Chee Soon Juan says Orange & Teal could be the ‘nest’ for the next Hemingway or JK Rowling

Singapore — Opposition leader and now restauranteur Chee Soon Juan was dreaming aloud about the possibilities for his café, Orange & Teal, in his latest Facebook post. 

“J K Rowling, TS Elliot and Ernest Hemingway did much of their writing in cafes. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if Orange & Teal could be the nest for the next great S’porean writer?,” he wrote on Wednesday (Jan 19).

Dr Chee, the secretary-general of the Singapore Democratic Party, was marking the sixth-month anniversary of his café, which he called the fulfilment of a long-term dream when he announced Orange & Teal’s opening at Rochester Mall in June of last year.

In his post, Dr Chee thanked everyone who has supported his efforts in opening the café, saying that the first half-year has “been an exciting start – not without its bumps – and we look forward to the next 6 months.”

The veteran politician also wrote that Orange & Teal is also “a miniature version of my vision for Singapore – a place where intelligence, grace and compassion flourish.”

He then proceeded to further explain this vision: 

I want to create a space where intelligent conversation and even intense debates take place, where thinkers come to exercise their minds and writers run wild with imagination.

I want to foster a community where grace and culture soothe our tired souls; create a playground where our artists and musicians come to comfort and inspire us.

I want to build a home where compassion becomes second nature to us, a place where we extend a hand to others and lift them up.”

He closed his post by saying that this is something he’s been working for all his life “to build in Singapore, and now I get a chance to demonstrate it in a small but real way at this little corner at Rochester Mall.”

Dr Chee also invited others to share this vision.

“Come by and have a meal or a cup of coffee and, in the process, help me build that vision of an intelligent, cultured and compassionate Singapore.”

Many netizens responded to his post, with some already calling the café, which opened amid the challenges of the pandemic, a success.

Others shared photos of their own visit to Orange & Teal.

One commenter even compared the café with the coffee shop in the hit US sitcom, Friends.

/TISG

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