Joo Chiat/Katong
Joo Chiat/Katong
4
About
Immerse yourself in Peranakan culture on your visit to Katong and Joo Chiat, and also enjoy its wealth of good food and cultural heritage.
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Neighbourhood: Marine Parade
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4.0
4.0 of 5 bubbles108 reviews
Excellent
40
Very good
52
Average
15
Poor
1
Terrible
0

JellyB
Singapore, Singapore897 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2017 • Solo
Joo Chiat is low key and laid back. This is where the locals shop and eat. Just walk along Joo Chiat road to appreciate the people who live and work here.

I love the architecture, I love the spread of food. I love the local grocers, shops and the ambience.

Starting from the Changi road end of Joo Chiat road, you can watch popiah wrappers being made. 5B Pte Ltd sells loads of kitchen ware. Fun just to nose around. Along 5B, there is a very popular Malay eatery.

I love the fact Joo Chiat has its own vibe. It didn't try to be cool but it is the eclectic community that makes Joo Chiat interesting for me. There are local tours available. Some even offering a tour and tea at a local home. (It's on my bucket list).

You can stop at the local bakery for curry puffs and epok epok. Fancy some simple Vietnamese fare, we have got it here too.

Half way along Joo Chiat is where Joo Chiat Road meets Koon Seng road. Lots of people pause here for a photo stop. But I stop here for a different reason - the Duck rice/kway chap stall at Dunman hawker centre. Also nearby is the Thunder tea rice cafe of which I am a huge fan.

As you make your way towards the East Coast Road end of Joo Chiat, the shops and cafes get a little more chic. Cat Socrates has a cute shop cat and a good place to search for unusual and 'Singaporean' gifts.

Need a chocolate cake fix, Awfully Chocolate's dark chocolate cake is my go to. They serve food too but I am not a fan. Don't forget to check more great shops along East Coast road. Rumah Bebe is popular and worth a quick look. They sell Peranakan clothing and beaded shoes but they have a very pretty shop. Glory catering is another place I would stop for some grub. I like their popiah.

So this is my intro to Joo Chiat. I feel bad for highlighting some places and missing out others. Truth is, I'm always revisiting in the hope of discovering something new.

Hope you will have fun exploring this little treasure. xoxo
Written 12 April 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Karen R
Baltimore, MD419 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2014 • Solo
On my last weekend in Singapore, I visited Joo Chiat and I can kick myself for waiting so long. I took the MRT to Paya Labar, then wandered down Joo Chiat Rd to East Coast Rd. Along the way I wandered through a Malay market where I found rugs, pillows and fabrics and thought what a great place for interior designers to explore. I saw the Peranakan houses and the temples others have written about. What I enjoyed most was seeing everyday life - people doing their grocery shopping and enjoying luch with friends and family. And I ate a wonderful popiah! I left feeling that I had only scratched the surface and really hope my travels take me back here again.
Written 13 July 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Borisbear
Singapore, Singapore61 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2013 • Friends
A walk through the Joo Chiat area is a walk through an amazing part of Singapore. Intensive, tasteful and culturally sensitive renovations have been and continue to be made to the plethora of old Singapore houses in the area. What is specially worth seeing?
Start from Payar Lebar MRT Station and wander down to the Joo Chiat centre. It is a Malay area. Thankfully, the old Malay Village has been demolished and a new 'attraction' is planned. No worries: the living Joo Chiat is much more interesting to see and experience. The textile markets and the wet market are fascinating.
Then wander down Joo Chiat Road, exploring the various side lanes and streets. What to find?
The renovated shop houses especially in Tembeling Road, Joo Chiat PLace, Koon Seng Road,
Kuan In Tng Tmeple (Tembeling Road near cnr Jok Chiat Lane,
The old Majid Khalid Mosque in Joo Chiat Road,
Si Senpaga Vinayager Temple (Ceylon Road) which dates back to the 1850s,
and of course the main road itself (Joo Chiat Road) which has some superb examples of old buildings, tastefully and carefully renovated to look spanking new!
And if you need a rest, there are some wonderful cafes and restaurants. There is even a backpackers place (The Betel Box) at 200 Joo Chiat Road which serves reasonable coffee and peranakan food, and also offer walking tours.
For my money though, if you want something different, walk over the the Eurasian Center in Ceylon Road on the corner of Dunman Road. Excellent bar and restaurant offering fusion Portuguese/ Asian food. Arguably the best in Singapore. And on the fourth floor is an interesting (free) museum of the history of Eurasians in Singapore.
Then when you have finished that, wander back to Geylang Road and stop off at Haig Road Market. There, at the 69 Soy Stall, you can find the best soy bean curd on Singapore. I know, the original ones that don't add coffee mate are still the best, but when it comes to a cool, refreshing dessert, this is the best in Singapore.
Joo Chiat? In a word, wonderful.
Written 16 March 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

