A kopitiam is a traditional coffee shop found in Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei and Indonesia which serves simple variety of breakfast items based on noodles, toast, buns, egg, kaya (coconut jam) and butter.
In a typical traditional kopitiam, the drink stalls is usually run by the owner who sells huge options of cold and hot beverages like tea, coffee, soft drinks and so on. Traditional food from different ethnicity would be available in kopitiam too, enable all people from various ethnic backgrounds and dietary habits to dine in a common table.
Originated from Hokkien term, the word kopi means coffee while the word tiam means shop. They are commonly founded in almost all residential areas as well as some industrial and business areas in the city.
Below are the recommended traditional kopitiams by SGMYTRIPS that are available in Johor Bahru which are worth for a try.
Traditional Kopitiam Spots In Johor Bahru
- Restoran Hua Mui (华美茶餐室)
- Restoran Keng Seng
- Restoran Kin Hua (锦华茶餐室)
- Restoran Sunshine (新東升)
- Wee Hoi Kopitiam (惠海咖啡店)
- Fang Yuan Kopitiam (芳源正宗海南白咖啡)
- Qin Garden Kopitiam (沁园咖啡馆)
- Saleng Tai Chiang Coffee
- Kedai Makanan Sang Heng
- Kedai Makanan dan Minuman Storia Café
1. Restoran Hua Mui (华美茶餐室)
Restoran Hui Mui in Johor Bahru oozes an old school charm amidst the row of new cafés along Jalan Dhoby and Jalan Trus. It was established since 1946, the place is said to serve the original Hainanese chicken chop in Johor Bahru. It is located just 15 minutes away from City Square Mall, Restoran Hua Mui is one spot that visiting Singaporeans should all check out to kick-start their day proper.
Although it may look unattractive at first glance, this shabby two-storey coffee shop is a huge hit among locals and tourists alike, who often pack it full from as early as 9 in the morning. From their popular charcoal grilled butter and kaya toast to other Eastern and Western food offerings, there is bound to be something to satisfy your craving.
The place is packed to a point the queue forms right at the foot of the stairs leading up to the first floor. Service is non-existent – you basically list your order on the chit on the table and hand it to the staff. If you’re lucky, you’ll get your food in 15 minutes tops. Otherwise, you’ll need to wait for 30-40 minutes or remind the (possibly grumpy) staff that you’re still not fed.
While waiting, you can order portion of kaya butter toast since it’s said to be a specialty at Hua Mui. You get lightly toasted Hainanese bread with a slab of salted butter and kaya at the centre. Nothing fantastic but it’s good enough as a morning snack.
The star attraction of Restoran Hua Mui is their Hainanese Chicken Chop (RM15.90). Sitting atop a savoury gravy with some peas and a few potato wedges, the fried chicken chop itself was crispy beyond belief without being oily. The initial slice down the middle revealed a juicy and succulent centre, an indication that it was marinated properly prior to the actual frying.
The batter was flavourful with prominent notes of egg and milk coming through—which is something unusual as most fried chicken batters tend to be milder. Restoran Hua Mui opens at 8.30am on every business day. If you want fried chicken chop for breakfast, you know where to go.
Additional Information:
Business hour: (Closed on Sundays) Mon to Sat: 8.30am – 6pm
Address: 131, Jalan Trus, Bandar Johor Bahru, 80000 Johor Bahru, Johor
Phone: 011-3505 8916
Also Read: Top 10 Best Pet Shop In Johor Bahru
2. Restoran Keng Seng
Heading to Jalan Kiambang and have no idea on what to eat?
Worry not. Restoran Keng Seng which located in Taman Bunga Raya is one of the famous restaurant in Johor Bahru. Many regulars grew up with Keng Seng and the shop is now run by the second generation (founder’s son). The kopitiam offers great noodle based breakfast to be tried out, guests are provided with options of dried and soup based noodles. There are also different types of noodles like mee kia, mee pok, and kway teow to choose from according to the guests’ preferences.
For the accompanying soup, there are also many choices of home made yong tau foo, fish balls, and pig intestines. Most of the yong tau foo, fish balls, fish cake slices are generic (e.g. the yong tau foo stuffed with commercial blended fish paste). When put together in the soup with pork intestines, it is actually quite appetizing and enjoyable. However, you may need to be patient while waiting for the food as the stall holders are always busy.
