Cafeography
Singapore

Cafés in Singapore kopi-O and kaya toast

Kopi-O at the Maxwell stalls, roasters on Tyrwhitt Road, Peranakan shophouse cafés in Joo Chiat and the 1930s flats of Tiong Bahru.

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1089Cafés listed
2Open by 6am
68Open past 10pm
35Specialty & roasters

Singapore's everyday coffee is kopi, the Malay word for coffee, and it is drunk at the kopitiam, a coffee shop (tiam is Hokkien for shop), or at a hawker centre's drinks stall.1 The style is Hainanese. Immigrants from Hainan, many of whom had cooked in European households and hotels, built up the kopitiam trade between the 1920s and the 1950s, and their breakfast of kaya toast, soft-boiled eggs and kopi joined Singapore's national inventory of intangible heritage in March 2019.1

Kopi beans are roasted the old way, about eight parts beans to two of sugar and margarine, for roughly 25 minutes at 180°C, with salt added midway and sugar at the end for a caramelized finish.13 The grounds steep in a muslin bag, and the brew is poured back and forth between two long-spouted jugs to aerate and cool it.1 UNESCO added Singapore's hawker culture, the food centres where much of this kopi is sold, to its Representative List on 16 December 2020.2

Specialty coffee runs alongside. Papa Palheta, a roaster started around 2009, opened Chye Seng Huat Hardware on Tyrwhitt Road in 2012, its founder's "breakthrough", and renamed itself PPP Coffee in 2019.4 Kurasu, a Kyoto company, chose Singapore for its first shop abroad in 2017.5 The two scenes now share streets in Jalan Besar, Bras Basah and Joo Chiat.

From Tekka to Joo Chiat

Singapore by area

Singapore is divided into 55 planning areas,12 but people place a café by smaller names: a shophouse street, a hawker centre, a housing estate. The densest choice runs from Jalan Besar and Bras Basah down to Tanjong Pagar, and the east has its own strip along Joo Chiat Road and East Coast Road.

Tiong Bahru & Outram

Cafés in the 1930s Streamline Moderne flats of Tiong Bahru and along Kampong Bahru Road.

29 cafés

Tanjong Pagar, Duxton & Keong Saik

Maxwell's kopi stalls, Duxton Hill shophouses and the late cafés of Keong Saik Road.

72 cafés

Chinatown & Telok Ayer

Amoy Street Food Centre kopi, Telok Ayer's temple street and cafés on Ann Siang Hill and Pagoda Street.

70 cafés

Kampong Glam & Bugis

Shophouse cafés on Arab Street, Bali Lane and Jalan Kubor, around the Sultan Mosque.

71 cafés

Civic District & Bras Basah

Waterloo Street pour-overs, Seah Street roasters and the Hainanese coffee shops of Beach Road.

132 cafés

Little India & Jalan Besar

Tekka's kopi stalls, Race Course Road bakeries and the shophouse cafés of Tyrwhitt Road.

106 cafés

Katong & Joo Chiat

Peranakan shophouses, a 1925 kopitiam on East Coast Road and the roasters of Joo Chiat Road.

74 cafés

Holland Village & Dempsey

Lorong Liput bakeries, cafés in the old Dempsey barracks and the weekday coffee of one-north.

57 cafés
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Browse by mood and hour

Specialty coffee

Roasteries and espresso bars from Joo Chiat Road to Bukit Timah, most of them shut by early evening.

35 cafés

Bakery cafés

Croissants, sourdough, egg tarts and pineapple tarts, from Keong Saik Road to Lorong Liput.

35 cafés

Brunch

All-day breakfasts from Orchard Road to Upper Thomson, with weekend queues near the Botanic Gardens.

13 cafés

Outdoor seating

Open-air kopi stalls at Maxwell, shophouse pavements in Joo Chiat and late tables on Dempsey Road.

60 cafés

Wi-Fi

Cafés with Wi-Fi along Balestier Road, Waterloo Street and Jalan Besar, plus the free Wireless@SGx network.

34 cafés

Open late

Beancurd until 03:00, Cantonese desserts on Liang Seah Street and coffee bars pouring past 22:00.

