Interview Chin Choon Kean (CK Chin) Part 1 - The Mango Tree Indian Coastal Restaurant at I12 Katong

I had the opportunity to interview Mr Chin Choon Kean (known more commonly as CK) at The Mango Tree Indian Coastal Restaurant at I12 Katong to understand his business and the cuisine served at his restaurant. 

How CK started The Mango Tree : 

CK used to be in the Civil Engineering Construction industry for more than 10 years, working for several construction companies. He loved to jog in the East Coast of Singapore. He notice one outlet along the East Coast that was left vacant, and wanting to start a business  that he can call his own, he approached the landlord to express his desire to rent the vacant lot. 

CK's wife Reeny loves Indian food. They decided to  embark on a culinary journey to discover  Indian Cuisine in India and try out the food found in India, from Goa, to Mumbai, Kerala. They notice there were a lot of coastal seafood there. 

He has no F&B background at all. Not even his parents nor his siblings are in the F&B Industry. 

Positioning of The Mango Tree : The Mango Tree is the first Indian restaurant to combine the North, South Indian and Indian Coastal Cuisine under one roof. Whilst There are many North Indian restaurants here serving authentic North Indian Cuisine for the elite Indian community, there are few Indian restaurants that serve both North & South Indian Cuisines. To date CK has yet to patent his The Mango Tree Brand.

Northern Indian Cuisine - North Indians do not take spicy food, nor consume chili padi, coconut milk, their cuisine is usually tomato base. They do not take rice and consume mostly chappati. There are quite a number of vegetarian based North Indian Cuisine. 

Ownership : CK has zero F&B industry experience before he ventured into operating The Mango Tree. The Mango tree is 13 years old in Singapore now. Currently restaurant owned by CK & wife, with only one outlet now. In long run, plans to expand into more outlets, perhaps through franchising. 

Menu Planning : First time menu planning was with research performed during through their field trips to India, where they came back & fine-tuned the recipes and menu with their resident chefs to develop the actual menu.

Kitchen Staff : The Mango Tree employs three chefs : each specializes in North Indian, South Indian, Indian Coastal Cuisine respectively. 

The Mango Tree Indian Coastal Restaurant is located at : 

112 East Coast Road, 

I12 Katong, #03-11, 

S(428802) 

Tel : 66049661, 66049662