Coexist Coffee Co: Popular Cafe Opens New Outlet at Keong Saik
Every cafe wants to become “that Tiktok cafe,” but I’d say only a few truly break through every year and really go viral.
Coexist Coffee Co was one of them last year.
If you hadn’t heard of the name, you’d have surely seen the now iconic red and white interior all over social media.
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It went viral because it was so different from what most cafes in Singapore can offer concept wise, largely due to space constraints, and the fact that just about every cafe is located in a shophouse.
There’s only so much you can do with that after all.
Then Coexist Coffee said, “No, let’s be in the middle of nowhere at Bukit Batok, and take over a defunct canteen at the top floor of an industrial building and target the cafe in Korea vibes.”
It was an instant hit; a buzz about it that I felt reached many of my friends who don’t even keep up with new cafe openings the way I do.
Now enter Coexist Coffee’s second outlet, at the much more accessible location of Keong Saik this time.
Edit: In 2022, Coexist set up their third outlet— a beautiful industrial warehouse vibe at Paya Lebar, well worth checking out! Read the full review of the third outlet here.
For their second outlet, they decided to flip their concept entirely, and I’d wager, go in a much more typical direction.
Shophouse cafe located in an area already stuffed with cafes can be used to describe 95% of other brunch places in Singapore after all.
Instead of the sparse red and white minimalist colour tone, they’ve gone for a much darker scheme, and is now bathed in shades of blue.
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The waves in the interior are striking, though heavily um... inspired by Perception Coffee in Seoul.
The menu here is a lot more limited compared to their first outlet as well, which I’d wager could be a kitchen space issue.
Their first outlet impressed with interesting offerings such as the Chilli Crab Shakshuka.
Here, their Hummus Toast (S$10) is said to be the specialty, with sourdough topped with hummus, pesto, sun-dried tomatoes and sprinkled with dukkah.
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It was good as I’d expected, but it’s not going to leave anyone feeling stuffed.
Helpfully, they serve grain bowls here.
With 1 base, 1 protein, 2 greens, 1 topping and 1 sauce, you can expect to pay S$13.
Additional bases, proteins, and greens are S$3 per serving, and premium proteins are S$6 per serving.
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We tried a grain bowl as well, and it was fine.
I had an Iced Hojicha (S$6) which was reliably good.
At Keong Saik, it makes sense that they have a day and night menu, with a focus on cocktails in the evenings while keeping brunch items to the day.
And they likely wanted to go for a safer, sleeker interior to please the evening crowds as well.
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But in the process, I honestly feel they’ve lost their identity a little, with the first outlet being day and night conceptually (pun intended) from this one.
A simple rebranding would’ve gone a long way I suppose, or adding that two-toned colour scheme to the interior somehow.
However, I suspect most won’t mind or notice the difference between the two outlets unless you’re a cafe aficionado.
I like this new outlet, but it definitely didn’t leave as big of an impact as the first.
Read: Coexist Coffee Co— Hidden Rooftop Korean-Like Cafe at Bukit Batok
WHERE | 1 KEONG SAIK RD, #01-02, SINGAPORE 089109
