Seafood Paradise at CQ @ Clarke Quay is where the Paradise Group story began. The brand started out in 2002 as a modest 25-seater coffee shop in Defu Lane — short on glitz, long on flavour — whose sumptuous, reasonably-priced cooking drew foodies in droves. From that humble beginning it grew into one of Singapore's best-known restaurant groups, and this riverside outlet keeps faith with the founding idea: quality cuisine at great value, continuously evolving through innovation.
The kitchen's promise is 'where culinary of live seafood and local cuisine meets innovation'. Alongside the popular, classic seafood dishes Singapore knows well, the restaurant serves its own signature creations with a strong Singaporean identity, and premium features such as Alaskan King Crab appear in limited-period promotions.
The room is designed for comfort, elegance and modernity: spacious indoor seating suits family gatherings and corporate functions, while alfresco tables catch a gentle breeze and the river view — what the restaurant calls the perfect dining experience that is uniquely Singapore.
Online reservations and delivery are available, and Paradise Gourmet Rewards members enjoy periodic perks, including discounts on the freshest live seafood.
Perched along the Singapore River at CQ @ Clarke Quay, Seafood Paradise serves the style of cooking that made Singapore seafood famous: live seafood and local favourites, done with care and a willingness to push beyond tradition. It is also the restaurant where Paradise Group — today one of Singapore's most far-reaching dining groups — first made its name, and the menu still carries that founding spirit of quality cuisine at great value.
The Seafood Paradise story begins in 2002, in a humble 25-seater coffee shop on Defu Lane, in an inconspicuous industrial corner of Singapore. As the group's own history tells it, the shop lacked glitz and glamour — but the food more than made up for it. Word spread, and foodies came in droves for the sumptuous yet reasonably-priced cuisine.
Spurred by that success, founder Eldwin Chua — a culinary enthusiast and visionary entrepreneur, in the group's words — built Paradise Group, formally incorporated in 2008. From that single stall grew a family of brands: Taste Paradise, Paradise Teochew, Paradise Dynasty, Canton Paradise, Beauty in The Pot and many more, with outlets across Singapore and a footprint stretching from Hong Kong and Taipei to Bangkok, Tokyo, Jakarta and the USA.
Seafood Paradise remains the founding chapter of that story, and its original promise still shapes the kitchen: quality cuisine at great value, continuously evolving through innovation.
The kitchen's philosophy is summed up in the restaurant's own phrase: “where culinary of live seafood and local cuisine meets innovation”. In practice that means fresh live seafood as the centrepiece of the menu, the popular classic dishes Singapore diners expect from a seafood restaurant, and a roster of signature creations unique to Seafood Paradise — plates with a strong Singaporean identity and a touch of innovation.
Premium crustaceans get their moment too. Alaskan King Crab — rich and succulent, in the group's description — features in limited-period promotions, and recurring cardmember deals take up to 30% off the freshest live seafood for OCBC credit and debit cardmembers and Paradise Gourmet Rewards members.
Lunch has a following of its own. The Lunchtime Extravaganza takes 40% off more than 50 delectable dishes, with irresistible top-up options for those who want to add on — an easy way to work through the menu without working through the bill.
Clarke Quay is one of the most atmospheric spots in Singapore for a seafood meal, and this outlet makes the most of its riverside address. Indoors, the dining room is designed around comfort, elegance and modernity, with spacious seating that suits everything from family gatherings to corporate functions. Out on the alfresco tables, a gentle breeze and a view of the water set the tone for gatherings with friends or a night of celebration.
That split between polished indoor space and relaxed alfresco seating is part of the restaurant's identity. It is as comfortable hosting a corporate function as it is a casual seafood session by the river, and the live seafood on offer gives either occasion a natural centrepiece to order around.
Tables can be reserved online through the Paradise Group booking system, and delivery is available for nights in. Regulars can sign up for Paradise Gourmet Rewards, the group's membership programme, which unlocks member-only offers such as live seafood discounts. Menus, including the Clarke Quay à la carte list, are published on the Paradise Group website.
Promotions rotate through the year — king crab deals, lunchtime offers, cardmember discounts on live seafood — so it is worth checking what is on before you order the premium items.
For a taste of Singapore's seafood heritage in a setting that could only be Clarke Quay, Seafood Paradise covers both bases: the classics done properly, and a few surprises the founding stall in Defu Lane could never have imagined — though its regulars probably saw them coming.