Eng Watt Street mural by Yip Yew Chong, Tiong Bahru
Cross under the flyover from Moxie onto Eng Hoon Street and you'll find yourself in trendy Tiong Bahru.
One of Singapore's oldest housing estates, the neighbourhood has evolved into an eclectic mix of old and new: independent cafés tucked beneath curved 1930s Art Deco blocks, old-school kopitiams beside natural wine bars, vinyl records, ceramics, murals and trades that have survived for generations. It's a neighbourhood best explored without too much of a plan. But if you're walking over from Moxie on College Road and wondering where to start, these are the places we'd send a friend.
Coffee & a Quick Bite
Glass Roasters
Small, low-key and quietly loved, Glass Roasters on Seng Poh Lane is one for serious coffee people. Think specialty espresso coffee, beans that rotate seasonally and are roasted in-house. A flat white is a good place to start, letting the quality of their coffee speak for itself.
Caffe Pralet
A longtime neighbourhood fixture that's found a whole new following thanks to its square sourdough doughnuts. The burnt butter honey glaze is our personal favourite, but don't sleep on the sourdough sandwiches either. Their Hanoi Crisp with crispy pork belly, chilli-crisp honey mustard and garlic chye poh sourdough has been declared a must-try. It's right on Eng Hoon Street, just a short stroll once you've crossed under the flyover from Moxie.
Micro Bakery Kitchen
This Yong Siak Street bakery takes its bread seriously, with handcrafted sourdough loaves baked fresh daily using sustainable wholegrain flours and a naturally leavened process. But we'd happily queue for their scrambled eggs too — simple, creamy and exactly the kind of breakfast that proves you don't need to overcomplicate things. Grab a loaf or something freshly baked on your way out.
TBB Crumb & Go
The newest addition from Tiong Bahru Bakery, just behind its Eng Hoon Street flagship. As the name suggests, TBB Crumb & Go keeps things quick: ready-to-eat sandwiches and salads, plus TBB merch from tote bags and candles to pastry-shaped plushies.
Old-School Tiong Bahru
Hua Bee Restaurant
This one has stories. Hua Bee Restaurant is a 90-plus-year-old kopitiam on Moh Guan Terrace and the real-life filming location of Eric Khoo's 1995 film Mee Pok Man (you can still spot the poster on the wall!). By day, it's old-school Tiong Bahru: fishball noodles and mee kia served across marble-topped tables that have barely changed in decades. In the evening, the same space takes on a second life as Dirty Supper, Chef-Owner Peter Smit's restaurant that celebrates whole animal cooking. Two restaurants, two completely different experiences, one shophouse. Very Tiong Bahru.
Por Kee Eating House
No design-led interiors here. Just crave-worthy Cantonese zi char, red plastic chairs and white table-cloth covered round tables spilling out into the car park on Seng Poh Lane. Por Kee's food has kept regulars returning for years. The homemade tofu braised with mushrooms, crispy butter prawns and champagne pork ribs are just some of their signatures. Bring friends, order for the table.
Foodie Market Place
Planning to cook instead? Foodie Market Place is a favourite for home cooks. Head to the chilled counter for lamb and a surprisingly extensive selection of beef, spanning grass-fed and grain-fed options to Japanese Wagyu, with everything from ribeye, sirloin and tenderloin to more affordable cuts for braising and stews. The team can also cut your meat to your preferred thickness, and prices are refreshingly reasonable for the quality. Beyond the butcher counter, it's an excellent place to stock the kitchen. You'll find cured meats, cheeses and butter, alongside herbs, spices, condiments and plenty of other useful pantry and freezer staples. It's not a huge gourmet grocer, but it's particularly well stocked and the kind of place where you can come in for a couple of steaks and leave with most of what you need to make dinner.
Browse, Dig & Shop
Cat Socrates
Part bookshop, part gift store, part treasure hunt. Cat Socrates on Yong Siak Street packs its shelves with locally made stationery, ceramics, prints, books and beautifully designed little finds you didn't know you needed. There's also a resident shop cat, whose actual job title appears to be senior management. For Singapore souvenirs with a little more personality than the usual keychain, start here.