If you are in the Masai or Pasir Gudang area in the morning, you may like to join the local folks for this simple noodle and yong tau foo soup. It’s comforting, satisfying and reasonably priced.
Additional Information:
Address: 74, Jalan Kiambang, Taman Bunga Raya, 81750 Masai, Johor
Phone: 07-251 1891
Operating Hours: Monday to Saturday, 6:00am to 2:00pm
Also Read : Top 12 Sites In Mount Austin For a Perfect Breakfast
3. Restoran Kin Hua (锦华茶餐室)
Don’t have a vehicle but wants to eat in Johor? No problem lah! Because there are a lot of good food around Johor Bahru City Square. If you want a traditional breakfast, head to Restoran Kin Wah near Jalan Tan Hiok Nee “Culture Street. his is an simple, no-frills kopitiam selling old school breakfast.
This place serves one of the best coffee and half-boiled eggs in my opinion. The coffee is nicely thick with the right balanced of sugar and milk. When you bring it close to your nose and take a deep breath, you can smell the distinct aromatic coffee smell. The perfect accompaniment to kopi is roti kaya with a slab of melting butter.
Restoran Kin Hua offers a large menu consisting of special servings for breakfast. You can taste their coffee that is available in various styles. The bread toast and egg that they offer for breakfast are homely and delicious. Unlike other coffee shops, Restoran Kin Hua uses fresh kampung chicken eggs for it’s half boiled eggs. These are free range hens that are injected with growth hormones. A staff is stationed there just to crack open the eggs.
Fried noodles served here is delicious and filling. A number of locals visit the restaurant and it is a popular halt for the tourists and travelers as well. Apart from quality breakfast, they also offer quality lunch and dining options.
The mixed food rice they offer is the signature dish available here. The dishes are moderately portioned and their prices are cheap as compared to the general standard.
Additional Information:
Address: 8, Jalan Trus, Bandar Johor Bahru, 80000 Johor Bahru, Johor
4. Restoran Sunshine (新東升)
Restoran Sunshine is one of the famous restaurant located in Taman Puteri Wangsa. Customers, some whom come in entire 2 or 3-generation families, were already waiting early in the morning before the kopitiam opened for breakfast. Restaurant Sunshine have additional staff on weekends and some staff start to take orders even while other staff are getting out the tables and chairs. Everything is very orderly and organised.
One of the famous drink here is Hainanese coffee. Hainanese coffee is deep, robust and smooth and it is nicer than the kopi at the average kopitiam. The other famous dishes in Restaurant Sunshine is their signature nasi lemak. The nasi lemak has simple ingredients and very slight flavours and coconut fragrance.
The rice grains were nicely separate (not stuck together in lumps). Not to forget their wanton mee. The noodles is crunchy, springy and smooth. The soy, sesame and lard based sauce are aromatic giving the noodles their tasty flavours and smoothness.
Sunshine kopitiam is an old brand in Taman Puteri Wangsa. To the local residents, Sunshine has “everything” for breakfast, with something for everyone. The kopi was good and the food was equal to or better than any in the same neighbourhood.
Additional Information:
Address: Jalan Beladau 14, Taman Puteri Wangsa, 81800 Ulu Tiram, Johor
Hours: 07:30am to 5:30pm Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri, Sat | 07:30am to 12:30pm on Sun
Also Read : Top 10 Bukit Indah Breakfast To Jump Start Your Day
5. Wee Hoi Kopitiam (惠海咖啡店)
Wee Hoi Kopitiam ‘s menu is said to be the representation of Gelang Petah food. Well, there is no doubt about it. Their dishes are made with real, fresh ingredients without preservatives. This is one of the reasons people love to eat here. Customers love their soft, snow white buns with different delicious filings like preserved greens, meat, and ground fried peanuts.
The store produces about 700-1100 buns daily, but will be sold out within hours. Every day around 12.30pm there are a lot of people milling around while others are sitting, sipping coffee. They are killing time, waiting patiently for buns. When the mini van arrived with blue plastic trays loaded with snowy white buns, the boss and lady boss sprang into action. The first task was to bag the buns for pre-order takeaway customers.
The buns are made by a granny who is an elder relative of the boss Mr Ho. On weekdays, granny makes only 500 buns; a little bit more on weekends. One of the famous buns in Wee Hoi Kopitiam is preserved vegetable bun.The preserved vegetable bun is filling with moist, not overly salty preserved greens wrapped in a pillowy, airy, snowy-hued slightly sweet bun. The bun had excellent bite and mouth feel with a lively bounce.
