If you have walked from Paya Lebar MRT to Paya Lebar Quarter, you may have taken note of this new café in the corner.
Morphine Coffee already has an eye-catching name with its use of “morphine” (taken in directed medication to remove pain).
This may look like another next-door coffee place, but how they brew their coffee is varied from the usual typical practices. Their drinks could therefore taste different from the norm.
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In terms of pricing, there are some inexpensive drinks such as the Cold Brew Coffee O ($2.10), Hot Coffee O ($1.80), Coffee C ($2.00) and “Tea C” ($1.80), slightly cheaper than the average chain store.
Also available are other specialty drinks such as Specialty Black Cold Brew No. 18 ($5.50), Iced Ginger Ale ($5.00), Hojicha Latte ($5.00), and Matcha Latte ($5.50).
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Its prime location makes it a good place for a grab-and-go. There are no seats around, but you can grab one of those in PLQ’s delegated public sitting area.
However, during my first visit I ordered the usual Coffee C ($2.00) and thought that something was missing.
If you wanted a perk-me-up and did not get any explanations (or read this), you may just wonder if something is ‘wrong’ with the drink because it does taste different.
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First things first, they are leaving out the sugar, margarine, corn etc. in the roasting, so as to bring out a more natural coffee flavour and taste in the traditional local coffee.
They also use a higher graded Robusta beans, which can be matched with the evaporated or condensed milk.
However, they recommend drinking the items straight black so that customers can appreciate them at its most natural state.
Even though there is an espresso machine in their store, their method of brewing is from filter and cold brew, so you won’t get that strong bitter coffee extraction flavour in any of their products.
Their rationale is that ”cold brewing brings out more flavour in the coffee as the coffee oils are not easily washed away when drowned in hot boiling water”.
Some customers could feel that the drink would be ”poh”, (“poh” in Hokkien means “thin”) or otherwise diluted.
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(Photo credit: Nicholas Tan @stormscape)
Their cold brewed Hojicha Latte ($5.00) and Matcha Latte ($5.50) in cute (some say photogenic) bottles, available in limited quantities.
Similarly, some people could find the drinks more diluted than usual, lacking the robustness and milkiness one would expect.
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The products of Morphine Coffee is likely to keep customers divided, but like their name, it is a bold step they are taking.
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Morphine Coffee
10 Paya Lebar Road, #01-K5, PLQ Plaza, Paya Lebar Quarter, Singapore 409057
Tel: +65 6802 2321
Opening Hours: 9am – 9:30pm (Mon – Fri), 10am – 10pm (Sat – Sun) (Soft launch opening hours)
Other Related Entries
Narrative Coffee Stand (Bras Basah Complex)
Starter Lab (Havelock Road)
Tiong Hoe Specialty Coffee (VivoCity)
Banchong Café (Kallang Junction)
PPP Coffee (Funan)
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