Many Singaporeans take pride in being able to order drinks at the coffeeshop like a pro. But what’s even more amazing is the way your kopitiam auntie remembers your exact order and can recite them back at you.
However, your skill isn’t truly put to the test until you’ve played a card game that lets you step into the shoes of your favourite kopitiam uncle or auntie.
With Kopi King, a fast-paced and uniquely Singaporean card game, you can not only learn about kopitiam drinks beyond the usual kopi and teh, but also become the best kopitiam barista that ever lived.
The game requires players to be extremely knowledgeable in putting together coffeeshop drinks such as kopi di lo (coffee with no added water) and Milo Dinosaur.
However, knowing the order for your favourite drink isn’t enough to win the title of “Kopi King”.
The game involves snatching from a pile of ingredient cards to complete orders and earn the most money.
Be careful though, because some drinks may not be familiar to younger kopitiam patrons who may only know the basic orders. Neslo, anyone?
You might also run into some unfamiliar terms. For example, Milo also isn’t just known as such to older patrons — they prefer the term tak giu, which means to kick ball in Hokkien.
Milo is so named because the cartons feature a boy kicking a football.
Those interested in supporting the local arts scene may be interested in buying this card game for the beautiful illustrations done by local artist Emma Yong, who works with various traditional mediums.
Each card’s illustration is lovingly hand-drawn to realistically portray our favourite kopitiam beverages.
We can’t help but wonder if the artist sampled each drink in the game just to illustrate the cards.
If you are interested in playing Kopi King, it may be time to pay attention to the way our favourite kopitiam uncles and aunties prepare our drinks.
You may even want to ask them about the ‘secret menu’ drinks that are found in the card game and try them for yourself.
You can purchase Kopi King from Singapore-based board game publisher Origame for $20, and each game can feature between 1-6 players.
Featured image adapted from Origame.
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