Celebrated Michelin Selected Penang eatery Gen is chef Johnson Wong’s love letter to Malaysia and his adopted home state.
In many ways, celebrated Michelin Selected Penang eatery Gen is chef Johnson Wong’s love letter to Malaysia and his adopted home state.
Wong moved to Penang 10 years ago and never looked back, although he admits his early years in the state weren’t a bed of roses.
“I couldn’t speak Hokkien so when I went to the markets and asked for fresh produce, the sellers wouldn’t talk to me or refused to sell me the best stuff,” recalls Wong, laughing.
Since those foundling years, things have changed dramatically for Wong. He opened Gen in 2018 and has been a critical figure in expounding the virtues of Penang and Malaysian produce. In fact, his entire philosophy at the restaurant is wound around an “ingredient-first” ethos – specifically Malaysian ingredients.
“How we create the menu is always by sourcing the ingredients first. So, the restaurant focuses on local ingredients in the northern region of Malaysia, although we also take a little bit outside the region. The important thing is that it’s all Malaysian,” says Wong.
Wong changes the menu every three to four months and says there is no strict format in terms of his tasting menus – he simply works hard to channel the best ingredients he can find into the best meals he can make.
Wong (second from left) and the rest of the team at Gen, which champions Malaysian ingredients.
“Things are much better than 10 years ago. Now there is a demand for local ingredients like vegetables so producers are also more willing to put in the effort to grow or farm them.
“And there is always a reason why farmers or fishermen prefer to grow or harvest a certain way. So it is important to me to create dishes that are relevant and to speak on their (producers) behalf and tell guests why these ingredients are so treasured and valued,” says Wong.
The restaurant itself is swathed in earthy, rustic tones that draw the mind to Scandinavian utilitarianism with just a hint of Oriental elegance to round things out. The open kitchen that takes centre stage here offers a panoramic view of the well-choreographed team at work.
The open kitchen offers a bird’s eye view to what’s happening behind-the-scenes at the restaurant.
The dinner menu at Gen is priced at RM498++ per person and encapsulates exactly what Wong is trying to do. Portions are on the generous side, so you can skip the obligatory visit to a food court later.
“There’s always this mindset that with fine-dining, you need to go out and eat at a mamak later. But I try to make sure people are full,” says Wong.
Nearly every ingredient on the menu is utilised in at least two ways, so you won’t get a one-trick pony with each course; you’ll get a whole show.
A highlight from the menu is the Coral Grouper, Cekur, Green Peppercorn. This course features a broth fashioned out of the flavours extracted from the grouper fish head alongside sand ginger and jicama.
The broth itself is very good – unquestionably light, unvarnished in its pure seafood essence and with gingery peaks and troughs etched into the liquid configuration.
The second grouper incarnation is in the form of a steamed, chilled coral grouper paired with a chutney fashioned out of pineapple and seasoned with daun cekur, green pepper, chilli and nasturtium flowers.
The natural beauty in this configuration is the fish, which is very fresh and has a supple, almost velvety sensation in its mouth-feel.
This unadorned quality is given a quick makeover, courtesy of the chutney, which lends the fish a sweet, floral note that enhances the freshness of the flesh and leaves your palate feeling fragrant, rather than fishy.
It’s essentially the culinary equivalent of having good makeup skills.
Up next, the Mussel, Chestnut, Pine Needles does a stand-up job of showcasing the fresh, clean-tasting attributes of Penang-grown bivalves while also building drama and contrast in the form of the chestnut cream.
The Penang-grown mussels are incredibly supple and clean-tasting. — ABIRAMI DURAI/The Star
This has an earthy, nutty quality. It’s a clever, surprising addition that offers a layer of mystique to the dish and demonstrates Wong’s potential for creating cliff-hangers. Trust me, you’ll be on the edge of your seat, wondering what’s next.
The Golden Age Cow, Keranji, Cherry Radish thankfully delivers even more thrills.
Here, retired dairy cows are put to good use in two different ways – through a beef bone broth – as well as in a separate dish where the beef is cubed and served tartare-style and seasoned with spring onions and pickled radish, then topped with cold noodles dressed in a buah keranji (velvet tamarind) dressing.
Beef bone broth and beef tartare under a blanket of noodles.
Dairy cows that stop producing milk are typically sent to a slaughterhouse where their meat is used for lower-grade constitutions like hamburger patties.
In the past, this was done because the meat was considered tougher than cows bred for consumption. And yet these days, dairy cows are the darlings of top restaurants around the world.
In Wong’s two-pronged approach, the bovine notes of the meat really come through in the bone broth, which distills the soul of the animal in one very hearty brew.
The beef tartare, meanwhile, features cold, slurp-worthy noodles and – the true shining star of this ensemble cast – the beef slices, which are slick, velvety and coated in the tart, astringent qualities of the keranji.
Move on to the Corn-fed Chicken, Chicken Liver, Chamomile. The first of the two chicken dishes presented is a chicken fat bread, which is probably one of the few off-kilter items on the menu as the bread is quite dense and claggy.
The second component is a shredded chicken layered over chicken liver mousse, which is then topped with chicken skin.
This is a quietly assured dish that says “I have arrived”. It highlights the sensational chicken liver, which is smooth and unctuous with an avian soul that is carefully protected by the crisp shield of chicken skin. It’s a dish that is stridently elegant as opposed to showy and effusive.
Next is the Melo Melo, Just Telur, Mulberry. Melo melo is a type of sea snail found in South-East Asia. Here, the snail is skewered, grilled and served alongside an organic egg from free-range chicken reared on a diet of salmon.
The melo melo and egg show how completely disparate components can work well together.
The egg has been cured and paired with deep-fried pucuk manis, grilled kale and dehydrated mulberries.
To eat it, you’re meant to dip the melo melo into the jammy custardy depths of the egg. Or you could just release it from the skewers into the egg mixture and mix it all together.
The result is divine – the egg is creamy and very rich and this richness bathes the melo melo in a silken cast that is then given a different dimension courtesy of the fuzzy, frizzy tendrils of kale.
It’s a very, very successful marriage of motley flavours and ingredients.
Ming prawns with gingerflower and rose is one of the locally-driven courses at Wong's eatery.
From the sweet portion of the menu, there is plenty to savour and enjoy, including the Buah Kulim, Buah Keluak, Gula Apong, which highlights buah kulim (jungle garlic), buah keluak (the truffle of the East) and gula apong (Sarawak palm sugar). The three come together in the guise of a gula apong meringue, kulim oil and buah keluak chips.
The overall result is an intensely opulent sweet treat that is a smidge garlicky, a tad truffle- esque and a little vegetal on the palate. And yet, it’s all wholly Asian and unlike anything you’re likely to have eaten anywhere else.
Ultimately, a meal at Gen is a masterclass in how to harness what’s local and transform it into the conduit of refined dining. It also shows the heights that local produce can be elevated to, under the stewardship of clever, capable chefs like Wong.
