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Old Town White Coffee – Ipoh’s Finest Coffee in Singapore

Rating:

By Veron Ang

Some time back, I tweeted and proclaimed Old Town White Coffee to be the best 3-in-1 instant coffee ever. Despite the rather brazen statement, given that I haven’t tasted most of the instant coffee out there, some of my followers agreed. Even after a year, during which I did try several other brands of coffee, I still feel the same way.

My year-long love affair with Old Town is the reason why when an outlet opened at Playground @ Big Splash in East Coast Park, I immediately added it to my list of must-visit places. Never mind the fact that I already have the instant coffee at home; I still felt an urgent need to check out the place!

Old Town White Coffee in Singapore

Old Town originated from the town of Ipoh in 1958. While they are the biggest kopitiam (coffee shop) chain in Malaysia today with 82 outlets, this East Coast Park outlet marks only their first foray into Singapore.

And I’m pretty sure it won’t be the last.

Old Town White Coffee

The layout of the place looks pretty similar to most of the kopitiam chains that have sprung up in Singapore in recent years. There are the usual marble tables and wooden chairs, as well as coffee served in traditional cups printed with the all-too-familiar green designs.

A cosy lounge-like area and a few six-person booth seats separate this from the rest of the kopitiams, creating the slight ambience of a Western café. Having a sofa here may seem rather out of place, but I think most patrons would welcome the option.

Lounge-like area at Old Town White Coffee

An aged image of a busy street scene covers one side of the wall. This is the same photo featured in their logo. For all the hundreds of Old Town coffee sachets I have had, I had never realised that the little logo contains a street scene!

Besides the usual coffee and kaya (creamy coconut jam) toast, some other items you would find on the menu include chicken rendang (a recommended dish which I heard is superb), curry chicken rice, ice cream toast, as well as the rather intriguing “ice fire polo bun” and “coffee lava”.

But with our stomachs still working hard on what we had from our previous meal, we could only manage to down a few cups of coffee. That’s okay — it’s what we were there for anyway!

Update: On a follow-up visit, we ordered the chicken rendang, which at S$7.90++, isn’t exactly cheap for the skimpy portion you get. When we asked for an extra spoonful of chilli sauce, the staff (and their manager) told us it would cost S$0.50 more.

To add salt to the wound, there is that mandatory 10% service charge here even though we had to queue at the counter to make our payment when we patronised the Toa Payoh Hub outlet on two separate occasions. They don’t provide water too. After the subsequent disappointing experiences at Old Town, we have decided to never come back to this place.

Old Town White Coffee

Old Town White Coffee
S$1.60+
Rating:

The coffee comes with a foamy layer on top, which kind of resembles coffee tarik. It tastes a little different from the classic instant coffee that I’m accustomed to, but it is still as rich and fragrant. Old town fans would love this just the same.

The blend of specially roasted liberica, arabica and robusta coffee beans with small amounts of caramel is what contributes to the distinct taste and flavour of this underrated (in Singapore anyway) brew. More coffee lovers need to sample it!

Old Town White Coffee cabinet

After savouring the coffee, enamored patrons can also purchase it in-store and make their own Old Town coffee at home. (Hint: The 3-in-1′s can also be found at most supermarkets.)

Old Town White Coffee in Malaysia
Photo by Old Town White Coffee

Meanwhile, do excuse me while I go make a hot cup of Old Town white coffee!

Old Town White Coffee
- Bukit Timah: 9 Yuk Tong Avenue
- Cineleisure
- Far East Plaza
- Jurong Point
- Playground@Big Splash, East Coast Park
- Square 2
- Suntec City Mall
- Toa Payoh Central
- White Sands

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About the Editor

Veron Ang is the Founder and Chief Editor of Sparklette, a Singapore restaurants guide, lifestyle and travel blog. She graduated with a bachelor's degree in computer science from the National University of Singapore and runs a web design firm at Sparklette Studio. To get in touch, head on over to the contact page or follow @Sparklette and @VeronSG on Twitter.

