Paak Dang Riverside Restaurant

“Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” – Maimonides

After going through the grind and gruel for the last 20 years, K-Jin & K-Lin made a big and bold decision to leave everything behind in Singapore to start a new life in Chiang Mai – with a mission to give back to society.

To achieve this, the brother and sister team started to acquire and set up businesses that are labour intensive so that they will be able to provide employment to the less privileged and at-risk youths from the neighbouring villages and hill tribes.

Paak Dang started with a humble team of 4 staff and at its peak grew exponentially to a team of more than 30 staff catering to a 120-seat restaurant. The big feather in their cap was when they were awarded the Michelin Plate 2 years running before Covid hit. Unfortunately, during the height of the pandemic, Paak Dang had to make the difficult decision to close their Red Doors in 2020.

In October 2022, Paak Dang found a home for a Bigger, Better & Bolder Paak Dang and is now back to continue their mission of “changing even more lives”! With a wealth of experience between them, K-Jin & K-Lin both work hand in hand to equip the staff at Paak Dang with many important life skills. This will hopefully then enable their staff to secure their future and extract themselves from the poverty trap that many are caught in. Aiming for the ‘ripple effect’, the brother and sister team would like the benefits to trickle down to their extended families back home.

Besides formal and on the job training, all the staff at Paak Dang are taught basic English & Mandarin. K-Lin, who has been awarded the “Successful Entrepreneur” award also imparts useful business, management and accounting skills to the staffs’ overall development. Last but not least, as an NLP-trained life and career coach, she also ensures that each and every staff understands the importance of goal-setting and financial planning.