Kaya Toast Latte: Singapore’s Breakfast in a Cup

In July 2026, Starbucks Singapore marked its 30th anniversary with a new drinks line built around a breakfast everyone there knows: kaya toast. The Kaya Toast Latte combines espresso, milk, and kaya, and comes topped with buttery bread cubes that recall crisp toast. Other cafés got there too. Common Man Coffee Roasters in Joo Chiat tops its version with a kaya foam, and at Changi Airport you can now get one with coconut cream and toast cubes.

It’s no surprise the drink is popping up everywhere. In Singapore, kaya toast and kopi have belonged together for generations. At the kopitiam, the neighbourhood coffee shop around the corner, people order both in the morning: thin toast with kaya and a slice of butter, alongside a strong coffee with sweetened condensed milk. The kaya toast latte simply puts the two in one cup.

What it tastes like

Kaya is cooked from coconut, egg, and pandan, and has a soft, caramel-like sweetness with a hint of vanilla. Stirred into espresso, it makes the coffee round and creamy without any syrup. The toast cubes on top add crunch and a lightly salty, buttery note, and that’s what turns it into more than an ordinary latte.

Kaya toast latte at home

For one cup you need one heaped tablespoon of kaya, two to three tablespoons of coconut milk, a double espresso, about 150 ml of milk or oat drink, and a slice of toast with a little butter.

First warm the coconut milk and stir the kaya into it until smooth, so it blends easily into the coffee later. Pour the mixture into a warmed cup, pull the espresso over it, and give it a stir. Then froth the milk and pour it in. While the espresso runs, toast the bread in a pan with the butter until golden, cut it into small cubes, and scatter them over the foam at the end.

No espresso machine? Strong coffee from a moka pot or French press works too. For an iced version, stir the kaya into cold milk, fill the glass with ice, and pour the espresso over last.

Kaya kopi latte, closer to the kopitiam

If you’d rather have it the coffee-shop way, use a strong, dark-roasted filter coffee instead of espresso. Dissolve one tablespoon of kaya and one tablespoon of sweetened condensed milk in it, then top up with frothed milk. This version is a little sweeter and richer, and it tastes most like Singapore. You can skip the toast cubes here and put a slice of kaya toast on the side instead, just as people do there.

Both versions suit a slow weekend morning when you’re in no hurry. And if there’s kaya left in the jar afterwards, you already know what goes on the toast.