Lam Yeo Coffee Powder Factory

Humble, Warm and Friendly service? Not. Consistently Crass and Dismissive? You bet. By all means, come here to stock up on cheap coffee beans but just be thankful if you get treated in a civil manner cos the default treatment I've got over the past 7 years, 50% of the time is either rough and gruff stares from the two oldies or on good days, she smiles or he nods. Now the son is another story altogether. He's doing you a favour by even dignifying your presence and bagging the beans if he isn't berating some other family member. Lucky if he graces you with his presence in their old, "charming", run-down shophouse. Essentially, this is a business that's milking the nostalgic element of their brand that's basic, bare-bones and worn around the edges cos I reckon, they're simply too cheap to renovate the space they operate in. Crazy thing is you can't help but feel like you're being a pain asking to buy their coffee beans, god forbid having them prepare the grounds for you. It's done with frowns, scowls and sarcastic words exchanged between themselves. If not for their inexpensive offerings relative to other roasters around, I would've flipped the bird at them on the numerous occasions they spoke in dialect and mandarin thinking I didn't understand. This family only knows how to acknowledge your presence when it's time for you to settle the bill. Guess we all know why they exist. For the sake of tradition or just plain ol' greed hiding in plain sight. If you package their behaviour as part of the 'charm' of their old-school business, I applaud your naivety and your 'fresh' perspective but IMO, this is simply an ugly side of humanity on full display.

My friend recommended me that I should try their coffee. I have very little knowledge of coffee, so I asked for 2 bags of Bali beans and a bag of Bali powder. I choose Bali solely based on the look. I was told that the one I chose was roasted with sugar, so not recommended to grind at home. Now, this is an superb service. I instantly respected the honesty and respect the shop personnel showed. I love the atmosphere of the shop, the service I received, and of course, the quality of coffee. Out of my respect, I took photos without store personnel. Check the place yourself. This shop is an absolute jem. I cannot tell you enough how rare this kind of shop is nowadays. I wish them all the best and I will go back multiple times for sure.

Happened to pass by this very old-school coffee roaster. The heritage looking shop looks like it has a lot of history, and I believe their coffee notes must be quite interesting. Looking forward to dropping by again to make a purchase.

Buying coffee beans is here an experience! It’s almost like the place is stuck in time and retains much of its yesteryear charm. It’s a lovely experience and I’ll definitely be back to try other coffee beans. Probably can try for 5 years if I choose 2 types per visit. 😂 Long may your business continue to flourish! ❤️ Support local. 🇸🇬

I recently purchased coffee beans from Lam Yeo, but unfortunately the in-store experience was underwhelming, as the staff seemed insufficiently trained. I found myself selecting bags at random, which was far from ideal. I now prefer the convenience of online ordering with delivery, where reviews help guide me toward quality coffee.

Past by this old school local roastery selling variety of coffee beans. Uncle knows his beans and recommended a bag of mexico beans for classic nutty flavour. $12.50 for 250gm beans

Great small coffee roaster! Good selection with new beans coming in regularly. I had the Sumatra which was about $10 for a 200 gram back. (similar to the black pouch seen in the foreground of the blue mountain coffee picture)

Have been getting my coffee beans here for many years now. Prices are very reasonable & sellers are friendly, they also provide good information on various types of coffee beans available.

Great old school coffee powder place. Got my Nanyang Coffee powder fix. Long way to go to buy Coffee but I hate Star$$$s. Good till my next trip!

Very cool old school coffee bean store on Balestier open since 1959 (since 1960 in current location). They actually have a very cool website, but everything else is old school, from the way they will pack up the beans to how the old couple will wrote down your purchases for inventory in a notebook. As the other review noted, the owner has two types of beans here: blends for local coffee and single-origin beans. I purchased 250g of Guatemala beans for half the price of other places (only $10 SGD!), and the quality is much better than places like SBUX. I don't know why I didn't come here earlier, as I drink a lot of coffee at home. Will also have to try some of the other single origin beans from South America, Africa and Asia as well, and perhaps one day, I might even try to learn how to make a proper kopi as well :).

Coffee. Not for here. You buy beans and take them away. He's got two types here: the local roasts and the non-local roasts. For the local stuff, it's the over roasted with sugar and butter that makes the coffee, well, require condensed milk and evaporated powder. For the non-local stuff, he's got some pretty interesting single-origin stuff and it's pretty fresh by look and smell. And he knows his stuff...he was so happy to talk coffee and the differences between beans and roasts. I told him he should go sell to the snazzy Wheeler's Yard around the block. He chuckled. So I picked up some Guatemalan beans (which he ran through his mill for me because my apartment doesn't have a grinder) and it's fantastic. He'll probably hold the spot of my favorite coffee bean purveyor.