Another famous bun is their peanut bun. The peanut bun has generous stuffing of nicely ground fried peanuts with a little bit of sugar. If you are bun lover, do drop by Wee Hoi Kopitiam and try out their buns.
Besides that, the kopitiam also offer other great breakfast menu such as traditional sweet or savory kuihs, charcoal grilled butter and kaya toast, half boiled kampung eggs and nasi lemak.
Additional Information:
Address: 6, Jalan Kacang Panjang, Gelang Patah, 81550 Gelang Patah, Johor
Phone: 016-776 6110
Hours: 6:00am to 5:00pm (closed on Thursday). Bao arrive around 1:30pm and sold out by 2:00pm.
6. Fang Yuan Kopitiam (芳源正宗海南白咖啡)
Fang Yuan Kopitiam, is one of the old and still well-functioning kopitiam spot in Johor which has been operating for about 60 years. It is the right place where you can grab a cup of coffee made from fried coffee beans, best partnered for butter coconut roasted bread and half-cooked eggs to traditional Malaysian breakfast dishes such as nasi lemak, wanton mee and chee cheong fun.
What’s so special about this kopitiam is that the kopitiam offers great charcoal grilled toast with huge varieties of spreads to be chosen from, such as the classic butter and kaya, sweet butter and sugar, savory boiled egg and mayonnaise, famous peanut butter and jam and much more in order to fulfill every customers’ satisfaction.
This kopitiam is considered as a modern type of kopitiam, built in a more hygienic setting. Fang Yuan Kopitiam even extended their menus where local breakfast and lunch meals are served, since they are operating late to 5:30pm.
This is a great place for you to enjoy breakfast because the aroma of coffee and the fragrance of toasted bread are enough to awaken your senses.
Additional Information:
Address: 14, Jalan Permas 9/2, Bandar Baru Permas Jaya, 81750 Masai, Johor
Phone: 012-765 4061
Operating Hours: 8:00am-5:30pm
Also Read: Top 10 Desaru Cafe You Must Try
7. Qin Garden Kopitiam (沁园咖啡馆)
Nasi Padang has always been a classic dish with roots all the way from Padang city in West Sulawesi, Indonesia. Johor Bahru is no stranger to housing some of the best (and highly affordable!) Nasi Padang joints that feature a vibrant spread of many mouth-watering dishes. This quaint coffee shop was previously located just a stone’s throw away at Restoran Kin Wah, also a current Nasi Padang hub. Do not let the simple hawker-like façade deceive you.
The array of Nasi Padang dishes at Qin Garden Kopitiam will leave you with some tough decisions to make. Some of the eye-catching ones include Kupang (mussels fried with chilli and spices), Beef Rendang, Assam Pedas Fish, Chicken Curry, Crisp Fried Fish and Quail Eggs cooked in a spicy chilli paste.
The key to Qin Garden Kopitiam’s success lies in their native Indonesian chefs as well as the dedicated owner, Mr Adam Soroso who hails from Surabaya himself. He has been running this business for almost 30 years now and his regulars can attest to the veritable buffet of authentic dishes.
It opens as early as 7am daily until 6pm in the evening, customers can indulge in a slew of hearty breakfast options such as Lontong, Nasi Lemak, Mee Siam and Mee Rebus. The Nasi Padang is available from 10.30am onwards and works in a systematic way. You scoop up your preferred dishes into your basket of steamed rice and let the amiable staff tabulate your total bill.
Do not forget to add a dollop of homemade sambal for that extra zing! Overall, Qin Garden Kopitiam is an optimal choice for cheap yet tasty Nasi Padang. Dishes are aplenty here and the airy coffee shop style means that you will not be sweating as you try to savour your meals.
Additional Information:
Address: 12, Jalan Trus, Bandar Johor Bahru, 80000 Johor Bahru, Johor
Daily: 7am – 6pm
Also Read : Top 12 Highly Recommended Malay Food in Johor Bahru
8. Saleng Tai Chiang Coffee
You want to step back in time to 1950s/60s Johor, sip thick black bitter sweet coffee and eat kaya toasts like a local? If you are shopping at Johor Premium Outlet in Kulaijaya or trekking at Gunung Pulai, I suggest you swing by Tai Chiang Coffee Shop in Saleng between Kulai and Senai. It’s very basic inside the 45 year old kopitiam (coffee shop opened in 1970). Bare grey cement floor, Formica top folding tables, plastic stackable chairs and stools, and whirling ceiling fans above our heads. It is bright, comfortable, clean and cool inside.