ThePr0fe550r
Shanghai, China85 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2019
When you read about the area "...cradle of Paranakan culture...traditional foods...culture...", we haven't seen nothing of the sorts. Maybe 1-2 places that can be classified as such, but it boils down to a few colorful houses in 2-3 streets, with the rest of the area occupied by the mix of typical western style bars and mom and pop food shops that definitely do not scream "Paranakan culture".
Written 29 November 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Anna R
Adelaide, Australia612 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2017 • Solo
If you are interested in local colour, shophouse heritage architecture, unusual shops and local delicacies (such as Peranakan kueh - sweets), spend a few hours exploring Joo Chiat Rd and neighbouring streets. Worth the trip if only to taste the exquisite curry puffs at the tiny Mastura Bakery.
Hope my photos will speak for themselves show you the delights of the area.
Written 23 March 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

kim buay p
Singapore, Singapore13,011 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2021
Joo Chiat Road is named after Chew Joo Chiat, a famous Chinese businessman of Peranakan descent, who was the owner of most of the land in the area around Joo Chiat Road.
In 1993, the area around Joo Chiat Road was gazetted as a conservation district. As a result, many straits eclectic style shophouses have been preserved.
In 2011, the vicinity surrounding Joo Chiat Road was declared Singapore's first Heritage Town with its rich Peranakan culture and food. Nowadays, Joo Chiat is known as a multicultural food enclave. On the pedestrian walkway along Joo Chiat Road, there are specially crafted Joo Chiat Heritage tiles with metal plaques, indicating the significance of this area.

A good place to meet friends to start a walk here would be the taxi stand at Joo Chiat Complex facing the Joo Chiat Road. The following highlights some buildings and murals to take note of:
1) 95 Joo Chiat Road is Kway Guan Huat popiah skin and Kueh Pie Tee maker since 1938. Here is also the first mural reflecting the popiah skin maker and the ingredients used for making popiah.

2) Along Joo Chiat Terrace, late shophouse-style residential terrace nos. 49 and 59 are striking for its paintwork, pilaster with flower motifs, floral dentils, ornate second storey front façade, colourful floor tiles along the five-foot way.
No 69 is the Intan, home to a Peranakan collector and private tours can be booked.

3) At the junction of Joo Chiat Terrace and Everitt Road is a large mural by Ernest Zacharevic showing two children having an imaginary battle on painted steeds and battling with a paint roller and mop. Two of the shophouses next to the mural have rather unique tiles below its windows. These tiles were from England depicting a bird-of-paradise and a peacock.

4) No 89-123 Joo Chiat Place is the architectural award winning, 18 late shophouse-style terrace units known as the Lotus. They were built in the 1930s and the pintu pagar allows privacy and better ventilation. The Chinese symbolism in the wooden carvings of the pintu pagar: a crane and a lotus. The crane represents longevity and the lotus symbolised purity of heart and mind.

5) No. 125 Joo Chiat Place is a 1920s Transitional-Style shophouse, formerly was The Lucky Book Store. The fading Lucky Book Store signage along the five-foot way tell of its past life.

6) No 143 Joo Chiat Place is a Rococo style corner shophouse with gorgeous festoons, baskets of flowers, egg and dart mouldings etc painted in white against a grey building which makes it outstanding.

7) No 26 Mangis Road is the only Anglo-Malay house in the vicinity. The pediment has the date in which it was built. It is a delightful house.

8) At junction of Tembling Road and Koon Seng Road, another Rococo style shophouses with the cartouche on the pediment depicting the date of building and several panels below the windows showing mouding of Eight Immortals symbols.
9) Koon Seng Road with its two rows of very instagrammable, colourful Peranakan houses. The third mural is along the alley just before Joo Chiat Road. It is titled High Tide.

