Mavrx Coffee Apothecary @ Duxton Hill
Byron checks out Mavrx at Duxton Hill on their closing day, a bastion for the community coffee bar and a celebration of good times gone by over coffee
It’s always heartbreaking to see a coffeeshop close, especially if it’s leaves a big impression on the community surrounding it. Like a friendly mainstay hangout, a space like that is what defines the neighbourhood, bringing people from all walks of life into a cosy, common space where experiences and conversations are shared.
Some days we walk in with a skip in our step, some days work weighs heavily on our minds. But one thing we treasure is that shop is always there: it is a constant, it remains (on opening days, of course) as our escape, our perk-me-up, our space to bring ourselves to before the morning begins or when we just go “I NEED MY COFFEE NOW”
MAVRX at 1 Duxton Hill has always been that constant for that corner of Tanjong Pagar. After 6 years of operating at the same little hole, this tiny room of a coffeeshop is almost like a second home to most, where everyone seems to know each other around here. It’s the neighbours that make the neighbourhood, and the sense of familiarity as people say their casual hellos to one another while they enter and leave through the doors as they go about their day, but making that important stop to grab their cup of coffee and dose of conversation
We sadly didn’t get photos of this, but what we loved most were that the white tiles on the walls were inscribed, sometimes with little doodles, of the names of anyone that buys coffee at the shop. The people buy forward 10 cups of coffee, and they get a tile on the wall where they scribble the number of cups they’ve grabbed every time they come and get a coffee (or five). It’s so charming how by simply removing a cashier and adopting an alternative payment system removes that transactional relationship between the customer and the coffeeshop, so we can focus on coming in and feeling comfortable over conversation. Putting it up on the walls made it extra fun, noting how some of the other customers drew funny faces of their colleagues on the walls
We sadly didn’t get photos of this, but what we loved most were that the white tiles on the walls were inscribed, sometimes with little doodles, of the names of anyone that buys coffee at the shop. The people buy forward 10 cups of coffee, and they get a tile on the wall where they scribble the number of cups they’ve grabbed every time they come and get a coffee (or five). It’s so charming how by simply removing a cashier and adopting an alternative payment system removes that transactional relationship between the customer and the coffeeshop, so we can focus on coming in and feeling comfortable over conversation. Putting it up on the walls made it extra fun, noting how some of the other customers drew funny faces of their colleagues on the walls
The team is a bubbly bunch. We stopped by the other day to while Nicholas and Zoey were in, only to feel so much for the space that we couldn’t help but snap some photos to document the all encompassing vibe that was so welcoming and open.
From the black and white tiles, to the paper cups loudly stamped with Get Shit Done on the side, and of course the lovely team behind the space, we thank you and bid you goodbye, Duxton. Like every coffeeshop, you were a big part of the people’s everyday lives as they stepped through your doors, with the walls and coffee cups holding memories of many warm hands, sips and smiles
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— Maxim Tourou
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