All the coffees are made by the moss, Mr Wong. He makes coffee using the good old sock method. Mr Wong also roasts his own coffee beans using the old soot blackened rotating drum over wood fire (at the back of the coffee shop).
Tai Chiang Restaurant is also famous for their freshly charcoal grilled kaya toast. The fluffy white bread is grilled till it is charred outside. Each toast is individually scrapped to remove the surface char. The toast is spread with kaya (coconut jam), margarine, peanut butter or butter.
If you are after Nanyang style coffee, do come Tai Chiang Coffee and enjoy old their Nanyang style coffee, eggs and toast with friendly locals in a rustic Malaysian small town coffee shop.
Additional Information:
Address: 12, Jalan Jelawat, Kawasan Perindustrian Senai 1, 81400 Kulai, Johor
9. Kedai Makanan Sang Heng
Tucked away on the side streets across from City Square and CIQ in Johor Bahru, you have some nice old places to have a quick and cheap meal. Most Anak Johor knows Uncle Ah Seng’s Teochew noodle stall. Uncle Ah Seng has been selling Teochew noodles for 50 years, and the last 30 years at this same spot in old downtown Johor Bahru.
Uncle Ah Seng that prepares the food here is great. He’s all business, and then he is helped by what I believe is his wife and a younger auntie.
It’s one of those places that doesn’t have a menu. So you just go and you ask what they have. You choose the size, tell them what kind of noodles you want, and if you want it dry or soup. Some of Uncle Ah Seng’s fans had been with him since he started 50 years ago. Uncle Ah Seng’s stall also enjoys a constant renewal of young customers.
They have all kinds of noodles. And behind there is some Wu Xiang also if you want. The fishballs here are homemade, but the pork balls are store bought. The things that go into each bowl of Sang Heng’s traditional Teochew noodles are handmade fish balls, fish cake slices, boiled minced lean pork, pork lard, blended sauce, chopped scallion, little shrimps, and chili for those who want a bit more spicy kick.
Besides, Sang Heng’s soup is the power. It is made with pork socket bones, shrimps, anchovies, dried sole fish and others. The broth has a medium body and layers of savouriness and sweetness. The broth is aromatic and I can smell the prawns used in the broth. If you are a noodle lover, you got to check out Uncle Ah Seng’s delicious old school Teochew mee. Not many places in Johor Bahru or Singapore does noodles this good any more.
Additional Information:
Address: 7, Jalan Tan Hiok Nee, Bandar Johor Bahru, 80000 Johor Bahru, Johor
10. Kedai Makanan dan Minuman Storia Café
Storia Café an excellent place for breakfast on your way to the day’s business in Johor. The cafe is just 10 minutes drive away once you clear Malaysian immigration. After you clear immigration, stay in the lane heading towards Jalan Tebrau. Look to your left.
After passing the Shell petrol station, turn left and drive straight ahead for 100 metres to a T-junction. You will see a row of shop houses to your right along Jalan Storey. Storia Café is at the right hand corner at the end of the row.
Storia Café will be brightly lit by 6:30am and doing a brisk business. Pull over and enjoy a hearty and scrumptious breakfast. Storia café offers a good spread of nasi lemak, (dry style) mee siam, fried mee, fried rice, fried eggs and fish balls. But it is their star attraction otak otak that pulls in the crowds every morning. The otak otak are homemade by the owners and are freshly grilled in the café by the baskets full.
It is made with Ikan Tenggiri (Mackerel fish) wrapped in attap leaves, they come in the fish meat and fish head varieties. The fish head version comes in small quantities and sells the fastest, so only the early birds have a chance to taste it.
Anyway, the café will be emptied of everything by about 11:00 am. There are good reasons for the daily otak otak feeding frenzy. The otak otak is thick, meaty, full bodied, and succulent. Biting into this taste grenade causes Storia otak otak’s light and refreshing flavour of fresh curry spices, coconut milk and fish to burst in your mouth. Do visit Storia Café to have a great breakfast to start off your day.
Additional Information:
Address: 79-84, Jalan Storey, Kim Teng Park, 80300 Johor Bahru, Johor
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