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Responses Leave a comment

xueyu
1 comment

I know it tastes nice..LoL, cause my cousin has one franchise in Kuantan, Malaysia. And I get 3 boxes of free instant mix everytime I go back Msia..LoL
Reply
Posted May 16, 2008 at 10:10 am
Daphne Maia
9 comments

i went to one of their outlets back in JB weeks ago, when i was last at home… the standards are sliding, in malaysia.. not sure about the one here.
i guess with the many branches mushrooming all over malaysia, its a bit hard to maintain the standard of quality coffee.
not to mention the competition! a lot of such cafes (of other brands) are opening up too. nevertheless, i still prefer such “old school” coffee to the new types of barista-made coffee at starbucks, etc.
ok lunch time! coffee sometime? :)
Reply
Posted May 16, 2008 at 12:19 pm
walter
72 comments

I have some of their instant 3-in-1 coffee and agree that they are simply great! By the way, do you know that comedian Mark Lee is one of the owners of this joint? He went into a franchise agreement with the owner from Ipoh, and occasionally pops down to the outlet. ;)
Reply
Posted May 16, 2008 at 10:40 pm
tiny M
3 comments

I’m not much of a coffee drinker but when I do, I’ll definitely go for Old Town Ipoh White Coffee! My mum is a fan and whenever we go to Msia, we’ll be sure to get a few packs back!
I was excited to see the outlet at ECP but havn’t had the chance to visit it yet. Thanks for the review!
Reply
Posted May 17, 2008 at 12:48 pm
Veron
3438 comments

xueyu: Free coffee is always welcome, especially when it’s Old Town. Lucky you!
Daphne Maia: Sure! Like you, I prefer traditional coffee to the western kind. It’s cheaper too!
walter: Oh I heard that from another blog. He was serving coffee there on the opening day! Hope to see him the next time I patronise :)
tiny M: No problem! My whole family are Old Town drinkers too. I have even converted a few of my colleagues!
Reply
Posted May 17, 2008 at 10:39 pm
J
1 comment

yes old town 3in1 coffee is the best i’ve tried so far. it’s selling on the shelves at NTUC. i particularly like the hazelnut coffee. it’s fantastic
Reply
Posted May 19, 2008 at 12:55 pm
Destiny
1 comment

Mmm… that sounds so well and good. I’ve yet to find an excellent source of Coffee here. We just have the normal and usual starbucks and Tim Horton’s. I need to find myself a great place like White Coffee…
Reply
Posted May 21, 2008 at 5:06 am
- Matt
  1 comment
  
  I am guessing that you are in Canada. You can get the Oldtown 3 in 1 at Yuan Ming in Mississauga in Canada. Maybe the other oriental stores in Canada carry them too.
  Reply
  Posted August 13, 2010 at 1:19 am
  - Veron
    3438 comments
    
    Thanks for sharing Matt!
    Reply
    Posted August 13, 2010 at 8:55 pm
KM
1 comment

yup, their instant 3-in-1 coffee simply the best i ever tasted.
i was so happy to spot them at a super mart near my place…but i hate it when there’s only 15 sachets in a pack, so every time i have to buy at least 6 to 8 packs….that’s just lasting me about a month, as i share them with my hubby and colleagues.
Reply
Posted May 22, 2008 at 1:17 pm
annabel
1 comment

hi, i was browsing thru and came across ur webby, i enjoy ur food review entries. I want to suggest a new place that opened up recently,Its at upper thomson,for choc lovers esp.Its called cheeky choc. I want to try it out but i would love to read up on the place first. It did appear in the sunday times today but not much was written on its menu.
so do let us in on the menu,what is worth having and if the place is good.. thanks !
Reply
Posted May 25, 2008 at 1:36 pm
Veron
3438 comments

J: Oh I love the aroma of the Old Town hazelnut coffee! Each time I open a sachet, I would simply let the wonderful whiffs assail my nostrils. It’s fantastic alright!
Destiny: The traditional oriental coffee tastes quite different from the Starbucks kind. You gotta try it someday!
KM: My family and I run out of Old Town coffee very frequently, too. Like you, we find 15 sachets too few. Each time we would stock up on a few packets of it!
annabel: I have been wanting to check out the new Thomson “Village” too! There are a good number of restaurants and cafés there. When I do pay a visit, I would definitely take note of Cheeky Chocolates.
Reply
Posted May 28, 2008 at 10:28 pm
Eileen
1 comment

