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Chitchat Tan Lark Sye's grandson is now a hawker entrepreneur

Rogue Trader

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A 'Little Katong' in Ipoh: Cementing his place in the food business

Tan Ju-Eng
Thursday, Mar 23, 2017

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Tan whipping up a bowl of delicious 'kai si hor fun'.
Photo: The Star

AFTER 20 years as an industrialist with Tasek Corporation Bhd, Datuk David Tan Sek Yin now spends his days over a hot stove making Ipoh kai si hor fun (shredded chicken kuey teow).

Dressed in his signature white long-sleeve shirt and black trousers, the 60-year-old can be seen going about Ipoh in his minivan delivering containers of special broth to his Little Katong stalls at Canning Garden, Gourmet Square hawker centre and Restoran Impressive@Little Genting.

The culinary world has always fascinated Tan, even though he had to play a big role in the cement business founded by his philanthropist grandfather Tan Lark Sye.

"I always like watching my mother and grandmother cook. I wanted to learn how they cooked, the method they used. It is not just about knowing what to cook," said Tan.

"People have wondered why I made the move to work in such a tiring business. But whenever I eat out and taste something good, I would research and try cooking to develop that special taste. I would not stop until I find it. It was exactly for this reason that I developed the broth for Ipoh kai si hor fun.

"I love kai si hor fun, and I could not find this taste that I had 30 years ago. The last time I had that taste was on Cowan Street (Jalan Raja Ekram). For five years, I tried to get it right. I tried using everything, shark bone, shark fin, scallops and all kinds of dried seafood to get the taste. I failed."

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The Little Katong stalls sell kuey teow, Katong laksa and assam laksa.Photo: The Star

Exasperated, Tan went to the famous kai si hor fun stall, Thean Chun, in Ipoh old town. Day after day, he tried to wrangle the secret recipe from the old man who owned the stall.

Tan believed the old man's recipe was the only one that could produce that original flavour.

"He is really my sifu because he helped me to change direction in searching for that taste. But not without some provocation!

"I asked him: 'Sifu, how is it that your soup has that burnt smell?' Sifu got angry and took out a container of oil for me to smell. I took a sniff and told him that was exactly it. I asked him how he made it, he wouldn't reveal it.

"However, the taste was actually in the oil, and I started developing the oil instead of focusing on the soup. I have him to thank and will always consider him my sifu - even though he may not know it!"

Spurred by this new development, Tan spent long hours in his garage-turned-kitchen at his bungalow in Tiger Lane, experimenting until he got the taste he wanted. And so, Little Katong was born.

"In two years, I have opened three stalls, and a fourth is in the offing. The reason I didn't open restaurants or coffee shops is because I need to know the business and to build a name before committing to a bigger investment."

Besides kuey teow, Little Katong also sells Katong laksa, one of Tan's favourite noodle dishes from his childhood in Singapore, and the Penang assam laksa for variety.

"Now I sell about 400 to 500 bowls of noodles daily from the three stalls. What helps is also my ability to do proper costing, organise a system to increase productivity and reduce wastage of time and resources," said Tan.

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Tan‘s book 'Lao Wei Dao' is dedicated to his grandfather, Tan Lark Sye.Photo: The Star

As business continued to grow, Tan knew he needed to have a production system. He bought a house in Canning Garden and turned it into a central kitchen with large metal canisters and fryers that use electricity and gas to cook broth and make sambal. The equipment operates by timers and according to Tan's standard operating procedure. His central kitchen looks like a mini factory.

"It's similar to when I was working in the cement industry. I have to manage workers and time, and costing and budgeting are the main factors.

"In the kitchen, I have to get the best equipment to save time. If I can save time, I don't need to use so much gas and electricity. The profit is hidden inside the cost," said Tan.


His main takeaway from the past two years is that his stall workers are among his most valuable assets.

"They need to have ownership of their work, and I need to earn their loyalty. If I want to be an active boss, I need to be able to do everything the worker does.

"On busy weekends, I also help to wash the bowls. When they see me doing that, they seem more willing to go the extra mile, to work harder."

Tan plans to open stalls in Singapore and Sabah. Also in the pipeline is expansion into Australia and the United Kingdom.

"There are a lot of students there from Malaysia and Singapore who would love a bowl of authentic kai si hor fun," he said.

Tan declared that he didn't get into the business for the money.

"I love cooking. I love to see people smile when they eat my food. That's the main thing. If people didn't like my food, I would have given this up a long time ago."

Before Little Katong was opened, Tan also wrote a recipe book, Lao Wei Dao (Old Tastes): A Trip Down Memory Lane, featuring signature dishes from the Tan family dedicated to his grandfather.

"Today, my customers say Little Katong's kai si hor fun is the best in Ipoh - even better than the original one!" he beamed.
 

Ralders

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The late rubber tycoon Tan Lark Sye, better known as the founder of the former Nanyang University (Nantah), was arguably Singapore's most prominent Chinese community leader in the last century.

