Malaysia's cult-favourite Choon Kee Hainanese Coffee has a pop-up in Singapore, here's my honest review of its drinks

Those who frequent Malaysia may have come across Choon Kee Hainanese Coffee, which hails from Taiping in Perak. 

The brand is popular for its unique drinks, especially its Barley Kopi Teh. 

Eager to try the drinks on offer but have little time to go to Malaysia to do so? You're in luck because the cult-favourite brand is having its first-ever pop-up in Singapore for one week. 

This will be held at Great Nanyang's 111 Somerset outlet from Aug 23 to Sept 2. 

While I'm not a huge coffee consumer, Choon Kee Hainanese Coffee's interesting drink menu piqued my interest and I wanted to see what the hype was all about. 

There are three different series of drinks to choose from — the Barley Series, Choon Kee Special Series and Choon Kee Mojito Series. 

From the Barley Series, I got the famous Barley Kopi Teh ($6.80). The other two available drinks were Barley Kopi Kaw ($5.80) and Barley Teh Superb ($5.80). 

I was expecting the coffee to overpower the barley since barley generally has quite a light flavour. 

So I was surprised to find that the barley aspect was quite pronounced and the drink was pretty well-balanced. 

There are two options from the Choon Kee Special Series — Hainanese Tea ($5.80), which is a blend of black tea and coffee, and Kopi Teh Milo ($6.80). 

Because of my love for milo, I got the Kopi Teh Milo. 

This was a pretty interesting drink. I initially thought the three strong flavours would clash and be overwhelming on the palate. 

But as it turned out, they blended nicely together, and I personally feel that it's a great perk-me-up drink for breakfast. 

Finally, there was the Haikou Breeze, which I was admittedly the most excited about because I love fizzy drinks. 

The drink was inspired by the popular Himalayan Salt candy and, I have to say, they did an excellent job of replicating the flavours. 

I was, however, a little confused because there was supposed to be Yakult in the drink but I couldn't taste any.

Regardless, the zesty, salty elements from the sea salt and lemon were enough for me. 

Diners can also pair their drinks with food from Great Nanyang like their famed Traditional Kaya and Butter Toast or Curry Chicken. 

Over 7 decades of history 

Choon Kee Hainanese Coffee was established in 1955 and started out as a humble roadside stall. 

Thanks to its creative and unique drinks, the brand soon became popular with locals and foreigners alike. 

Currently, it has a flagship outlet at Taiping, Malaysia, and runs frequent pop-ups at Kuala Lumpur bazaars like Pingmin Market and Halo Market.

While it can be daunting to take over the reins of such an established brand, third-generation owner Foo Swee Yong is handling it pretty well. 

In an interview with AsiaOne, the 41-year-old said that he feels "no pressure" with regard to handling the business. 

This is despite having to compete with other brands to create more innovative and creative drinks. 

"It's not that stressful," he said. "We just keep trying inventing new things and adding a modern twist to traditional drinks." 

Swee Yong shared that he first helped his parents out at the stall when he was just 12 years old. 

He started out with washing the dishes, and when he was 17, they taught him how to prepare drinks. 

And now, he's running the business. 

Swee Yong told us that even in Malaysia, Singapore customers often visit his stores to try his drinks. 

So this pop-up is an avenue for him to test the market and see if there is a chance he can bring the brand permanently to Singapore. 

"Hopefully, we can open an outlet here," Swee Yong said. 

Address: 111 Somerset Rd, #01-09, Singapore 238164
Opening hours: Daily, 7.30am to 8.30pm

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melissateo@asiaone.com