Experiencing Hotel Equatorial Penang

Experiencing Hotel Equatorial Penang (26 August 2017)


My wife and I enjoyed the privilege of experiencing the hospitality of Hotel Equatorial Penang on 25-27 August, 2017. At the Equatorial, the warm welcome starts right at the porch. From far, I could see that the hotel has specially reserved the VIP parking lot for us, at the porch itself, with our name and car plate number on it.

As soon as we have gotten out of our car, and before we could even unload our luggage, the Hotel Equatorial Penang welcome team has come out to greet us. There was Miss Gillian Tan, the Assistant Marcom Manager, and Mr Patrick Cheah, the Front Office Manager. Like bees to honey, the welcome team relieved us of our luggage and ushered us to Room 729, which is the Premier Suite at the main wing of the hotel.

After we have put away our luggage, we joined Miss Gillian for a walkabout tour of the hotel. We marvelled at the cavernous atrium, which I remarked as being large enough to fit a 5-star hotel. We were shown Grand Ballroom, which has the largest LED screen of any hotel on Penang Island. We also briefly toured the Equator Club Lounge, which is for the exclusive use of guests occupying the executive floor and suites. Afterwards we had some time to explore the hotel on our own, and we visited the lush grounds, the swimming pool, and the poolside beverage outlet.

Dinner that evening was by candlelight at The View. Perched on a vantage point, the restaurant affords an unsurpassed panoramic vista worthy of its name. Our maître d' was Zulkifli Mat Noh, whom I just call Mr Zul. He ushered us to our table, which is located at a cosy corner, and gave us a run-through of the semi-buffet offering. My wife was particularly impressed that the salad was tossed within a solid block of cheese.

Candlelight dinner at The View (25 August 2017)


The hotel has arranged for us to sample three items for our main course. They are the Rossini pan-fried beef tenderloin, served with peppercorn sauce, chorizo and white bean, accompanied with potato cake; Australian lamb rack, served with pistachio crust, rosti potatoes and mango salsa; and Scottish salmon tournedos, wrapped with turkey ham, organic quinoa risotto and crab ragout. Honestly, it was a feast of good food, and unfortunately, it was a whole lot more food than we could consume.

The View, Hotel Equatorial Penang (25 August 2017)


After a lovely evening at The View, we retired to our suite, little knowing what was in store for us. We had earlier dropped out bags without looking around, but now that we have the chance to survey the room, we were astonished at the level of personalisation that the hotel has taken to welcome us.

Personalised welcome on the TV screen. (25 August 2017)


Enjoying the goodies in the Premier Suite. (26 August 2017)


The coffee table in the living room has been done up with a large platter of fruits, including a bunch of bananas, grapes, mangoes, apples and kiwifruits. Next to it is a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon and a couple of wine glasses, ready for us to enjoy the evening. And in an exquisite lacquerware box is a mock sushi bento set, with beautifully made fruit sushi. But that's not all. Going into the bedroom, we saw a personalised greeting on the TV screen. There were personalised welcome letters from the General Manager and the Front Office Manager, and to top it all off, the hotel has even prepared a framed photograph of my wife and me. We were blown away!

A bento box of fruit sushi and a personalised welcome letter. (26 August 2017)


A framed photograph of ourselves with fond HEP memories. (26 August 2017)


Breakfast the next morning was at Nada Lama, the hotel's flagship dining outlet. We were entrusted into the able hands of the restaurant supervisor, Mr Aravind Nallasamy, and his assistant Mr Norfahmi Awang, who both ensured that we received the very best service. I could see that the service team were very attentive, not only to us, but also to the other hotel guests, ensuring that used plates were removed and glasses promptly refilled.

My wife enjoying her breakfast at Nada Lama (26 August 2017)


With Mr Aravind (centre) and Mr Norfahmi (left) at Nada Lama, Hotel Equatorial Penang (26 August 2017)


The kitchen staff of Nada Lama. (26 August 2017)


After our breakfast, we had only enough time for a walkabout the hotel before we proceeded to the Equinox Fitness Centre, at the basement level of the hotel, for a spa session. The hotel has arranged for us to experience a Spa Indulgence for Two. This was conducted by experienced masseuses from Indonesia.

As soon as our spa session was done, we were whisked off to lunch at Golden Phoenix Restaurant. The restaurant has prepared for us to sample a wide selection of à la carte items. The dishes served to us were a combination of perennial favourites, new introductions as well as off-menu items which may be added to the menu soon. We were privileged to be among the first to sample them. Once again, it was more food than we were able to partake. Rather than wasting all the good food, we requested that the restaurant pack up for us the leftovers.

With Mr Willem Hagedoorn, the Director of Operations, at Golden Phoenix, Hotel Equatorial (26 August 2017)


After our lunch, we had to leave the hotel to attend to a function in town. When we got back, we visited the Equator Club Lounge for evening cocktails. Or at least, it was evening cocktail time, but we were too full to eat much. Moreover dinner, time was at our heels. We were met at Equator Club Lounge by Miss Rina Mariani, the Director of Sales and Marketing, who was later joined by Mr Patrick Cheah, the Front Office Manager. We had a lovely time chatting with Miss Rina and Mr Cheah, and afterwards, Rina escorted us to our dinner venue.

Enjoying cocktail at the Equator Club Lounge with Miss Rina Mariani, the Director of Sales and Marketing of Hotel Equatorial Penang. (26 August 2017)


Dinner that evening was at Kampachi Japanese Restaurant, and we were entrusted to the care of Mr Kenji Beh, the Junior Sous Chef. Dinner was buffet style, and it showcases a wide array of Japanese cuisine, covering the entire range, from sushi and sashimi, through teppanyaki, sukiyaki and the various noodles such as udon, soba and ramen. Of each item, we were able to consume but a sparing amount, for our stomachs have no time to rest!

Returning to our suite for the second night, we were again in for another shock. For in our absence, the housekeeping staff has not only done up our beds, they have left for us sweet treats by the bedside. And most astonishingly, there were His and Hers pillows on our bed, personalised with our names. Once again, we were blown away!

His and Hers pillows personalised with our names - and they even got our sleeping sides right. (26 August 2017)


Breakfast and lunch on our third day were once again at Nada Lama, a restaurant that we have begun to regard with much fondness. The impeccable service that we received here, as well as at all the other restaurants in this hotel, continued to impress us. I shall always remember the time my wife started coughing for improperly swallowing her food, and she reached out for my glass of cold water, the waiter approached her and said, "Ma'am, ice water is not suitable if you're coughing. May I get you a glass of warm water instead?" and swiftly delivered her a glass of warm water.

Only on the third and final day of our visit did we have some time to enjoy the hotel and our gorgeous room. We even had a chance to take a dip at the pool and to try out the sauna and steam room - which I used to use regularly when I was working in the Bayan Lepas multi national and held a Equinox membership.

Our stay at Hotel Equatorial Penang was thoroughly enjoyable, made more so by the service and level of personalisation that upped the ante on hospitality. Hotel Equatorial Penang has managed to impress me with with one of the most extraordinary review stay I have ever experienced.

Hotel Equatorial Penang swimming pool (25 August 2017)


The Garden, Hotel Equatorial Penang (27 August 2017)


With Mr Ong, Hotel Equatorial's Laundry Manager (27 August 2017)

 Experiencing the Hospitality of Hotels in Penang

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