Common Man Coffee Roasters: New Outlet at a Heritage Shophouse in Joo Chiat

Common Man Coffee Roasters is not new to Singapore, having operated out of it’s flagship store at Martin Rd since 2013. Eight years later, you’ll find them brewing at Stanley St— and as of June 2021, their third branch has just sprouted up at Joo Chiat Rd.

Saturated with cafes, the Joo Chiat / Katong neighbourhood is absolutely bustling, but instead of the area that sees C Cafe, Homeground Coffee, Sinpopo, Little Farms etc. just steps away from each other, the new Common Man outlet lies on the opposite end of Joo Chiat Rd, which is relatively quieter.

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Located at the corner where Joo Chiat Ln meets Joo Chiat Rd, Common Man has found themselves some prime real estate.

The heritage building is striking, with intricate architectural flourishes and Common Man’s eye-catching blue awning.

This Joo Chiat outpost is an airy, spacious shop floor that faces both streets— letting plenty of light in with ample seats in and outdoors.

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Decor here is eclectic and industrial, where blue window frames meet wooden furniture and marble counter tops.

The walls are stacked with shelves of coffee beans and other merchandise for sale, and light fittings of five bulbs hang from the concrete ceiling.

There’s a lot going on everywhere you look— a stark contrast to the white minimalist cafes that have entered the scene as of late.

While I expected it to be full house when we visited on a Sunday, we didn’t have to wait longer than a few minutes for a table to be free, due to the stormy weather that day perhaps.

As you walk in through the doors, you’ll find bakes just next to the coffee counter.

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Over on the menu, there is a hearty breakfast selection that is served all day, and lunch plates are available from 10am to 5:30pm.

We had the Umami Mushroom Avocado Toast (S$22), which came with a mix of oyster and maitake mushrooms, red onions and topped with togarashi, a Japanese spice seasoning.

The flavours were lovely, and every element of this dish worked well together.

The texture of the bread was interesting, where one might expect sourdough toast.

Common Man’s take on this dish, however, featured a chewy dough not unlike a thick crust pizza or focaccia slice.

I liked it though, and I thought it was an inspired choice.

Next, we had the Smash Burger (S$28).

I was intrigued by the house made ‘crispy on the outside, juicy inside’ beef patty, which raised my expectations.

It was.. fine. Nice, but nothing mind blowing.

Served with a side of beetroot BBQ sauce, the taste of BBQ was very subtle, and made for a pleasant condiment that went well with the burger.

The bun was nice and soft too.

We had the Flat White (S$6) and Iced Latte (S$7. 50) which were reliably good, albeit on the milkier side of things, especially the iced latte.