Cafeography
Singapore · Little India & Jalan Besar

Cafés in Little India & Jalan Besar

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

Photo: Cyrill, Pexels License

Little India began as a district where Europeans traded cattle, and Indian migrants found work rearing livestock along the Serangoon River.1 The area was called Serangoon until the Singapore Tourism Board promoted the new name in the 1980s, Indian Singaporeans still often call it Tekka, and it was gazetted as a conservation area on 7 July 1989.1 Jalan Besar, Malay for "big road", runs along its eastern side over former swamp between the Kallang and Rochor rivers.3

The two halves drink differently. Around Serangoon Road and Buffalo Road the coffee comes from market stalls and old bakeries. East of Jalan Besar, on Tyrwhitt Road, Hamilton Road and the streets between them, shophouse cafés run espresso machines, brunch menus and, in a few cases, their own roasters.

Local tip: Reach Tekka before 10:30 for Generation Coffee's morning pours, then walk east to Tyrwhitt Road, where Black Fairy Coffee opens at 09:00.

At a glance

106Cafés listed
21With opening hours
00:00Earliest opening
05:00Latest closing
  • Opens earliest: Warm Up Cafe, from 00:00 (Daily 00:00–06:00, 12:00–23:59).
  • Closes latest: Old Rochor Beancurd, until 05:00 (Tue–Sun 09:00–05:00).
  • Most listed streets: Tyrwhitt Road (6), Jalan Besar (5), Rangoon Road (4).
  • Most common features: air-con (8%), open late (8%), wi-fi (7%).

Drop & Drool

  • 245 Lavender Street
  • Mon–Tue 12:00–18:00 · Wed Closed · Thu 12:00–18:00 · Fri 12:00–17:00, 19:00–21:00 · Sat–Sun 12:00–18:00
  • +6580606100
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Marymount Bakehouse Singapore

  • 421 Race Course Road
  • Wed–Sun 09:00–18:00
  • +65 9183 3185
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Coffee chains in Little India & Jalan Besar

Getting to Tekka and Tyrwhitt Road

Little India station, under the junction of Bukit Timah Road and Race Course Road, links the North East Line, open since 20 June 2003, with the Downtown Line, added on 27 December 2015.4 Tekka Centre stands beside it.2 For the Jalan Besar side, Jalan Besar station on the Downtown Line opened on 21 October 2017, and Farrer Park and Rochor stations also serve the district.31

Tekka Centre and the kopi stalls of Buffalo Road

Tekka Centre opened in 1982 at 665 Buffalo Road, with a hawker centre on the ground floor and a wet market selling seafood and vegetables; it closed for renovation in 2008 and reopened in 2009.2 Its old name, Kandang Kerbau, is Malay for "buffalo pens", after slaughterhouses that worked nearby until the 1920s, and Tekka comes from the Hokkien for "foot of the small bamboos" on the Rochor Canal.2

Generation Coffee has a stall here, at #01-321, and roasts its own beans without sugar or margarine, adding arabica to the usual robusta and pulling each cup on an espresso machine.5 In October 2025 its kopi-O cost S$1.70 and a kopi-C siew dai S$2. It opens Monday to Saturday from 07:30 to 10:30 and again from 11:15 to 15:00.5 Maya Mohan Hot & Cold Drinks pours at the same address.

Tyrwhitt Road and Hamilton Road

Jalan Besar's conserved shophouses still hold hardware and metalworking trades next to the newer cafés.3 Chye Seng Huat Hardware, at 150 Tyrwhitt Road, kept the name of the hardware shop it took over, and has an industrial interior and an all-day breakfast menu.6 It opened in 2012 as the flagship of the roaster Papa Palheta, now PPP Coffee.7 Wimbly Lu, a few doors along at No. 166, is known for waffles and root beer float cake, and Black Fairy Coffee at No. 131 serves all-day brunch and bentos.6

Hamilton Road, one block over, has The Community Roastery & Cafe at No. 38 and Brawn & Brains Coffee at No. 16. Tolido's Espresso Nook at 462 Crawford Lane opens at 08:00 from Tuesday to Sunday, and Hey Slow Joe and Sourdough & Brew share 1 Tessensohn Road; Sourdough & Brew starts at 07:30 and closes at 14:30.

Old bakeries, beancurd and late hours

Some older bakeries remain. Madras Bakery is at 23 Campbell Lane, and Le Café Confectionery & Pastry, on MacKenzie Road, was one of the surviving Hainanese businesses Makansutra named in 2013, a link to the time when kopitiams baked their own cakes, made their own kaya and roasted their own beans.8 Keong Saik Bakery, despite its name, is at 70 Bendemeer Road, open daily 08:00–18:00.

After dark, Average Service at 315 Jalan Besar is open until 23:30 every day, and Black Fairy Coffee until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. Old Rochor Beancurd, at 27 Foch Road, serves from 09:00 to 05:00, Tuesday to Sunday. Warm Up Cafe on MacKenzie Road opens at noon and stays open through the night until 06:00.

Sources

  1. Little India, Singapore, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  2. Tekka Centre, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  3. Jalan Besar, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  4. Little India MRT station, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
  5. 15 Best Kopi Stalls in Singapore Ranked, Eatbook.sg (October 8, 2025), accessed October 2026
  6. 14 Cafes In Lavender & Jalan Besar Neighbourhoods For Brunch, Coffee & Desserts, Lady Iron Chef (January 18, 2022), accessed October 2026
  7. 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
  8. The Last Hainanese Stronghold, Makansutra (November 21, 2013), accessed October 2026
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In Little India & Jalan Besar, also browse: Specialty coffee Bakery cafés Brunch Outdoor seating Wi-Fi Open late

FAQ

Little India & Jalan Besar cafés: questions

Where can you get kopi at Tekka Centre in Singapore's Little India?

Generation Coffee has a stall at #01-321, Tekka Centre, 665 Buffalo Road, next to Little India MRT station. It roasts its own beans without sugar or margarine and brews on an espresso machine. In October 2025 a kopi-O cost S$1.70. It opens Monday to Saturday, 07:30–10:30 and 11:15–15:00.

What is Chye Seng Huat Hardware on Tyrwhitt Road in Singapore?

Chye Seng Huat Hardware, at 150 Tyrwhitt Road in Jalan Besar, is a café that kept the name of the hardware shop it replaced. It opened in 2012 as the flagship of the roaster Papa Palheta, which renamed itself PPP Coffee in 2019. It has an industrial interior and an all-day breakfast menu.

Which cafés in Jalan Besar, Singapore, stay open late?

Average Service at 315 Jalan Besar is open daily until 23:30, and Black Fairy Coffee at 131 Tyrwhitt Road until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. Old Rochor Beancurd at 27 Foch Road serves until 05:00 from Tuesday to Sunday, and Warm Up Cafe on MacKenzie Road is open from noon until 06:00.

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