Temasek Shophouse reopens with secret architectural gems and Violet Oon’s new cafe
The social impact hub on Orchard Road has trebled in size, expanding across four conserved shophouses
[SINGAPORE] When Violet Oon was young, she used to linger along a short stretch of Orchard Road – from the Cathay Building to the MacDonald House. Her father worked in both buildings for Shell, so she remembers the cafe, cinema and car showroom very well.
“This was where life was,” she says. “This was the ‘Orchard Road’ for me, the original shopping belt. I loved it.”
It was also here that she first caught glimpses of Singapore’s high society. “This space,” she says, pointing to the double-volume hall in Temasek Shophouse, “was the showroom for Rolls-Royce. This was where you got to see the rich and famous.”
Later, Oon even got married in a nearby restaurant in the Cathay Building, with a live band playing through the night. “Julie Sudiro sang for us. Do you know her? Oh, she was so famous. One generation before Rahimah Rahim. Your parents would know Julie.”
Funny how life comes full circle. Today, the 76-year-old Peranakan chef is seated inside her new Bibik Violet cafe, which occupies the space at the back of the former Rolls-Royce showroom. Bibik Violet is the fourth restaurant under the Violet Oon brand, and the first to introduce a casual concept with dishes priced below S$20.
It is also strictly first come, first served – a welcome change for frustrated diners who can’t seem to secure a reservation at her other restaurants.
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Second life for old shophouses
Oon’s homecoming coincides with the rebirth of the building itself. Temasek Shophouse first opened in 2019 as a social impact hub under Temasek Trust, which is the philanthropic arm of Temasek Holdings. It occupied just one conserved shophouse at 28 Orchard Road, to serve the rapidly growing number of social entrepreneurs.
Today, it has taken over three neighbouring properties – expanding to 69,000 square feet. It now holds three event halls, 60 co-working spaces, a media production studio, and ground-floor tenants such as Bibik Violet, Martket by Abry (a lifestyle retailer working with marginalised communities), and Foreword Coffee (an inclusive-hiring pioneer). There’s also an interactive mini-gallery on heritage by digital publisher Our Grandfather Story.
When Temasek Shophouse reopens on Sep 29, it signals not only the return of the social impact hub after extensive renovations – but also a new destination on Orchard Road for casual diners and shoppers.
“We imagine ourselves as convener, collaborator, catalyst,” says Yvonne Tay, general manager of Temasek Shophouse. “Convener because this is a neutral, purpose-built space where like-minded people can come together – whether for events, seminars, workshops, or just over a cup of coffee. Collaborator because we see partnerships forming here across private, public, philanthropic and other sectors. And catalyst because we see ourselves as a catalyst for social and environmental causes.”
The hub’s new Temasek Shophouse Collective helps social enterprises, charities and ground-ups grow. Members gain access to workshops, mentorship sessions and networking opportunities. They can also tap a global network of more than 110 hubs in other countries.
For Tay, the building itself tells a powerful story. “This is one of the oldest rows of shophouses on Orchard Road, with each of the four buildings dating back around 100 years or so,” she points out. “We are happy to be able to restore heritage and bring back the stories of the past to today’s community.”
Easter eggs for heritage lovers
Tay discovered her favourite part of the building sometime after 2022, when Temasek Shophouse took over the space once occupied by the Management Development Institute of Singapore (MDIS), which had closed its Dhoby Ghaut campus in 2020 during Covid.
“We climbed up a ladder and poked through the ceiling, and then we realised there’s actually this sunburst roof that was covered up by the previous tenants,” she recalls. “Now it’s restored – almost triple-volume, with a scalloped facade. Really, really beautiful. I don’t think you can get a space like this anymore.” The event hall, now called Tembusu Canopy, is the Temasek Shophouse’s most impressive space.
Meanwhile, heritage and architecture junkies will find plenty more restored features to obsess over. Among the “Easter eggs” are the old staircases with wooden bannisters, 1920s pink mosaic tiles, 1950s vision panels, Shanghai plaster facades stripped of paint to reveal their original stone-like texture, Alexandra bricks (historic locally produced bricks) exposed along certain walls, century-old Marseille terracotta roof tiles, and ghost signs, such as a faded car advertisement on the wall left intact.
“During renovation, whenever we hit something on the ground,” Tay says, “we would bring our conservation experts in to examine whether the tiles or materials were original, and how to preserve them. Each piece carries a story.”
The atmosphere is less museum than palimpsest: the history of car showrooms, film distributors and spice plantations all folded into the 21st-century hub. Even Oon’s Bibik Violet cafe pipes in old local songs. “So old,” she notes, “that not many Singaporeans have even heard of them.”
Temasek Shophouse honours history by conserving these handsome facades. But it’s hoping that these old stones can spark new ideas – and that Orchard Road’s past may yet shape Singapore’s future.
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