This article is about the traditional coffee shop found in Southeast Asia. For the former Malaysian sitcom series, see Kopitiam (TV series). For the food court chain, see Kopitiam (company).
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:
the term kopitiam in Malaysia is usually referred specifically to Malaysian Chinese coffee shops;
food in a kopitiam is usually exclusively Malaysian Chinese cuisine;[citation needed]
food courts and hawker centres are usually not referred to as kopitiams.
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 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 prepared to conform to Islamic dietary laws, 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'.
Singapore
Kopi tiams (coffee shops) 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. Traditional dishes from different ethnicities are usually available at kopitiams to encourage people from different ethnic backgrounds with different dietary habits to dine in a common place or even at a common table.[2]
Kopi (coffee) was created when Singapore started its development and had to cater to the needs of the European population – specifically their love for coffee.[3]
Kopitiam is also the name of a food court chain in Singapore.[4]
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 flat rice noodles (hor fun), sometimes cooked with eggs and cockles), Hokkien mee (yellow wheat noodles served with various seafood 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 fried anchovies).
Traditional Kopi O commonly served in Malaysia and Singapore
"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.[5] Former Too Phat member Malique has a song called "Cerita Kedai Kopi", satirizing the stereotype.
Kopitiam beverage terms
At kopi tiams, coffee and tea are usually ordered using a specific vernacular featuring terms from different languages. Coffee and tea can be tailored to suit the drinker's taste by using the following suffixes when ordering:
Pua sio: Hokkien - Means half hot - which gives you a drinkable, still warm Kopi/Tea. (Chinese: 半燒; pinyin: bàn shāo; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: poàⁿ-sio; lit. 'halfway to make warm')
These are typically chained together to customize a drink order: a "kopi si kosong" will result in a coffee with evaporated milk and no sugar. The syntax is “drink – milk – sugar – concentration – temperature”.
Examples
Kopi o = hot black coffee (with sugar)
Kopi o peng = iced black coffee (with sugar)
Kopi o kosong = hot black coffee (unsweetened)
Kopi o kosong peng = iced black coffee (unsweetened)
^"The Straits Times Interactive". straitstimes.com.
^Eng, Lai Ah; Leo, Collins, Francis; Brenda, Yeoh, Saw Ai (2012). "The Kopitiam in Singapore: An Evolving Story about Migration and Cultural Diversity". Migration and Diversity in Asian Contexts. doi:10.1355/9789814380461-011 – via Project MUSE.
^"Introduction to Singapore's Coffee Culture". Culturally.
^Menkhoff, Thomas (9 October 2012). "Why are kopitiam tables round?" (PDF). The Straits Times. p. A26.
^"23 Kopitiam Codewords to Order Drinks Like a Singaporean". sethlui.com. 18 March 2016.
Further reading
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kopi tiams.
Rowthorn, C.; Cohen, M.; Williams, C. (2008). Borneo. Ediz. Inglese. Lonely Planet Borneo. Lonely Planet. p. 43. ISBN978-1-74059-105-8. Retrieved 30 July 2016.
April 28, 2023
kopi, tiam, this, article, about, traditional, coffee, shop, found, southeast, asia, former, malaysian, sitcom, series, kopitiam, series, food, court, chain, kopitiam, company, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, t. This article is about the traditional coffee shop found in Southeast Asia For the former Malaysian sitcom series see Kopitiam TV series For the food court chain see Kopitiam company This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Kopi tiam news newspapers books scholar JSTOR September 2012 Learn how and when to remove this template message A kopitiam or kopi tiam Chinese 咖啡店 pinyin kafei dian Pe h ōe ji ko pi tiam lit coffee shop is a type of coffee shop mostly found in parts of Indonesia Malaysia Singapore Brunei and Southern Thailand patronised for meals and beverages and traditionally operated by the Chinese community of these countries The word kopi is an Indonesian and Malay 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 kaya plus coffee tea Horlicks and Milo A typical open air kopitiam in Singapore A more contemporary designed coffee shop outlet in Malaysia with various hawker stalls Contents 1 Malaysia 2 Singapore 3 Coffee shop talk 4 Kopitiam beverage terms 4 1 Examples 5 See also 6 References 7 Further readingMalaysia Edit 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 the term kopitiam in Malaysia is usually referred specifically to Malaysian Chinese coffee shops food in a kopitiam is usually exclusively Malaysian Chinese cuisine citation needed food courts and hawker centres are usually not referred to as kopitiams 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 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 prepared to conform to Islamic dietary laws 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 