Mad Roaster: Ex-part time lawyer sells homemade brioche & coffee at Amoy Street Food Centre

If you work in the Telok Ayer area and you’re looking to grab a cup of coffee, Mad Roaster at Amoy Street Food Centre is the place to be. Not only do they serve a great cup of coffee, part of the proceeds from every cup of coffee sold goes to refugees in Asia.

You can find Mad Roaster on the 2nd floor of Amoy Street Food Centre, tucked away along one of the middle rows.

Mad Roaster was founded by Madeline in Feb 2022. The idea for the stall came about as Madeline’s work as a part-time lawyer then involved helping refugees with asylum applications in Thailand. 

Wanting to help them with their much-needed source of income, Madeline opened Mad (which is short for Madeline) Roasters and offered them work opportunities by commissioning tiny works of art, such as its logo and stickers.

Each coffee cup features a unique hand-coloured logo by a refugee in Asia, and if you turn the cup around, you’ll also notice that there’s another sticker naming the particular refugee behind the artwork and his/her life story.

What a real heart-warming initiative!

What I tried at Mad Roaster

The first thing I decided to get from Mad Roaster was its Coffee Brioche Set (S$5.90), which came with a slice of Chocolate Babka (S$2.20) and your choice of coffee. I went with the default Latte (S$3.90), though you can certainly go for other options such as Flat White (S$3.90) or Americano (S$2.90).

Just looking at the Chocolate Babka made my stomach growl— look at that flaky, soft brioche bread with its lovely chocolate swirls, as well as the incredibly liberal sprinkling of chocolate crumbs.

Mad Roaster’s brioche was so soft that I had problems lifting the bread while ensuring the chocolate crumbs stayed on top!

Just a fair warning that there’s simply no way to eat this without spilling some crumbs, so be sure to have some tissues on standby.

This was heaven in a single bite. The brioche was wonderfully buttery, warm and amazingly soft. I also noticed that they had applied a thin layer of custard on top of the brioche before topping the bread with chocolate crumbles, making each bite all the more creamy and indulgent.

And of course— the chocolate crumbles. It was slightly salted, incredibly crunchy, and completely addictive. This brought me back to my childhood, and 2 memories instantly popped up in my head: topping bread with milo powder, and chocolate cereal. How nostalgic.

The one thing I loved the most about Mad Roaster’s Latte was how well-balanced and smooth it was. It also wasn’t very sweet, which was a huge plus in my books.

As a kopi o kosong fan, I’d have definitely liked if the flavour of the roasted coffee beans had been more prominent rather than the milk, but all in all, a very decent cup of coffee, especially for the affordable price of S$3.90 if you’re getting it à la carte.

Apart from sweet toast like its Chocolate Babka and Cinnamon Brioche (S$2), Mad Roaster also offers grilled cheese sandwiches. 

I ordered the Kimchi Grilled Cheese (S$6), and was pleasantly surprised to see that each grilled cheese was prepared fresh upon order. I also decided to accompany it with a cup of Matcha Latte (S$4.20).

One bite in, and I was there making happy noises to myself. 

You’ve got the crunch of the crispy, flaky brioche bread, the tangy and umami-filled kimchi, and the oozy melted cheese which added a slightly salty touch. 

It was made all the more satisfying as everything was fresh out of the toaster, so each bite was warm and comforting. I also loved how there was just the right amount of cheese and kimchi, such that every element melded together perfectly and didn’t fall apart.

Mad Roaster’s Matcha Latte uses first-flush matcha powder from Nisho, Japan. What that means is that the matcha was ground using the first tencha leaves plucked during tea harvest, thus producing matcha of a higher quality.

This quickly became one of my favourite Matcha Lattes. Despite being slightly sweet, the drink was still delectably rich, earthy and smooth. 

Final thoughts

Did this make me wish that our SethLui.com office was in Telok Ayer so that I could have this for breakfast every morning? Most definitely. Mad Roaster even has a Traditional Set (S$4.70), which comes with your choice of kopi or teh, and kaya toast, but you can bet that I’ll be back for its Chocolate Babka and coffee options.

The social cause behind Mad Roaster is also commendable. I spent a good portion of my meal reading the sticker at the back of my coffee cup, which told the story of Jasmin, a refugee who was persecuted due to her religion.

Yummy food, great coffee options, and all for a good cause— I literally couldn’t ask for anything more.

Expected damage: S$1.50 – S$8 per pax

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