There’s a quiet revolution happening across Singapore’s café scene. Tucked away in the city’s slower neighbourhoods and HDB corridors, a growing number of home-based cafés are bypassing traditional brick-and-mortar F&B structures to redefine what it means to grab a cup of coffee.
Much of the home café boom can be attributed to a set of favourable business regulations which allow small-scale home cafés serving low-risk foods like coffee and bakes to operate without a license. This provision has allowed young entrepreneurs—many of whom maintain their full-time jobs alongside home café ventures—to dip their toes into the creativity of the F&B world while avoiding the anchors of high rent and regulatory requirements. The result is a vibrant ecosystem of home cafés taking root across the city’s HDB living rooms, backyards, and shared spaces.
For many, the appeal of a home café lies in its pared-down approach, inviting you to slow down and appreciate the human side of your usual grab-and-go latte routine. Commercial cafés have much to offer in the way of convenience, seamless service, and polished interiors, and many home café owners will insist that their ventures aren’t meant to replace these qualities. Home cafés instead offer affordable comfort and the warm touch of authenticity. Read on for GRAZIA Singapore’s pick of the best home cafés serving up quality brews and genuine hospitality.
FOR YOUR CLASSIC CAFFEINE FIX
Knead Kopi
The duo behind Knead Kopi launched the venture with a goal that was close to their hearts: spending more time at home with co-founder Rachel Neo’s grandmother, who had shown early signs of dementia. This heartfelt mission pushed them to move into what they identified as a clear gap in the home café market: while most home-based cafés specialised in iced lattes and matcha, Neo and her boyfriend noticed that few went the route of classic Singaporean kopi stall fare. What resulted is a charming spot in Bukit Timah that serves up classic Singapore breakfasts like kaya toast and soft boiled eggs, and whose brews are as strong as their family ties.
Knead Kopi is located at 7 Watten Rise, Singapore 287290.
Brewprint Coffee
Brewprint has made a name for itself in the home café scene, cropping up on almost every roundup of the best home-based food ventures in Singapore. The Tampines-based café is operated by a sibling duo out of an HDB flat, and offers a series of flavoured lattes, teas, iced matchas, and rotating baked goods. Make sure to pre-order your beverages, and keep an eye out for their opening hours on their Instagram.
Brewprint Coffee is located at Block 285, Tampines Street 22, Lift B, Singapore 520285.
