Kopi tiam

This article is about the traditional coffee shop found in Southeast Asia. For the former Malaysian sitcom series, see Kopitiam (TV series).
A typical open-air kopitiam in Singapore
A stall selling ngo hiang

A kopitiam or kopi tiam is a traditional coffee shop found in Southeast Asia, patronised for meals and beverages. The word kopi is a Malay/Hokkien term for coffee and tiam is the Hokkien/Hakka term for shop (店). Menus typically feature simple offerings: a variety of foods based on egg, toast, and kaya, plus coffee, tea, and Milo, a malted chocolate drink which is extremely popular in Southeast Asia, particularly Malaysia and Singapore and Brunei and in some parts of Indonesia, especially at Sumatra Island.

Singapore

Kopi tiams in Singapore are commonly found in almost all residential areas as well as some industrial and business districts in the country, numbering about 2,000 in total.[1] Although most are an aggregate of small stalls or shops, some may be more reminiscent of food courts, although each stall has similar appearance and the same style of signage.

In a typical kopi tiam, the drinks stall is usually run by the owner who sells coffee, tea, soft drinks, and other beverages as well as breakfast items like kaya toast, soft-boiled eggs and snacks. The other stalls are leased by the owner to independent stallholders who prepare a variety of food dishes, often featuring the cuisine of Singapore & cuisine of Malaysia. Traditional dishes from different ethnicities are usually available at kopitiams so that people from different ethnic backgrounds and having different dietary habits could dine in a common place and even at a common table.

Kopitiam is also the name of a food court chain in Singapore.

Some of the popular kopi tiams in Singapore include Kim San Leng, Killiney & Tong Ah Eating House or Ya Kun Kaya Toast

Some of the more common foods that can be seen in kopi tiams, besides the ever-popular eggs and toast, consist of char kway tiao (fried hor fun, sometimes cooked with eggs and cockles), Hokkien mee (mee noodles served with various seafoods as well as egg) and, possibly the most common, nasi lemak, or coconut rice (a Malay dish of coconut-flavoured rice, served with sambal chilli paste, egg, and ikan billis or anchovies).

Traditional Kopi O commonly served in Malaysia and Singapore

At kopi tiams (Chinese: 咖啡店; pinyin: kā fēi diàn; literally: "coffee shop"), coffee and tea are usually ordered using a specific vernacular featuring terms from different languages. "Kopi" (coffee) and "teh" (tea) can be tailored to suit the drinker's taste by using the following suffixes when ordering:

Malaysia

An OldTown White Coffee Outlet in Taman Permata, Kuala Lumpur. This is one of the contemporary kopi tiam outlets in Malaysia.

In Malaysia, as in Singapore, kopitiams are found almost everywhere. However, there are a few differences. In Malaysia:

Recently a new breed of "modern" kopitiams have sprung up. The popularity of the old-fashioned outlets along with society's obsession with nostalgia and increasing affluence has led to the revival of these pseudo-kopitiams. The new kopitiams are fast-food outlets which are reminiscent of the old kopitiams in terms of decor, but are usually built in a more modern, hygienic setting such as a shopping mall rather than in the traditional shophouse, catering mainly for young adults.

To offer the true kopitiam experience, modern kopitiams such as Uncle Lim's Cafe mostly offer authentic local coffee brews, charcoal grilled toast served with butter and kaya (a local version of jam made from coconut milk and eggs) and soft-boiled eggs. Some have extended menus where local breakfast, lunch and dinner meals are served. To tap into the sizeable Muslim market, these kopitiams usually serve food that is halal (permissible for consumption by Muslims) unlike the traditional shophouse kopitiams.

Today there are no less than 100 brand names of modern kopitiams operating in various parts of Malaysia.

Kopitiams in Ipoh oldtown district serve Ipoh white coffee. The coffee beans are roasted with palm-oil margarine and with less sugar, resulting in a brew that is lighter in colour than normal coffee beans that uses sugar – hence the name 'white coffee'.

Indonesia

Kopitiams (Indonesian : kedai kopi or warung kopi "warkop") in Indonesia are very similar to those in Malaysia or Singapore. Originally run by local Chinese people, they can be found in many residential areas. Old-fashioned kopitiams are usually located at shop houses, and often have a quite run-down appearance. In Jakarta, the term warkop which stands for warung kopi is more popular. More modern kopitiams have more recently emerged, and can be found in many shopping malls around Indonesia.

"Coffee shop talk"

"Coffee shop talk" is a phrase used to describe gossip because it is often a familiar sight at kopi tiams where a group of workers or senior citizens would linger over cups of coffee and exchange news and comments on various topics including national politics, office politics, TV dramas, sports and food.

Example of typical kopitiam beverage terms

Explanation of kopitiam terms

These terms may be used in different configurations to suit one's liking.

See also

References

  1. ↑ The Straits Times Interactive
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