Cafeography
Singapore · Kampong Glam & Bugis

Cafés in Kampong Glam & Bugis

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

Photo: CK Seng, Pexels License

Kampong Glam takes its name from the gelam, a Melaleuca tree, and kampong, Malay for village.1 After the 1819 treaty between the British East India Company, Sultan Hussein Shah of Johor and the Temenggong, the Sultan settled here with his followers, and the Raffles Plan of 1822 set the area aside for his household and for Malay and Arab merchants.1 By the early 1920s many Malays had moved out to Geylang Serai and Kampong Eunos, and Chinese and Indian residents had moved in.1

The Sultan Mosque, at 3 Muscat Street, still anchors the quarter; its present building was finished in 1932 to a design by Denis Santry of Swan & Maclaren, and it became a national monument on 8 March 1975.2 Around it, the conserved shophouses of Arab Street, Haji Lane and Bussorah Street hold design firms, galleries, cafés and bars.1

Local tip: For a morning coffee, Bullock Cart Coffee and Caligraph Coffee open at 07:30 on weekdays; for a late one, Rumifolks on Bali Lane serves until midnight.

At a glance

71Cafés listed
12With opening hours
07:30Earliest opening
01:00Latest closing
  • Opens earliest: Caligraph Coffee, from 07:30 (Mon–Fri 07:30–17:00 · Sat–Sun 09:00–18:00).
  • Closes latest: 味香園甜品 Mei Heong Yuen Dessert, until 01:00 (Mon–Thu 12:00–00:00 · Fri–Sat 12:00–01:00 · Sun 12:00–00:00).
  • Most listed streets: Beach Road (6), Victoria Street (5), Middle Road (3).
  • Most common features: wheelchair access (8%), card payment (7%), air-con (6%).

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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Coffee chains in Kampong Glam & Bugis

Getting there: Bugis station

Bugis station lies under the junction of Victoria Street and Rochor Road, close to Kampong Glam and Bugis Junction.5 It links the East–West Line, open since November 1989, with the Downtown Line, added on 22 December 2013.5 From the station, the cafés of Arab Street, Jalan Kubor and Beach Road are all within walking distance.

Sultan Gate and the old palace

The Istana Kampong Gelam, the palace G.D. Coleman designed for Sultan Ali Iskandar Shah in the 1840s, houses the Malay Heritage Centre at 85 Sultan Gate.3 The centre opened in June 2005, closed for redevelopment on 30 October 2022 and reopened on 25 April 2026.3

No Strangers Here is on the same street at 39 Sultan Gate, open Tuesday to Sunday, 12:00–20:00. In December 2006 a fire destroyed four shophouses on Sultan Gate.1

Haji Lane, Bali Lane and Arab Street

Haji Lane is named after the Arab pilgrim brokers who arranged the haj there, and until the 1960s its shophouses lodged pilgrims, who often hawked nearby to pay for the rest of the journey.4 Poorer Malay families lived in them in the 1960s and 1970s; after that many stood empty or became storerooms, and today independent shops and cafés fill them.4

Rumifolks, at 28 Bali Lane, is open 11:00–00:00 daily. On Arab Street, (working title) is at No. 48 and Petra Haven at No. 148. Tarik is at 92 Muscat Street, and Symmetry, at 9 Jalan Kubor, opens at 08:30 at weekends and stays open until 23:00 from Wednesday to Saturday.

Beach Road, Bugis and the dessert shops

Toward Beach Road, 2050 Coffee at No. 267 is open daily 10:00–18:00, Wakey Wakey is at No. 302 and Verde at No. 369. The early openers are Bullock Cart Coffee and Caligraph Coffee, both at 07:30 on weekdays, and Korio at 08:00. OTC Cafe, at 100 Victoria Street, serves 11:00–21:00 every day.

Mei Heong Yuen Dessert, at 16 Liang Seah Street, is open until midnight, or 01:00 on Fridays and Saturdays. Penny University stays open until 22:00 from Wednesday to Friday and closes at 17:00 on the other days.

Sources

  1. Kampong Glam, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  2. Sultan Mosque, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  3. Malay Heritage Centre, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  4. Haji Lane, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  5. Bugis MRT station, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
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In Kampong Glam & Bugis, also browse: Bakery cafés Outdoor seating Wi-Fi Open late

FAQ

Kampong Glam & Bugis cafés: questions

Which MRT station is nearest to Kampong Glam in Singapore?

Bugis station, under the junction of Victoria Street and Rochor Road, is the closest to Kampong Glam. It is an interchange between the East–West Line, open since 1989, and the Downtown Line, added in December 2013. The Sultan Mosque at 3 Muscat Street and the cafés of Arab Street and Bali Lane are within walking distance.

Is the Malay Heritage Centre in Singapore's Kampong Glam open in 2026?

Yes. The Malay Heritage Centre, in the 1840s Istana Kampong Gelam at 85 Sultan Gate, closed for redevelopment on 30 October 2022 and reopened on 25 April 2026. It first opened in June 2005. No Strangers Here, a café on the same street, opens Tuesday to Sunday, 12:00–20:00.

Which cafés in Kampong Glam, Singapore, are open late?

Rumifolks at 28 Bali Lane is open daily until midnight, and Mei Heong Yuen Dessert at 16 Liang Seah Street until midnight, or 01:00 on Fridays and Saturdays. Symmetry, at 9 Jalan Kubor, stays open until 23:00 from Wednesday to Saturday.

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