10} Joo Chiat Road has its share of gorgeous shophouses but most of it are used for businesses such as restaurants, boutique hotels etc. No 227 is "A Vintage Tale" which sells vintage dresses sourced from all over the world. Nearby is Petit Pain Bakery well known for its yummy croissants and there is a shop selling all kinds of cane furniture.

11) The 4th Mural is titled “A History of healing” painted on the side wall of Scanteak. This building used to house the Joo Chiat Maternal and Child Health Clinic. After the World War II, the clinic served the public and this mural pays homage to the importance of this building in the past.
Written 16 January 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Mriganke T
Mumbai, India312 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2017 • Solo
Bit about the background of this place-

This was place was once filled with coconut plantations and used as a weekend retreat by wealthy city dwellers, Katong developed into a residential suburb by the early 20th century. It became populated by a growing English-educated middle class, including Peranakans and Eurasians.The neighbouring Joo Chiat area is named after Chew Joo Chiat, a wealthy Chinese landowner in the early 20th-century. The area’s identity is especially shaped by its unique pre-war architecture – colourful two-storey shophouses and terrace houses with ornate facades, intricate motifs and ceramic tiles.

The plantations have since gone, but you can still admire this vibrant neighbourhood’s many well-preserved Peranakan shophouses and a scattering of colonial bungalows. I was staying at orchid road and faced lot of difficulty trying to come by train or bus. Suggest you take a taxi if not going as a part of guided tour. Suggested best you go with guided tour only then this place will make more sense than just colourful houses.

Written 11 March 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Susan D
Perth, Australia2,150 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2016 • Couples
We caught the MRT to Paya Lebar with the idea to walk from there to Marine Parade. Upon alighting we noticed that there were a number of coffee shops around the station where people were having breakfast and we wished that we hadn't already eaten.

There is a big construction site right next to the station and this caused us some confusion with regard to the route we should take to get to Joo Chiat Road. After a couple of false starts, we found that we had to walk around the site and down Paya Lebar Road.

We then turned left into Geylang Road passing local shops and stalls selling household goods and clothing, and then turned right into Joo Chiat Road.

About half the way down Joo Chiat Road, on the right hand side on a corner, we came across a local eatery called "Tin Yeang Restaurant". This was a very basic, local place filled with local people having breakfast and without a westerner in sight. We ordered Kaya Toast and Kopi which only cost us a few dollars and it was delicious. Although the person who served us didn't speak English, we were able to make ourselves understood.

Refreshed, we continued our walk down Joo Chiat Road, making little forays into side streets to take some photos of the restored Peranakan shop houses.

It was very hot and we were glad when we finally came to Marine Parade. Before we set out we had thought that we'd like to walk to East Coast Park from here, however we were far too hot and tired so we caught the No. 36 bus back to the city centre from the bus stop across the road from the Mercure Roxy Hotel.

The bus was very crowded and although I was lucky enough to get the last seat, my daughter had to stand for most of the way back to Orchard Road. The journey took about 30 minutes and wasn't at all pleasant.

I had thought about staying in this area on my next visit to Singapore, however the thought of having to put up with the uncomfortable bus journey every time I wanted to go into the centre of the city has made me think that I'll wait until the new MRT line comes into operation.

There's so much to see in this area that I think I could return time and again and still find plenty to interest me.
Written 10 April 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Oceandweller7
Larkspur, Colorado1,978 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2014 • Couples
If you are into history and and old style Singaporean architecture, then this is a great time for exploration. This area was convenient to my hotel and I wanted to not take a cab to other more expensive parts of the city which have similar history. I found all of the quaint shops and restaurants (live frogs outside the Chinese eateries) interesting and great for photo opportunities.
Written 3 February 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jan E
Singapore, Singapore640 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2014 • Friends
A really gr8 place to wander around .... very beautiful and colourful Indian (Sri Senpaga Vinayagar) and Chinese (Kuan Im Tng) temples.... restaurant provision shops, some pretty residential places with wooden shutters and "saloon" doors. Had a good Vietnamese lunch too (Long Phung, 159 Joo Chiat Rd). I am resident in Singapore and have done a number of "exploring round SG” days recently but this has been my favourite so far - so much to see.... fully intend to revisit...
Written 14 April 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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