There’s a hip new kopitiam in Bukit Merah with beers on tap, DIY zi char and, most interesting of all, an air-conditioned toilet that wouldn’t look out of place in a cafe. Jio Kopitiam opened in May this year and is run by three pals: Jayden Lim, Jurrel Toh and Zac Goh, all 30.
TOILET WITH AIR-CON & ILLUMINATED MIRRORS
Lim laughed when we bought up their toilet and said: “We aim for our toilet to be the most atas coffeeshop toilet in Singapore.” This was after noticing that most kopitiam toilets were “dirty, slippery and smelly”.
He explained that they “went to shopping malls in Orchard Road, and realised that people tend to have a mindset like, ‘Wah, ION’s toilet is very clean’, and somehow they won’t dirty the place, unlike at kopitiams”.
While their loo isn’t quite as luxe as a high-end shopping mall’s washroom, it’s still a huge step above regular kopitiam toilets. It’s equipped with an air-conditioner at its entrance, a toilet bowl, a urinal, and two sinks with neon-lit mirrors.
BUILD-YOUR-OWN ZI CHAR & CLAYPOT DISHES
Air-conditioned toilet aside, Jio Kopitiam has also been gaining some notice on social media for its unique concept stall (one of five different stalls within the coffee shop), called Wok Hawker. It serves “modern” zi char, where customers can pick their desired ingredients like meats or seafood mala-style, and have them fried together in different sauces like spicy mala, garlic, and black bean.
The stall also serves claypot dishes, and is popular for its cook-it-yourself claypot la la soup (S$38.80), which comes with 1kg worth of clams.
Jio Kopitiam is located at 107 Jalan Bukit Merah, Singapore 160107. Open daily except Wed, 7am to 12am.
This story was originally published in 8Days.
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