68 cafés

New in Singapore

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Tiong Bahru & Outram 29 cafés

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Tanjong Pagar, Duxton & Keong Saik 72 cafés

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Chinatown & Telok Ayer 70 cafés

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Clarke Quay, Robertson Quay & River Valley 25 cafés

Kampong Glam & Bugis 71 cafés

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Fame Coffee

  • 108 Middle Road
  • Mon–Thu 08:00–19:00 · Fri–Sat 08:00–20:00 · Sun 08:00–19:00
  • Wi-Fi
  • Air-con
  • Indoor seating
  • Partial wheelchair access
  • Toilets
  • Smoke-free indoors
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Civic District & Bras Basah 132 cafés

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CBD & Marina Bay 86 cafés

Orchard 70 cafés

Little India & Jalan Besar 106 cafés

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Katong & Joo Chiat 74 cafés

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Cafe Moshikomu by Hello Human

  • 169 Still Road
  • Tue–Thu 11:00–20:00 · Fri–Sun 09:00–20:00
  • Card payment
  • Partial wheelchair access
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Holland Village & Dempsey 57 cafés

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Bukit Timah 27 cafés

Geylang, Paya Lebar & the north-east 114 cafés

Bukit Merah, HarbourFront & Sentosa 30 cafés

Novena, Thomson & the north 126 cafés

COTTAGE by The Straits People Cafe (TSP Coffee)

  • 1 Pemimpin Drive
  • Mon–Tue 08:30–18:00 · Thu–Fri 08:30–18:00 · Sat 08:30–14:30
  • +6592724561
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Coffee chains in Singapore

Branches by area

Chain

Cedele

Show 11 locations
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Chain

PS.Cafe

Show 9 locations
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Chain

Joe & The Juice

  • Bukit Merah, HarbourFront & Sentosa
  • 31 Ocean WayMon–Fri 07:30–19:00 · Sat–Sun 08:00–19:00
  • Civic District & Bras Basah
  • B1F Raffles CityMon–Fri 08:00–22:00 · Sat–Sun 08:00–20:00
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Chain

Toby's Estate

  • Clarke Quay, Robertson Quay & River Valley
  • 8 Rodyk StreetMon–Thu 07:30–18:00 · Fri–Sat 07:30–19:00 · Sun 07:30–18:00
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Before you sit down

How to order kopi in Singapore

An order is built by stacking words onto kopi. Plain kopi comes with sugar and condensed milk; kopi-O is black with sugar (O is Hokkien for black), and kopi-C swaps in evaporated milk.3 Kosong, Malay for empty, drops the sugar, so kopi-O kosong is black and unsweetened.3 Siew dai asks for less sugar and gah dai for more, gao for a thicker brew and poh for a thinner one, and peng, Hokkien for ice, makes it iced.36

The words go in a set order, base first: kopi-C peng siew dai is iced coffee with evaporated milk and less sugar.6 Takeaway is tapao or da bao, and some stalls charge a little extra for it.6 Teh, tea, takes the same suffixes, so teh-O is black tea with sugar.6

Tipping is uncommon. Restaurants and cafés with table service often add a 10% service charge and then 9% GST, which menus mark with "++"; a S$100 bill becomes S$119.90.7

Kopi starts early. At Amoy Street Food Centre, Ah Seng (Hai Nam) Coffee, serving for 60 years, opens at 05:30 (06:00 on Tuesdays) and closes on Thursdays and Fridays.8 Specialty cafés keep shorter days, and many close by 17:00 or 18:00: Common Man Coffee Roasters in Joo Chiat at 17:00, Fahrenheit Specialty Coffee at 18:00.