That, despite being stripped of Singapore citizenship by the Government soon after the 1963 elections for allegedly playing "stooge to the communists and (attempting to) jeopardise the peace and prosperity of Singapore" by backing about a dozen Nantah graduates who stood as left-wing Barisan Sosialis candidates against the ruling People's Action Party (PAP).

The long-time president of the Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan, who gave generously to charitable and educational causes throughout his life, then stepped down from the university's leadership and remained stateless until his death in 1972, aged 75.
 

nayr69sg

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Singapore biggest crap food market in the world.

I bet lots of street food vendors from third world countries would be very successful entrepreneurs in Singapore.
 

eatshitndie

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Singapore biggest crap food market in the world.

I bet lots of street food vendors from third world countries would be very successful entrepreneurs in Singapore.

don't be like that lah. i'm craving for good dryer caramelized fried hokkien mee which is hard to find outside of sg.
 

Reddog

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Why is everyone an entrepreneur these days? It's just a small business.

You are very wrong. As a Chinese you will know that only a career has limits. There is no such thing as a "small business". Just do not forget that small business carried out by those teenagers (Allen, Weiland, Evans and Gates) at Lakeside, Seattle with their second hand computer bought with money from a garage sale (Mothers Club). No business is small business only small minds.
 

frenchbriefs

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i told u its in sinkie genes to be taxi drivers or hawkers,if they do not end up working for PAP or the civil service.
 

frenchbriefs

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You are very wrong. As a Chinese you will know that only a career has limits. There is no such thing as a "small business". Just do not forget that small business carried out by those teenagers (Allen, Weiland, Evans and Gates) at Lakeside, Seattle with their second hand computer bought with money from a garage sale (Mothers Club). No business is small business only small minds.

to be honest i dont really consider a hawker a business,most sinkies 95 percent of them do not grow beyond the first store they own,gordon ramsay owns 12 restaurants,they work at the store from 8 to 10 everyday,a business is not really a business if u cannot scale ur income without increasing the numbers u work,now if u are the ceo of tuk tuk cha or nanyang cafe or pezzo,in 7 or 8 shopping malls,with over 50 employees serving ur generic,boring food everyday,now thats a business.otherwise u are just a restauranteur.

look at fucking gordan ramsay,he has seven tv shows where he curse at people all day,appears on cooking shows,owns forty restaurants worldwide,i dunno what the hell he is but he surely aint no chef.
 
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Rogue Trader

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You are very wrong. As a Chinese you will know that only a career has limits. There is no such thing as a "small business". Just do not forget that small business carried out by those teenagers (Allen, Weiland, Evans and Gates) at Lakeside, Seattle with their second hand computer bought with money from a garage sale (Mothers Club). No business is small business only small minds.

to be honest i dont really consider a hawker a business,most sinkies 95 percent of them do not grow beyond the first store they own,gordon ramsay owns 12 restaurants,they work at the store from 8 to 10 everyday,a business is not really a business if u cannot scale ur income without increasing the numbers u work,now if u are the ceo of tuk tuk cha or nanyang cafe or pezzo,in 7 or 8 shopping malls,with over 50 employees serving ur generic,boring food everyday,now thats a business.otherwise u are just a restauranteur.

look at fucking gordan ramsay,he has seven tv shows where he curse at people all day,appears on cooking shows,owns forty restaurants worldwide,i dunno what the hell he is but he surely aint no chef.

seriously this guy was in the cement business. With the development run up north, he's worth millions even without his grandfather's old money.

This hawker gig must be just a hobby for him. What's remarkable is his effort to preserve the lost taste and revolutionalise the hawker business at the same time.
 

desmondquek

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You are very wrong. As a Chinese you will know that only a career has limits. There is no such thing as a "small business". Just do not forget that small business carried out by those teenagers (Allen, Weiland, Evans and Gates) at Lakeside, Seattle with their second hand computer bought with money from a garage sale (Mothers Club). No business is small business only small minds.

The hawker guy is selling a commodity with a few frills on top -- thus it's a small business.

Should I be called a entrepreneur if I start a lemonade stand?

Entrepreneurship should only be applied to tertiary high value industries -- Biotech, Healthcare IT, Computer, Internet, etc.
 

Rogue Trader

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The hawker guy is selling a commodity with a few frills on top -- thus it's a small business.

Should I be called a entrepreneur if I start a lemonade stand?

yes. you are an entrepreneur as long as you act on opportunities

Entrepreneurship should only be applied to tertiary high value industries -- Biotech, Healthcare IT, Computer, Internet, etc.

don't be seduced by fancy shmacy terminology. doesn't matter if you made your fortunte from armpit pluckers, vagina whitening creams, ballsack moisturisers... money is money
 

Narong Wongwan

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The hawker guy is selling a commodity with a few frills on top -- thus it's a small business.

Should I be called a entrepreneur if I start a lemonade stand?

Entrepreneurship should only be applied to tertiary high value industries -- Biotech, Healthcare IT, Computer, Internet, etc.

Definition of the word

a person who sets up a business or businesses, taking on financial risks in the hope of profit.

Simple enough to understand no need frills
 
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