Meet Denise Lum | Owner of Maxi Coffee Bar, Singapore

We had the good fortune of connecting with Denise Lum and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Denise, what inspires you?
Fellow business owners across the spectrum of industries, “hustling” through the pandemic in the most creative of ways, all while running their businesses with authenticity and integrity.

I’m also inspired by the faces of our guests, which light up when they try a particularly interesting coffee we have on offer or one that just hits the spot when they need it the most. It keeps us going with our brand of daily hospitality.

What should our readers know about your business?
Maxi Coffee Bar started life as a hole-in-the-wall coffee bar, my little “education” in the F&B industry after leaving the corporate world. It was terrifying and incredibly humbling at the start – nothing in my previous life had prepared me for the operational skill sets needed for this industry. I’ve always been allergic to asking for help, but the generosity and support from friends, neighbours and folk in the industry was overwhelming. I knew then and there that I would be in this industry for good, and committed to making this a sustainable career for my team as well.

Fast forward almost four years and Maxi has moved to slightly (!) bigger digs down the road. We are still a quirky, high energy, coffee-focused space. Coffee is the language through which we build our community, and we have the unique privilege of seeing our guests almost every day. Many of the Maxi regulars have become firm friends, and we have also had so much fun collaborating with our neighbours and friends on a whole host of popups – everything from pottery workshops to fried chicken sandwiches have come out from the Maxi space, we just want to find different means of bringing the community together. In the future, we hope to explore other means (outside the realm of coffee) but always true to our brand of daily hospitality.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I may be a little biased but I honestly feel the Ann Siang neighbourhood (which is where we’re very fortunately located) and its vicinity has some of the best spots in the city. Start the day with a coffee at Maxi, but save some caffeination for local kopi and kaya toast at Tong Ah on Keong Saik Road – our local coffee (or “kopi”) is very different from the typical cafe offering but equally delicious. A lot of these local coffee shops have been around for decades, and Tong Ah is a local institution.

Lunch would definitely be at Chinatown Complex Hawker Centre, possibly the largest one in Singapore (with a wet market in the basement) – my go-to meal there is Lian He Ben Ji Claypot Rice, but you’re really going to be spoilt for choice.. Walk it off by wandering the surrounding streets, the Buddha Tooth Relic temple (which has a zen garden on the roof!) and if you’ve worked up an appetite for dessert, our neighbour Tong Heng is known for its Cantonese pastries.

This neighbourhood is ripe for a bar crawl, me? I would start at No Sleep Club on Keong Saik Road for espresso martinis (fun fact: they started life at Maxi after dark, with owner Jun serving her inventive cocktails out of our 121 sq ft space), then natural wine bars Le Bon Funk or Fool for some juice and food, ending off down the stretch at Offtrack on North Canal Road for more killer cocktails and live music.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My co-owner Joy, who literally keeps the wheels of our business turning with her craft and discipline, She sees the side of things I don’t see and keeps me accountable through it all.

Our talented team at Maxi who make our dreams possible 🙂

Website: maxicoffeebar@gmail.com

Instagram: @maxi.coffeebar

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/maxi.coffeebar