Gurney Drive is the long seafront boulevard north of Georgetown's centre, named after Sir Henry Gurney (a British high commissioner assassinated by Communist insurgents in 1951). At its eastern end sits Gurney Drive Hawker Centre — the city's largest open-air food court, with around 80 stalls serving every Penang specialty under one roof.
It is the place most tour groups are taken, which means it is busier and slightly more expensive than less famous hawker centres, but the quality at the best stalls is still high and the choice is unbeatable for first-time visitors. Try the char kway teow (Stall 25, look for the queue), assam laksa (Stall 19), rojak, oh chien (oyster omelette), wonton mee and the hand-stretched lor mee. Buy a fresh sugarcane juice or a coconut to drink while you eat.
The boulevard itself is good for an early-evening walk before dinner — joggers, families, kite-flyers, occasional fishermen. The two huge shopping malls (Gurney Plaza and Gurney Paragon) attract their own crowds. Most easily reached by Grab from the old town; the bus is slow.