Once upon a time in little China | A trip to China House, Penang

I sat at the cafe side.
I'm sure that by now, everyone is sick of me talking about tea. But, as any tea obsessed person will know, it is a lifestyle. I've gone nearly two decades in this vein, and it doesn't look like I'm going back now. While the rest of the world has disloyally moves on to cocktails, mocktails and the likes, us tea-folk (that's my new name for those in the fold), are still at the lunch table sampling all the dried and preserved goodness that nature has to offer.
Am I the only one that misses dinner ladies at school?

I went to China House.

Now, that's a sign! I really didn't know what to make of it.A famous landmark on the George Town scene, it borders on blasphemy to  leave without paying a visit to this eclectic home of cakes, coffee, art and music. I can't quite put my finger on what to call this place. It's trendyness is somewhat intimidating. Let's just settle on art gallery-cum-coffee shop-cum-bar-restaurant.

Apparently there are two entrances. How very snazzy.
As soon as you walk in, the first thing you notice is the noise. It's loud, in a vibrant sort of way, but you wouldn't believe me if I said there wasn't a hipster in sight. There wasn't.
The music was pumping, so much so, that I wasn't sure whether to say hi to the smiling waiters or to grab the nearest person and bust a move. I sat down at the cafe area.

I later found out that, as you head towards the quieter restaurant area, all that revelry is left behind and you have a more sophisticated but secluded seating area; I immediately imagined it as the sort of place where you could go on a date.

The restaurant side is much quieter.
China house is it's own unique entity. There are levels within levels and like a layer cake, will need more that one visit to even make a dent on it. There was a wine lounge with comfy couches and even a gallery upstairs. I should have gone snap happy, but I was starting to feel like an over-zealous groupie and an after party.

There are tons of little 'homey' touches that catch your eye all over this place.

                               What is the meaning 府内?                             Does it mean prefecture? Or is it a transliteration for funny (Funei)? I've decided  that it's got a story behind it; a secret only the China House can tell...Being by my lonesome is tough. Travelling alone is tough.  Primarily because when you discover somewhere as fun and as vibrant as China House. There's no one to get excited with.
Poor me.
Wait.
Before you crack out the violin, just know that I consoled myself with a monstrous slice of one of the many cakes on offer.

No one can accuse them of not having enough. There's going to be something for you.What's popular here?
I really shouldn't have asked. What I got was something short of a monster cake.
The tiramisu (featured as the main picture), was shockingly large! Don't be fooled by the filter, that is to scale. It was nearly as high as my teapot, creamy, filled with chocolate. I've never had anything like it. To be perfectly honest, it was less tiramisu and more spongy creamy chocolate cake.
But I ain't complaining.
Unable to finish it. I had half of it packaged up to take home.

The bar entrance/exit. I got confused. By this time, I was in a cake coma. I barely  made it back to my hotel.