What coffee costs in Singapore

DrinkTypical price
Kopi-O
Black coffee with sugar, hawker stall		S$0.90–1.90
Hawker and kopitiam stalls, October 2025
Kopi
With condensed milk and sugar		S$1.20–1.80
Hawker and kopitiam stalls, October 2025
Kopi peng
Iced kopi		S$1.50–2.50
Hawker and kopitiam stalls, October 2025
Kopi or teh
Hot, any milk, city-center food court		S$2.00
Bras Basah Complex, December 2025
Latte / flat white
Western-style café coffee		S$7–10
Cafés and chains, January 2026

Stall prices are from Eatbook's October 2025 ranking of 15 kopi stalls; from April 2026 some coffee-shop operators added 10–30 cents a cup, citing raw materials, power and staff costs.810 The food-court price is the 24-hour Shifu Food Court in Bras Basah Complex, December 2025, with iced drinks at S$2.60.11 The café range is MoneySmart's January 2026 figure for Western-style cafés and chains.9

Sources

  1. Traditional Breakfast of Kaya and Kopi, Roots.sg, National Heritage Board (Intangible Cultural Heritage inventory), accessed October 2026
  2. Hawker Culture is Singapore’s First Inscription on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, National Environment Agency (December 16, 2020), accessed October 2026
  3. Kopi (drink), Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  4. He left banking to start a coffee business at 26. A decade on, PPP Coffee is a homegrown success, Vulcan Post (August 14, 2019), accessed October 2026
  5. Kyoto-based coffee joint Kurasu opens 2nd S’pore outlet at Somerset, Mothership (Russell Ang, April 10, 2023), accessed October 2026
  6. Kopi, Teh & Coffee in Singapore: Prices, How to Order, What to Save, The Moneybees (2026), accessed October 2026
  7. What is a service charge in Singapore?, Food&HotelAsia (June 3, 2025), accessed October 2026
  8. 15 Best Kopi Stalls in Singapore Ranked, Eatbook.sg (October 8, 2025), accessed October 2026
  9. Is Living in Singapore Expensive? Here’s The Cost of Living in Singapore (2026), MoneySmart via Yahoo News Singapore (Joanne Poh, January 30, 2026), accessed October 2026
  10. Some S’pore coffee shops to increase price of some beverages by 10 to 30 cents due to rising costs, Mothership (April 5, 2026), accessed October 2026
  11. Bras Basah food court’s flat price for drinks stirs controversy online, AsiaOne (December 15, 2025), accessed October 2026
  12. Planning areas of Singapore, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
More to read

Guides

How to order

How to order kopi in Singapore and Malaysia

How to order kopi in Singapore and Malaysia: kopi-O, kopi-C, siew dai, gao, peng, teh tarik and tak kiu, how drink stalls work, and 2025–2026 stall prices.

FAQ

Cafés in Singapore: common questions

How much does kopi cost in Singapore?

In October 2025 a kopi-O (black with sugar) cost S$0.90–1.90 at hawker and kopitiam stalls, a kopi with condensed milk S$1.20–1.80 and an iced kopi S$1.50–2.50. Some coffee shops added 10–30 cents a cup from April 2026. A hot coffee at a Bras Basah food court was S$2 in December 2025, and a Western-style café coffee costs S$7–10.

Which neighborhood of Singapore has the most cafés?

Civic District & Bras Basah and Novena, Thomson & the north have the most cafés, followed by Geylang, Paya Lebar & the north-east. Bras Basah's specialty bars cluster around Waterloo Street, Novena's cafés run along Balestier Road and Upper Thomson Road, and the north-east has roasters such as 20grams on Arumugam Road.

What do kopi-O, kopi-C and siew dai mean in Singapore?

Kopi-O is black coffee with sugar, from the Hokkien for black. Kopi-C has evaporated milk and sugar, while plain kopi uses condensed milk. Siew dai means less sugar and gah dai more; kosong means no sugar, gao a stronger brew, poh a weaker one and peng iced. Combine them base first: kopi-C peng siew dai is iced coffee with evaporated milk and less sugar.

Do you tip in Singapore cafés?

Tipping is uncommon in Singapore. Restaurants and cafés with table service often add a 10% service charge and then 9% GST, which menus show as "++", so a S$100 bill comes to S$119.90.

How is kopi roasted in Singapore?

Traditional Singapore kopi is roasted Hainanese style: about eight parts beans to two parts sugar and margarine, for roughly 25 minutes at 180°C, with salt added midway and sugar at the end for a caramelized finish. The grounds are steeped in a muslin bag and poured between two long-spouted jugs to aerate the coffee.

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