Ronggeng Records
For crate diggers, this one's worth making time for. Hidden inside Tiong Bahru Market, Ronggeng Records is stacked with vinyl and CDs, with a particular eye for rare Southeast Asian bands alongside more familiar names. There's also a curated $10 bin outside for anyone who believes half the fun is in the hunt. Open Wednesday to Sunday
Yenidraws & Friends
Singapore, illustrated differently. Expect hand-drawn posters, prints and gifts inspired by the city, with plenty of personality and none of the generic souvenir-shop feel. A lovely place to pick up something that actually feels like it came from Singapore.
Sideway
Tiny in size, big on independent-maker energy. This recently opened select-store inside Tiong Bahru Market was started by two local potters and brings together handmade ceramics, zines and small objects by independent makers. It's barely bigger than a market stall, which is part of its charm.
Art and a Little Tiong Bahru History
The Tiong Bahru Heritage Trail
If you're going to wander, you may as well know what you're looking at. The National Heritage Board's free, self-guided 2.5km trail takes you through 10 stops across Tiong Bahru, adding some fascinating context to those distinctive 1930s blocks. Start at the Tiong Bahru Market and understand the history and origins of the neighbourhood. You'll pass the distinctive "Horseshoe Block" on Moh Guan Terrace, the Monkey God Temple and the Dancing Girl sculpture at Seng Poh Garden, created by the same sculptor behind the Merlion statue in Merlion Park. Give yourself about an hour and suddenly all those Art Deco curves have a story.
Tiong Bahru Air Raid Shelter
Beneath Block 78 Guan Chuan Street lies Singapore's only surviving pre-war civilian air raid shelter, built in 1939. It's a rare piece of Singapore's wartime history, but don't turn up expecting to walk straight in: access to the interior is limited and available through National Heritage Board guided tours. Check the tour schedule in advance; otherwise, you can see the exterior as part of the heritage trail.
Sullivan + Strumpf
A quieter pause between the coffee, shopping and eating. Sullivan + Strumpf presents a changing programme of exhibitions spanning painting, sculpture, photography and mixed media installations, making it an easy cultural detour while exploring the neighbourhood.
The Art Murals on Eng Watt Street
Keep your eyes on the walls as you wander Eng Watt Street. A cluster of murals captures scenes of old Tiong Bahru life and offers little glimpses into the neighbourhood before the cafés and boutiques arrived. Bring your camera.
Alice Wong Shoe Cobbler & Bag Repairs
One of our favourite reminders that there's much more to Tiong Bahru than its cool cafés. Alice Wong repairs shoes and bags through the window of her own home on Moh Guan Terrace. Look for the yellow floral half-curtains and shoe soles pinned to cardboard in the window and you'll know you've found her. Both of Alice's parents were cobblers before her, and she's widely regarded as the last known female cobbler still working in Singapore. Her work is skilled and wonderfully old-school, a disappearing trade still quietly carrying on from a window in Tiong Bahru.
Ben Lau Dance
Possibly the most unexpected entry on our Tiong Bahru list: private ballroom and Latin dance lessons run from a ground-floor apartment on Chay Yan Street. Ben Lau is a four-time champion and UK-qualified instructor who has been based in the neighbourhood since 2000, teaching everything from waltz and foxtrot to cha-cha-cha and salsa. It's exactly the sort of slightly wonderful thing you only discover by walking a neighbourhood rather than simply passing through it.
Make an Afternoon of It
That's the thing about Tiong Bahru: the best bits aren't necessarily the ones you set out to find. Dig through some records. Stop for coffee. Look up at the architecture. Have your shoes repaired through someone's window. And when you've wandered enough, cross back under the flyover to Moxie on College Road. We'll take care of the food.
A Little Note
Information was accurate at the time of publication. Menus, opening hours and offerings may change, so we recommend checking directly with individual establishments for the latest details before visiting.
