This Old School Bar in Jonker Melaka is 100 Years Old and Used to be an Opium Den!

This hidden gem in Melaka is definitely an astonish find!

Source: Time Out

Source: WOB

Located just a 10-minute walk away from Jonker street, Sin Hiap Hin is an old school bar that serves plenty of delicious Malaysian liquor. Its ‘gantry’ is stocked with Malaccan liquor, Indian whiskey, local rice wine, herbal liquor from China, and more.

What’s unique is that this place is filled with history and it’s a rare find among the restructured buildings around Jonker. Even the shot measures the bar use is vintage! Just look at it!

A vintage dram measure to calibrate the amount of each shot!

This one is lagi old and is only for display purposes.

The calibration for a shot is far more than the typical one bartenders use. A single shot back in the days were 60ml, as opposed to the current day’s 35-45ml! Looks like people back then were more hardcore!

When you drop by for a visit, you’d find a sweet aunty who constantly wears a big smile on her face. Equally fluent in mandarin and English, Aunty shared with us how this bar is a whopping 100 years old! And it’s been handed down 4 generations in her family!

Don’t be fooled by these Malaysian liquor. Most of them are super delicious, and the most dangerous part is, its alcohol content is 35% without even tasting like it. We recommend going for the Lychee flavoured liquor. It may taste like fruit juice, but be careful as it is extremely potent.

Besides taking in the amazing history of this bar, it’s a super cost-friendly way to get the buzz as well!

One other interesting thing to note is that the building is so old that it used to operate as an Opium den! Those were the days when some of these kind of quaint lots were used as dens, gambling joints, and brothels.

Back then, this bar is popular amongst boatmen and local labourers who worked on the Melaka river. It also saw British officers as its customers during colonial times.

Although now a century old, this bar still remains a hidden joint (which is way underrated) compared to the bustling Jonker nightwalk.

(Writer’s note: As reluctant as I am to share this hidden gem, it’s more important to keep this amazing historical spot alive!)

So if you’re ever in town, make it a point to keep this piece of history alive by visiting it! Just note that unlike the bars we’re used to that closes late at night, this one closes by 5.30pm, so drop by earlier!

Location: 35, Jalan Bunga Raya, Kampung Jawa, 75200 Melaka.
Operating hours: 9.30am – 5.30pm daily

Also read: This Cafe in Penang Has Crispy Pork Belly Birthday “Cakes” And We’re Drooling!