Cafes in Hougang: Brunch, Late-Night Desserts and Mall Coffee Stops

Hougang is not a café neighbourhood in the way Tiong Bahru or Jalan Besar are. Most of its coffee is still drunk at the kopitiam. But there are a handful of independent cafés worth knowing, and the revamp of Hougang Mall has brought a new cluster of coffee and dessert outlets right beside Hougang MRT. This guide lists only places we could confirm operating in 2026, with notes on how to reach them from Hougang Central and the future LinkTown Residences (Hougang Central Residences).

Cafes in Hougang at a glance

Café	Area	Known for	Getting there
Lola’s Cafe	Kovan, 5 Simon Road	Brunch, wings, cakes	Kovan MRT (NE13), one stop
Lickers	Hougang Avenue 1	Ice cream and waffles until 2am	Bus from Kovan or Hougang Central
Sweedy Cafesserie	377 Hougang Street 32	Handmade desserts and bakes	Bus
Hougang Mall cafés	Hougang Central	Coffee, bakeries, pancakes	Short walk from Hougang MRT
Heartland Mall cafés	Kovan	Kaya toast, pancakes, açaí	Next to Kovan MRT

Kovan: Lola’s Cafe

5 Simon Road. Lola’s is the café most Hougang residents name first. It is a long-running Simon Road fixture and now also runs outlets in Holland Village and Tampines Mall, but the Kovan shop is the original. The menu covers all-day brunch, its well-known chicken wings, egg dishes and cakes. Its website lists opening from 9am to 10.30pm daily, closing on the first Monday of each month, and the café was posting on Instagram through late September 2026.

Simon Road is a short walk from Kovan MRT, one stop south of Hougang. Weekends are busy, so go early or on a weekday.

Late night: Lickers

124 Hougang Avenue 1, #01-1446. A late-night ice cream café under an HDB block near Lorong Ah Soo, with small-batch ice cream, waffles and ice cream cakes. Its website, checked in September 2026, lists opening until 2am every day: from 6.30pm on Mondays, 1pm from Tuesday to Thursday and midday from Friday to Sunday. That makes it one of the few after-dinner dessert options in Hougang.

It is easiest by bus from Kovan or Hougang Central. Pair it with dinner at the Hainanese Village Centre nearby, covered in our Hougang hawker centres guide.

Heartland desserts: Sweedy Cafesserie

377 Hougang Street 32, #01-32. A homegrown dessert maker in the HDB heartland; some older listings call it Sweedy Patisserie. Its 2026 online menu includes its oversized “fatcarons”, Basque burnt cheesecakes, trend-led bakes such as Dubai-style chewy cookies, and a seasonal durian series. Many items need two days’ notice for orders, so check what is available for walk-in customers before you travel.

Hougang Mall: the new café cluster

The revamp of Hougang Mall, due to finish in September 2026, added several coffee and dessert outlets. Per the mall directory:

• Coffee: Starbucks (level 2) and Luckin Coffee (Basement 1).
• Bakery cafés: Butter & Cream and Paris Baguette (level 1), Dough Culture (Basement 1), Chateraise (level 2).
• Tea and dessert: CHAGEE and smöoy (level 1), KOI Thé (Basement 1) and LiHO Tea (level 2).

These are chains rather than independent cafés, but they are open mall hours, easy to reach from the MRT and good for a quick meeting. Our Hougang Mall guide lists the rest of the food.

Heartland Mall, Kovan

Next to Kovan MRT, Heartland Mall’s directory lists Toast Box (#01-14/15), Ya Kun Kaya Toast (#02-51/52), Munchi Pancakes (#01-25/26) and The Summer Acai, along with bubble tea. The mall opens from 10am to 10pm. It is a reliable rainy-day option before or after the Kovan market.

Which café for which occasion

• Weekend brunch with friends: Lola’s Cafe on Simon Road. Book or arrive early.
• Dessert after a late dinner: Lickers on Hougang Avenue 1, open until 2am.
• A birthday cake or dessert box: Sweedy Cafesserie, ordering ahead where needed.
• A quick coffee near the MRT: the cafés in Hougang Mall, a short walk from Hougang station.
• Kaya toast with children: Toast Box or Ya Kun Kaya Toast at Heartland Mall in Kovan.

Café or kopitiam?

For daily coffee, most of Hougang still goes to the coffee shop. It is cheaper, it opens earlier and it is everywhere. Cafés are for the weekend: brunch with friends, a birthday cake, a long chat. Our list of things to do in Hougang has more weekend ideas. If you are new to the area, it helps to know a few kopitiam terms: kopi comes with condensed milk, kopi-O is black with sugar, kosong means no sugar, and peng means iced.

How to check a café is still open

1. Look for posts on the café’s own social media in the last month or two.
2. Check the dates of recent reviews on map apps, not just the rating.
3. Look out for rest days; many small cafés close one weekday.

What this means at Hougang Central

LinkTown Residences is planned above Hougang MRT, so residents will have Hougang Mall’s cafés about two minutes away on foot and Kovan’s café street one stop down the line. For brunch further afield, see our guides to cafes in Punggol and cafes in Serangoon Garden. The new mall in the Hougang Central integrated development, at about 300,000 sq ft, is expected to add more food and beverage choice once the project completes around 2030 to 2031. Tenants have not been announced.

See the location page for the map around Hougang Central Residences, and the showflat page for viewing details as they are released.

Register to get LinkTown Residences showflat and preview dates as soon as they’re released.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best cafes in Hougang?

Long-running names include Lola’s Cafe on Simon Road in Kovan for brunch, Lickers on Hougang Avenue 1 for late-night ice cream and Sweedy Cafesserie on Hougang Street 32 for desserts. Hougang Mall and Heartland Mall add chain cafés.

Is there a cafe open late in Hougang?

Yes. Lickers at 124 Hougang Avenue 1 lists opening until 2am every day, from 6.30pm on Mondays and from midday or 1pm on other days, per its website in September 2026.

Are there cafes near Hougang MRT?

Yes. Hougang Mall, a short walk from Hougang MRT, has Starbucks, Luckin Coffee, Butter & Cream, Dough Culture, Paris Baguette and other coffee and bakery outlets after its 2026 revamp.

Where are the cafes in Kovan?

Around Simon Road and Kovan Road, across Upper Serangoon Road from Kovan MRT, plus chain cafés such as Toast Box and Ya Kun Kaya Toast in Heartland Mall.