Cafeography
Singapore · Geylang, Paya Lebar & the north-east

Cafés in Geylang, Paya Lebar & the north-east

Roasters in the Ubi and Kaki Bukit industrial estates, a café in the old badminton hall and S$1.20 kopi on Geylang Road.

Photo: Anita Kieseler, Pexels License

Geylang probably takes its name from kilang, Malay for a press, mill or factory; an 1830 map spells it that way.7 Geylang Road runs for about three kilometers with lorongs (lanes) branching off at right angles, odd numbers to the north and even to the south.7 Paya Lebar, Malay for "wide swamp", held Singapore's international airport from 20 August 1955 and became a full military base in 1981.8

Specialty coffee here turns up in unlikely buildings: the ground floors of light-industrial blocks around Kim Chuan, Ubi and Kaki Bukit, and a former sports hall on Guillemard Road. Further out, Hougang and Serangoon North are mostly neighborhood coffee shops, such as 7 Stars Coffee Shop on Hougang Street 21.

Local tip: Compound Coffee Co. closes on Sundays and public holidays, so plan the estates for a weekday or a Saturday, and note the unit number before you go: these cafés sit inside industrial blocks.

At a glance

118Cafés listed
9With opening hours
09:00Earliest opening
23:00Latest closing
  • Opens earliest: Two Cranes, from 09:00 (Daily 09:00–22:00).
  • Closes latest: Pestle & Mortar Society, until 23:00 (Mon–Thu 12:00–22:00 · Fri–Sun 12:00–23:00).
  • Most listed streets: Geylang Rd (6), Circuit Road (5), MacPherson Road (4).
  • Most common features: air-con (7%), specialty (6%), bubble tea (6%).

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Coffee chains in Geylang, Paya Lebar & the north-east

Roasters in the industrial estates

20grams Roastery & Coffee Bar works from LTC Building C on Arumugam Road, led by Alvin Mok, who has spent more than a decade in the trade, and it favors Nordic-style roasting to show off the bean.1 Homeground Coffee Roasters began as a pop-up, and its Precise Tree unit on Kim Chuan Drive supplies Brazilian and Costa Rican beans, including an espresso blend called Lollipop.1

Compound Coffee Co., at Techlink on Kaki Bukit Road 3, has operated since 2014 and works differently: you can rent a roaster and roast your own beans for as little as S$3 a roast, as of 2026.2 It also sells green beans to home and micro roasters and runs hands-on roasting and brewing workshops.2

Guillemard Road: the old badminton hall

Vernacular Coffee opened in December 2023 inside the former Singapore Badminton Hall, in a space that was once the flagship of Brawn & Brains Coffee.3 Staff told HungryGoWhere it has the same owner as Bread Yard and Hathaway.3 The menu looks to the region, with beans mainly from Myanmar and Thailand in place of the usual Ethiopian and Colombian single origins, roasted by Humble Origins, Flip and the café itself.3

The chocolate drinks use Rehoboth Estate beans from the Philippines.3 In January 2024 a pour-over cost S$8, a long black started at S$5, and the signature ice-cream sandwich, built on two sheets of flaky pastry instead of wafers, was S$10.3

Kopi on Geylang Road and Old Airport Road

Keng Wah Sung Cafe made Eatbook's kopi roundup of October 2025, with kopi-O (black with sugar) at S$1.20, kopi at S$1.40 and kopi-C siew dai (evaporated milk, less sugar) at S$1.60.5 Hin Sheng Coffee House and Sing Lian Eating House are coffee shops on the same road, further west.

Old Airport Road Food Centre has its own drink stalls, among them BNR Coffee And Tea, unit #01-33, and Wan Gui Beverages pours in the Geylang Bahru market.

Paya Lebar Road and Sennett Estate

Knots Cafe and Living belongs to Xpressflower, a Singapore florist, and mixes flowers, food and handcrafted furniture in one room; it adds no service charge.6 The Providore and Kómma Social Cafe sit in the Paya Lebar Quarter complex at 1 Paya Lebar Link.

Joan Bowen Cafe, in a restored red building on Jalan Wangi in Sennett Estate, was set up to give people with special needs meaningful work, and they prepare and serve the food.4 It came back after about three years closed, and its site gives weekday lunch hours, Tuesday to Friday, 11:30–14:30.4 Potong Pasir station is about 10 minutes on foot.4

Sources

  1. Best coffee roasters in Singapore, Honeycombers, accessed November 2026
  2. Compound Coffee Co., Compound Coffee Co., accessed November 2026
  3. Vernacular Coffee, HungryGoWhere, accessed November 2026
  4. Joan Bowen Café, Joan Bowen Café, accessed November 2026
  5. Best kopi in Singapore, Eatbook, accessed November 2026
  6. Knots Café and Living, Knots Café and Living, accessed November 2026
  7. Geylang, Wikipedia, accessed November 2026
  8. Paya Lebar, Wikipedia, accessed November 2026
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In Geylang, Paya Lebar & the north-east, also browse: Specialty coffee Bakery cafés Outdoor seating Wi-Fi Open late

FAQ

Geylang, Paya Lebar & the north-east cafés: questions

Where are the specialty coffee roasters in Geylang and Paya Lebar, Singapore?

They sit in light-industrial blocks rather than on shopping streets. 20grams Roastery & Coffee Bar is on Arumugam Road, Homeground Coffee Roasters on Kim Chuan Drive and Compound Coffee Co. at Techlink on Kaki Bukit Road 3. At Compound you can rent a roaster and roast your own beans for as little as S$3, as of 2026.

What café is inside the former Singapore Badminton Hall in Geylang, Singapore?

Vernacular Coffee opened at 100 Guillemard Road in December 2023, in a space once held by Brawn & Brains Coffee. Its beans come mainly from Myanmar and Thailand, some roasted in-house. In January 2024 a pour-over cost S$8 and its flaky-pastry ice-cream sandwich S$10.

How much does kopi cost on Geylang Road in Singapore?

At Keng Wah Sung Cafe, 783 Geylang Road, kopi-O cost S$1.20, kopi S$1.40 and kopi-C siew dai S$1.60 in October 2025. Kopi-O is black with sugar; kopi-C siew dai has evaporated milk and less sugar.

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