Today wen to the outlet at Big Splash for lunch with 3 frens. Their food came and i still waiting. Check with 2 waiters and finally captain. Was told still need to wait after 30 mins wait. Finally he asked me : DO YOU WANT TO CANCEL YOUR ORDER ???” Was so shock and angry to hear such comments from the captain ! They have cocked up the order and made me waited and ask me cancel order !!!
Do not go there again !!!!!!!!!
Reply
Posted June 20, 2008 at 4:22 pm
Veron
3438 comments

That sounds like a big screw-up on their part. Usually when my partner’s food has arrived, I wouldn’t let myself wait more than 10 minutes for mine. From experience, it’s better to ask them early (just in case they really have missed our orders) rather than to keep ourselves waiting.
Reply
Posted June 22, 2008 at 12:15 pm
Miss
1 comment

The service of old town east coast was suck. They don’t even let us know when my order no more i had waited for half an hour. What is that and the staff service is super bad.
Reply
Posted June 30, 2008 at 2:05 am
curious
1 comment

hi! just wanna ask, the outlet is quite big. what else do they sell besides coffee/usual kopitiam meals? whats in the 1st and 2nd storey?
Reply
Posted July 12, 2008 at 2:00 am
Angry Customer
1 comment

This place sucks!!! They have attitude problem, especially when the queue is long. Somebody told me that they are dog friendly so we bought our pets there, but they refused to set the table outside the restaurant, the reason is ” THEY ARE BUSY”. So what if you have good food and nice environment, your staff don’t provide good service. My friends and I are sure not going back again.
Reply
Posted August 13, 2008 at 12:49 pm
- Diana
  2 comments
  
  Worst service attitude! Which seems to be consistent throughout the various outlets I’ve Been to.Indeed! I went to the east coast, suntec, white sands outlets. Service sucks!!!! Arrogance beyond words! Food is so-so but overpriced! I’ll never ever go there again. I’ll rather support our own local brand YAh Kun!
  Reply
  Posted October 30, 2010 at 11:27 am
Carl
1 comment

My experience with East Coast branch was that the rendang chicken was uncooked though the gravy was nice.
Recently Bt timah just opened another branch and I was
tempted by the beautiful sign board. This time, the rendang
chicken was not tender. So, somehow a lot of effort required to improve quality of food
Reply
Posted September 4, 2008 at 2:43 pm
Veron
3438 comments

Wow, thanks for the warning, although I’m still inclined to try out the rendang chicken. I have seen yummy photos of it and if it does turn out nasty for me, I would be the first to blog about it.
Reply
Posted September 8, 2008 at 8:30 pm
eunice
10 comments

Whenever I am in Ipoh, I will surely visit the Oldtown cafe for nasi lemak, toast, coffee. Love them! I heard this Oldtown cafe at East Coast Park is opened by Jack Neo. I was there for a couple of times and would say that their nasi lemak is good but quite ex (+ service charge).
Have you visited Ipoh before? I have some photos taken from there. I love Ipoh food, best! Going Ipoh this Thurs, will eat n eat!
My posts on Ipoh during Chinese New Year 08. =)
Reply
Posted September 23, 2008 at 1:52 pm
Veron
3438 comments

No I have not visited Ipoh before, although friends over there have been encouraging me to go! Looking at your photos and travelogues, I think i would make the trip soon!
The Old Town café at East Coast Park is partially owned by Mark Lee, although I’m not so sure whether Jack Neo has a stake. It made a cameo appearance in their latest movie! Haha :)
Reply
Posted September 24, 2008 at 1:07 pm
LAi
1 comment

u can leave any complaints to this site..we’ll make sure it’ll be overcome.
oldtownsgteam.blogspot.com
Reply
Posted September 28, 2008 at 5:50 pm