior, while having a delicious chewy consistency, it was a yummy treat. The accompanying butter is perfectly flavoured and comes at a superb soft spreadable consistency for you to cover the bread. As for the prawns, delicious. Fresh. Perfectly cooked with a thick heavily flavoured gravy. Together with the chorizo, it was an enjoyable dish to eat. With regards to the Conchiglie unagi dish, I must say while I throughly enjoyed the unagi which was soft and delicious, the dish as a whole wasn't really impressive. The gravy was heavily mushroom flavoured and the overall lightness of its flavour and consistency didn't coat the pasta well, hence leaving the pasta itself generally plain. You will to use your spoon to scoop the gravy from the bottom of the plate to enjoy the meal. If I have an advise, I would suggest an option of soup. Absence of soup is pretty strange IMHO. But otherwise, I had a great meal and look forward to trying their other dishes.

Flavourful tasty steak cooked to perfection of medium rare.the chicken soft and moist and the banana cake dessert was so delicious highlight of the meal had to order two was so good.