Genesis Vegetarian Health Food Restaurant - Clarke Quay

Clarke Quay, Singapore's answer to an upper class version of Geylang, offers many attractions to the general public - Whether it be getting drunk, or picking up loose women, or getting drunk, or picking up loose women, or getting dru....  I digress.  Surprisingly though, lurking underneath the shallowness of Clarke Quay, there are two pretty outstanding vegetarian eateries.  The first being Real Food, the second being the focus of todays review - Genesis.  So lets see what this vegan eatery has to offer... 



Genesis Vegetarian Health Food Restaurant
Location: 1 Lorong Telok
Contact: 64387118
Opening Hours: Mon-Thur 8am-8pm, Fri and Sun 8am-3pm. Closed Saturday

The menu looks stylish and is very easy to read, with an explanation underneath of what is in each dish.  They also make it clear which dishes contain onions and garlic, which will make life much easier for Buddhist vegetarians.  The menu is separated into Western, Chinese (noodles/rice), salads, side dishes, desserts and drinks.  The Western, in particular, looked quite interesting.
In addition to an excitable array of solid food, Genesis also offers some eyebrow raising drinks.  These include, almond rice milk, acai berry juice, organic herbal tea, and the one you see pictured - Sesame Oat Milk.  Visually similar to the Clarke Quay river water, this drink is black and murky, but thankfully unlike the Clarke Quay river water, it is not ridden with toxins and chemicals.  Quite the opposite in fact, the sesame seeds are renowned for strengthening the body, and preventing high blood pressure.  The drink was not overly sweet, and had a delightful creamy quality to it.

Price: $3.50.     7/10
One of the dishes that is most synonymous with Genesis, is the Original Dumplings (Big Wantons).  Personally, I am a fried dumpling lover, with the kum loo wantons from Zen Fut Sai Kai being, in my opinion, the best in Singapore.  I am less passionate about steamed dumplings, but this variety was certainly delicious.  The dumpling stuffing is certainly the highlight of the dish, it was moist and packed with flavour.  I found this dish was missing a dipping sauce of some description, though.  Eating the dumplings without a sauce, I found a little dry.


The tradition of wrapping and cooking rice in a lotus leaf has existed for thousands of years in Chinese culture.  The Chinese population are generally divided on how they prefer their rice to be cooked - Soft/mushy or hard.  I fall into the latter category, therefore this Lotus Leaf Rice was a little too soft for me.  Within the rice, there were green peas, carrots, mushrooms, and lotus seeds.  The aroma of the leaf certainly did penetrate into the flavour of the rice.  A great tasting dish overall.


Lasagna is a dish that can easily go wrong.  So far the best lasagna I've sampled has been from LivinGreens, so I was curious to see if the Genesis version could beat it.  The answer is, not quite, but it still is a decent lasagna.  A key ingredient is black lentils, which give the lasagna great flavour and also makes it very filling.  Initially when it arrived, my worry was it would be too dry.  Thankfully this worry was misplaced, as the ingredients were sufficiently moist.  There were a myriad of different flavours all conglomerating together to make an extremely competent lasagna.  Definitely one to order.

Price: $7.90.     8/10

What better way of finishing the meal off with a slice of pie.  I only wish this Avocado Key Lime Pie arrived at the end of the meal, for some perplexing reason it was served first as a starter.  The flavour and texture of this pie were both off the mark for me.  The texture of the crust/base was too soggy and fragile.  The avocado pie filling had a strange raw flavour to it, almost like raw lime rind.  Perhaps an acquired taste for some, definitely not something I can appreciate though.

Price: $4.00.     4/10

Conclusion - The dessert was a sore spot in an otherwise fully satisfying meal.  Considering the area, I find that the pricing is quite reasonable, and the quality of the food (while not faultless) is definitely well above average.  I certainly would suggest ordering the lasagna, as I enjoyed that the most.  But I am sure there are other dishes on the menu that are equally as good.  Definitely one more valid reason to head to Clarke Quay often!

Overall Rating
Food - 7/10
Ambiance- 8/10
Service - 7/10
Value - 8/10