Cover Dearborn’s chef-owner Christopher Kong is building a brand that goes beyond serving granola
Dearborn’s chef-owner Christopher Kong is building a brand that goes beyond serving granola
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Kong shares how he puts sustainability and his customers at the forefront of his business
“I’m always trying to see how we can create and push boundaries,” chef-owner of Dearborn Christopher Kong shares. Living up to his words, Kong’s homegrown brand, Dearborn, doesn’t only serve up granola, but a whole experience that gets his customers coming back for more.
For example, his interpretation of the classic naked potato dish—one of his most popular plates exclusively available during the weekends—comprises a beautifully poached egg, crisp roasted potatoes, puffed grains and potato espuma. Even his version of the classic breakfast staple is so good it has earned its own reputation—quickly selling out within minutes.
Kong continues to explain that when he first started, his granola sold out within an hour. “I thought maybe I’ll sell 10 to 15 jars a day. I posted it on Instagram and nothing happened for 30 minutes. Then we sold out all of a sudden,” he reminisces.
It’s not hard to believe that Kong’s latest concept gained traction in a matter of minutes. After all, the self-proclaimed granola enthusiast trained in some of the best restaurants in the world, including sous chef at The NoMad Hotel New York, chef de partie at Restaurant Guy Savoy, and chef de partie at Waku Ghin.
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On his Asian heritage, the entrepreneur tells us that his father is from Malaysia while his mother was born in Burma and raised in Thailand. His parents also owned the now-shuttered Perche'No, an Italian restaurant in Seattle, Washington. Growing up in the restaurant business, it wasn’t that much of a surprise when Kong wanted to enter the industry himself. Although he was born in San Francisco and lived in America for most of his life, he didn’t want to pursue a career in the US.
“I told my dad that I’ll graduate and I’ll get a business degree… but [after that] I’m going to leave the country; I’m not going to stay,” he says. Kong adds that after graduating with a bachelor’s degree in Business, Management, Marketing and Related Support Services at Western Washington University in 2010, he bought a one-way ticket to Malaysia to learn more about Asian culture and reconnect with his dad’s side of the family.
He worked at a local roti store for a few weeks in his dad's kampong in Malaysia, making the dough and practising flipping it by using towels. “I didn’t get to flip any of the roti, I only got to practise with a towel. I would help assemble things [in the morning] and then take the towel and flip it around,” Kong continues. Kong moved on to work in a zi char store in the country soon after, before moving on to Singapore.
“I was actually on my way to Thailand to work for Bo.Lan and a friend of mine told me that I should stop in Singapore. [While I was here] I also sent my CV to some restaurants and they offered me a job,” Kong shares. In 2010, Kong began working in the kitchen of Guy Savoy Singapore for two years, before moving to two-Michelin-starred restaurant Waku Ghin in 2014. He worked the teppan grill for a year before becoming a sous chef at NoMad, a one-Michelin-starred restaurant in New York City serving up contemporary American fare.
After he decided to settle down in Singapore with his wife, Kristy, whom he met here, Kong opened his private dining concept Dearborn Supper Club in 2018. There, he served modern Asian cuisine in his HDB apartment. The supper club also saw his customers bringing home a jar of granola as a parting gift. While many of his guests told him to sell his granola, he didn’t want to at the time as his priority was focusing on private dining.
However, once Covid-19 happened, he needed to think of a new plan.
“[When the pandemic hit] nobody came to eat. So I thought about ways to survive and thought that selling granola could be one of them,” he explains. He decided to create some and post about it on his Instagram page. When his granola started selling out, Kong realised that he could make something out of it.
A Closer Connection
“I was baking and packing literally from Monday to Friday and delivering on Saturday. [My wife and] were like the modern-day milkman—I’ll give you a jar and I’ll take the old jar back,” the entrepreneur says. He shares how he was also able to build that cherished human connection with people at a time when nobody could go out and see people.
The connection between Kong and his customers is an important aspect of his business. One of his fondest childhood memories was when he was working in his parent’s Italian restaurant in Seattle. Customers were able to get a photo taken while having their meal. Once done, his mum would ask Kong and his brothers to rush and get the film ready in an hour.
“By the end of the meal, they would have a beautiful photo. It was a big inspiration,” he reminisces.
Kong continues to keep the connection between him and his customers alive. Even today, you’ll find him outside his restaurant (whenever he can) chatting with his customers.
“People come in and they will tell me about their day. Having a genuine conversation with a person, even if it’s only for two or three minutes… can make a difference,” he says.
Helping the Planet
On top of prioritising having a connection with his customers, Kong also strives to foster a connection with nature—through multiple sustainability efforts. This year, Kong began counting his company’s carbon emissions.
“We use a platform created by Zuno Carbon where we input all the data from all the ingredients we use, the transport our team comes to work from and the weight of all our rubbish. The programme then tells us how much CO2 per metric tonne we are emitting at the moment. It’s really cool as it holds us accountable and gives us something tangible to see,” Kong explains. He can also tell how much carbon emission each granola flavour produces.
And Kong has sustainability in mind for everything he does, down to the packaging. Dearborn’s granola packaging is 100 per cent recyclable which just needs to be rinsed before recycling. “I don’t think that you get to net zero now… but I think it’s possible to work towards it,” Kong enthuses.
Dearborn also works with Green Steps Group, which helps to plant trees to offset carbon. The company plants 300 trees each month—each tree also has a geotag which allows them to see pictures of the tree, who planted it and weekly updates of individual trees.
The entrepreneur believes that education is important when it comes to building a sustainable future in the dining scene.
“If people are educated, or have a choice, I think most people will make a better choice. Sustainable is not just about the food, it’s also about the customer experience… and providing them with the best choice possible,” Kong shares.
He explains that sometimes customers don’t care about sustainability “and you can’t do anything about it but just give them an option”. Even so, he hopes that with knowledge and understanding, people will be able to make better decisions.
While he understands that he can’t please everybody, Kong continues to stand for what he believes in.
“If people understand that, they will support you,” he says.
Amanda Goh was the former senior writer for Tatler Singapore.
