Romanticise mellow tunes & coffee at Slow Boat, Singapore’s first Vinyl cafe
The air ruminated with a whisper of fresh coffee. Plastic crinkles danced through the room as excited fingers incessantly crept their way through wrapped sleeves. Soft daylight cascaded through the airy windows and landed upon sleek black disks, spinning gracefully. This was the scene of a quiet Wednesday at Slow Boat.
I sat in the middle of the cosy lounge, observing the meek chatter and jubilant looks. As customers wandered their gaze through the wooden shelves and stacked plastic bins with bated breath, in anticipation of a vinyl record that would catch their eye.
Lazily snuggled inside one of Craig Road’s charming vintage shophouses, Slow Boat represents a novelty amidst the cafe scene’s banally recycled concepts and fatigued guises.
The second-storey hideout is Singapore’s first vinyl-listening cafe. Its decor is a shade of svelte minimalism but adapted to a distinctly different configuration.
Everything revolves around a listening room furnished with five plush loveseats. Each wore the same shade of plush rust-orange, accented by slender steel frames, and faced a petite shin-height coffee table.
At the side, the centrepiece overlooks the room — a sleek shelved wall where Slow Boat’s vinyl records are stashed away and awaiting sojourns to the tables, each equipped with a turntable and two sets of earphones.
Towards the rear, the space spills out into a brightly lit balcony addendum –characterised by peppered plant fixtures, paler wood tones, and pellucid folded chairs— with a dreamier ambience suitable for the sprawl of ceiling-height windows.
Coffee & Warm Sips
Before visiting, arrange for a session through its website. Once there, guests are warmly greeted and the mechanisms are explained clearly: Listening Tickets ($30) are 1-hour affairs where customers can indulge in the beats along with a choice of drink.
Slow Boat’s menu is focused on coffee as the main highlight and options such as Yuzu Tea ($5) and Root Beer Float ($5) supplementing, and can also be purchased separately for takeaway.
After narrowing in on an Iced White ($6), I promptly made my way to my preassigned seat before diving into the curation, seeing favourites including Coldplay’s Parachutes and The 1975’s The 1975.
I eventually returned to my seat with a copy of indie darling Phoebe Bridgers’ poignant debut record, Stranger in the Alps before the coffee followed suit.
Slow Boat’s coffee is, surprisingly, robust and well-balanced. Overall a smooth brew which has enough aromatic richness coming through, without the disproportionate nutty oomph many run-of-the-mill cafes prefer.
Vinyl & warm Tunes
The experience here is disparately designed from the few vinyl establishments slotted into the nooks and crannies of Singapore. It’s one built on respecting the intimate enjoyment of music.
Slow Boat is not configured around elaborate state-of-the-art hardware and speakers meant to serve an entire room — instead, tunes are enjoyed individually, with a full set-up at each table.
Partnering with Audio Technica, Slow Boat uses the stalwart’s turntables along with a pre-amp from JDS Lab. Everything is linked up to M20x’s, closed-ear headphones that ensure intimacy with tight seals and no audio leakage.
A more-than-reasonable setup, especially since Audio Technica’s LP60x is the overwhelmingly recommended beginner turntable — I think casual listeners will enjoy the delightful amp of warmth and elevation in details.
Above all, Slow Boat’s true appeal lies in its vinyl record repository and the staggering diversity, with ample representation from vintage to modern, or chart-toppers to indie.
Encounters range from Taylor Swift’s 1989 to Laufey’s Bewitched, The Killers’ Hot Fuzz to The Beatles’ Abbey Road, with even some Jazz from the likes of Miles Davis thrown in there.
Slow Boat is unique in that it’s not exactly a cafe, but more of an experience. Everything is thoughtfully laid out for guests and the entire experience is streamlined, fuss-free, and even caters to a myriad of tastes.
Nonetheless, there will be flaws to any establishment and for me, the lack of organisation within the bins is an annoying inconvenience — though the team is cognisant of it and seeking to improve.
Credit where it’s due: there is much respect earned from venturing into a new style of cafe in Singapore, all while handling branding and operations with such refinement. It’s no wonder Slow Boat is already one of Singapore’s top date spots at the moment.
Make an appointment first on their website before visiting!
Slow Boat
- Address: 45A Craig Road
- Hours: (Mon–Sun) 11am–9pm