Singapore EditKopi tiams coffee shops 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 Traditional dishes from different ethnicities are usually available at kopitiams to encourage people from different ethnic backgrounds with different dietary habits to dine in a common place or even at a common table 2 Kopi coffee was created when Singapore started its development and had to cater to the needs of the European population specifically their love for coffee 3 Kopitiam is also the name of a food court chain in Singapore 4 Some of the popular kopi tiams in Singapore include Kim San Leng Killiney amp 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 flat rice noodles hor fun sometimes cooked with eggs and cockles Hokkien mee yellow wheat noodles served with various seafood 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 fried anchovies Traditional Kopi O commonly served in Malaysia and Singapore Coffee shop talk Edit 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 5 Former Too Phat member Malique has a song called Cerita Kedai Kopi satirizing the stereotype Kopitiam beverage terms EditAt kopi tiams coffee and tea are usually ordered using a specific vernacular featuring terms from different languages Coffee and tea can be tailored to suit the drinker s taste by using the following suffixes when ordering Kopi Malay Indonesian for coffee Teh Malay Indonesian Hokkien for tea O no milk from Hokkien Chinese 烏 pinyin wu Pe h ōe ji o lit to dye black Si or C with evaporated milk Hainanese dialect Chinese 鮮 pinyin xian lit fresh Siew dai less sugar milk Hockchew Fuzhou dialect citation needed Chinese 少甜 pinyin shǎo tian lit less sweetness Ga dai more sugar milk Chinese 加甜 pinyin jia tian lit to increase sweetness Kosong no sugar Malay for zero Kao extra thick Hokkien Chinese 厚 pinyin hou Pe h ōe ji kau lit thick Poh extra thin Hokkien Chinese 薄 pinyin bao Pe h ōe ji po h lit thin Di loh straight no water added Chinese 直落 pinyin zhi luo Pe h ōe ji ti t lo h lit directly into Peng with ice Hokkien Chinese 冰 pinyin bing Pe h ōe ji peng lit ice pe ŋ Pua sio Hokkien Means half hot which gives you a drinkable still warm Kopi Tea Chinese 半燒 pinyin ban shao Pe h ōe ji poaⁿ sio lit halfway to make warm Tarik Malay for pulled These are typically chained together to customize a drink order a kopi si kosong will result in a coffee with evaporated milk and no sugar The syntax is drink milk sugar concentration temperature Examples Edit Kopi o hot black coffee with sugar Kopi o peng iced black coffee with sugar Kopi o kosong hot black coffee unsweetened Kopi o kosong peng iced black coffee unsweetened Kopi Coffee with condensed milk Kopi peng iced coffee with condensed milk Kopi si hot coffee with evaporated milk and with sugar Kopi si kosong hot coffee with evaporated milk Kopi si peng iced coffee with evaporated milk with sugar Kopi sterng iced coffee extra smooth Chinese 咖啡順 pinyin ka fei shun lit coffee smooth Teh o hot tea without milk sweetened Teh o peng iced tea without milk sweetened Teh o kosong hot tea without milk unsweetened Teh o kosong peng iced tea without milk unsweetened Teh Tea with condensed milk Chinese 茶 pinyin cha Pe h ōe ji te lit tea Teh tarik Tea with condensed milk that is pulled poured from a height multiple times Teh peng iced milk tea sweetened Teh si hot tea with evaporated milk sweetened Teh si kosong hot tea with evaporated milk unsweetened Teh si peng iced tea with evaporated milk sweetened Tiao hee or tiao her Chinese tea Chinese 釣魚 pinyin diao yu Pe h ōe ji tio hi lit to angle fish Tat kiu Milo Chinese 踢球 pinyin ti qiu Pe h ōe ji that kiu lit to kick ball Cham mixed of coffee and tea sweetened Chinese 參 pinyin can Pe h ōe ji chham lit to join Cham peng iced version of Cham sweetened Yin yang Yuan yang same as Cham Chinese 鴛鴦 pinyin yuan yang lit male mandarin duck female mandarin duck Michael Jackson mixture of soy milk and grass jelly black and white Tai Ka Ho Horlicks means Hello everyone 6 Chinese 大家好 pinyin da jia hǎo Pe h ōe ji tai ka ho lit big family good See also Edit Drink portal Coffee portal Indonesia portal Malaysia portal Singapore portalPunjabi dhaba Indonesian cuisine Malaysian cuisine Singaporean cuisine Hawker centre Pasar malam night market Mamak stall Coffeeshop Cha chaan tengReferences Edit The Straits Times Interactive straitstimes com Eng Lai Ah Leo Collins Francis Brenda Yeoh Saw Ai 2012 The Kopitiam in Singapore An Evolving Story about Migration and Cultural Diversity Migration and Diversity in Asian Contexts doi 10 1355 9789814380461 011 via Project MUSE Introduction to Singapore s Coffee Culture Culturally Our Company Kopitiam Menkhoff Thomas 9 October 2012 Why are kopitiam tables round PDF The Straits Times p A26 23 Kopitiam Codewords to Order Drinks Like a Singaporean sethlui com 18 March 2016 Further reading Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kopi tiams Rowthorn C Cohen M Williams C 2008 Borneo Ediz Inglese Lonely Planet Borneo Lonely Planet p 43 ISBN 978 1 74059 105 8 Retrieved 30 July 2016 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Kopi tiam amp oldid 1147305889, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
