Gen Penang George Town

Awards

MICHELIN Guide

Selected restaurants

All Michelin selected restaurants in George Town All Michelin selected restaurants in Malaysia

OAD

Asian Restaurants 2026, 340

All OAD Asian in George Town All OAD Asian in Malaysia

Asian New Restaurants 2026, 56

All OAD Asian New in George Town All OAD Asian New in Malaysia

La Liste

La Liste, #474

All La Liste in George Town All La Liste in Malaysia

Chef

Johnson Wong

Cuisine

Innovative, Modern Malaysian

• 2025
• 2023

Dinner at Gēn 根

on 24 Nov 2025

by Melissa F

Meaning roots in Chinese, @genpenang tells a story of Malaysian ingredients and local flavors. Chef-owner @veryveryverybigburger2.0 draws inspirations from his childhood memories and the freshest seasonal ingredients for the tasting menu. Accompanying the menu is a pamphlet that explains all of the local ingredients on the menu with some that I’ve never heard of such as keranji (jungle raisin), melo melo (large sea snail), and buah keluak / buah kulim. Highlights included... More

Meaning roots in Chinese, @genpenang tells a story of Malaysian ingredients and local flavors. Chef-owner @veryveryverybigburger2.0 draws inspirations from his childhood memories and the freshest seasonal ingredients for the tasting menu. Accompanying the menu is a pamphlet that explains all of the local ingredients on the menu with some that I’ve never heard of such as keranji (jungle raisin), melo melo (large sea snail), and buah keluak / buah kulim. Highlights included the hot soothing grouper broth to kickstart the meal, ginger flower with ming prawn, smoky mussel with chestnut, golden age cow with keranji, and melo melo with a rich egg yolk sauce.

Our menu:

Coral Grouper, Cekur, Green Peppercorn
东星斑，沙姜，青胡椒

Ming Prawn, Gingerflower, Rose
明虾，火炬薑，玫瑰

Mussel, Chestnut, Pine Needie
青口，栗子，松针

Golden Age Cow, Keranji, Cherry Radish
奶牛，橄榄子，樱桃萝卜

Corn-fed Chicken, Chicken Liver, Chamomile
粟米鸡，鸡肝，洋甘菊

Flower Crab, White Corn, Beechey Bamboo
花蟹，白玉米，吊丝球竹

Melo Melo, Just Telur, Mulberry
椰子螺，Just Telur蛋，桑葚

Marble Goby, Pandan Emorio Rice, Eucheuma
笋壳鱼，香兰胚芽米，麒麟海藻

White Strawberry, Goat Cheese, Strawberry Amazake
白草莓，山羊奶赂，草莓甘花

Buah Kulim, Buah Keluak, Gula Apong
居林果，黑果，亚答糖

Birdnest, Starfruit, Barley
燕窝，杨桃，薏米
•
Gen 根
Penang, Malaysia
#supermelMalaysia Less

Dinner at Gēn 根

on 10 Sep 2025

by David Yip

GEN is one of the “must” visit restaurants in Penang; and Johnson Wong is its chef/owner.

From the first dish on, I was intrigued. Like most chefs his generation, Johnson champions local ingredients and flavours—but he does it his own unapologetic way!

I must admit—there were some dishes that needed a few extra bites to grasp the chef’s intentions. That’s because this chef isn’t interested in merely parroting the ‘usual’ or expected ways ingredients are dealt with. He looks at... More

GEN is one of the “must” visit restaurants in Penang; and Johnson Wong is its chef/owner.

From the first dish on, I was intrigued. Like most chefs his generation, Johnson champions local ingredients and flavours—but he does it his own unapologetic way!

I must admit—there were some dishes that needed a few extra bites to grasp the chef’s intentions. That’s because this chef isn’t interested in merely parroting the ‘usual’ or expected ways ingredients are dealt with. He looks at things afresh, carefully calibrates his responses, and comes up with flavours and presentations that give a sense of coming from ‘out of the box’.

‘Educating’ his fellow Malaysians to understand his own uncompromising take on modern Malaysian-centric cuisine—that takes a lot of guts.
#michelin #michelinstarchef #penangfood #penangrestaurant #penangeats #penangfoodies #eat #food #foodgasm #foodporn #foodlover #foodies #foodforlife #foodpics Less

Dinner at Gēn 根

on 04 Dec 2023

by Bennet Chui

Salted maltose, corn milk, peanut

Dinner at Gēn 根

on 04 Dec 2023

by Bennet Chui

Grilled watermelon, sea grape, heirloom tomato water, tiger prawn

Dinner at Gēn 根

on 04 Dec 2023

by Bennet Chui

Threadfin, lotus leave and root, nasturtium, kulim

Dinner at Gēn 根

on 04 Dec 2023

by Bennet Chui

Aged duck, Ayer itam ginger, passion fruit

Dinner at Gēn 根

on 04 Dec 2023

by Bennet Chui

Oyster, jicama salad, kesume leaves, shrimp paste