History of Roti John. A Legacy of British Forces in Singapore

Image credit: Singapore Memory ProjectBefore there were hamburgers in Singapore there was Roti John. Though a relatively new creation, Roti John is a popular and commonly found hawker dish in Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia today.

The Roti John of today is a floppy soft French loaf sliced lengthwise into 2 halves. The filling is a griddle fried egg omelette with minced beef, chicken or mutton, chopped onion, and sometimes sambal chili. The French loaf is laid on top of the omelette and they are folded together when the omelette is slightly browned. The omelette filled loaf is served with thick dribbles of mayonnaise, tomato, chili or even mustard sauce. There are many variations, e.g. adding cheese, raw onions etc.

The Roti John of today is a hearty and filling meal 😁 It's a riotous mix of savoury, sweet, spicy, and tangy flavours from the eggs, meat, vegetables and various sauces. Soft, fluffy, tender, dripping sauces, juices and grease that run down the fingers. Yummaey!

The first Roti John was, however, a much humbler affair.

Union Jack Club. Image credit: National Archives of Singapore According to Pakirisamy Rajagopal's account to the National Archives of Singapore, British servicemen used to visit the Union Jack Club located behind Capitol Cinema (in the 1950s) on Thursdays (which was their pay day). The Union Jack Club was their RV point.

Union Jack Club. Image credit: National Archives SingaporeAfter gathering at Union Jack Club, the soldiers would head for the street side food stalls at Koek Road.

Image credit: National Archives of SingaporeThere they would grab a quick bite before hopping to party hotspots (like Bugis Street).

Bugis Street in the 1960s. Image credit: National Archives of SingaporeOne of their favourite quickie bites to avoid getting drunk drinking on an empty stomach was a French loaf sliced lengthwise with a fried egg folded inside. One Abdul running one such French loaf and omelette stall at Koek Road would tout for business by shouting out in proto-Singlish to passing British soldiers "Roti! John!" which in Queen's English means "Would you like to have some bread, John?". John being the generic name locals used to refer to any British, Australian or New Zealand soldier or sailor. (Not sure why it wasn't Tom, Dick or Harry 😝 )According to this account, this was how the name "Roti John" came about and it became the name of the dish. Of course, through the years, Roti John went through many iterations to today's rather elaborate dish which neither Abdul nor John would readily recognise. Servicemen families at Sembawang Dieppe Barracks in the 1970s. Image credit: National Archives SingaporeRoti John stalls sprouted up wherever British, Australian or New Zealand servicemen were based such as in Sembawang, Changi, Alexandra and Tanglin.

Royal Air Force Canberra jet at Changi Air Base. Image credit: National Archives of SingaporeTerry Shiau remembers a sarabat stall (push cart stall) at Changi Village in the 1950s selling teh terik (pulled milk tea) and Roti John to Royal Air Force personnel. Image credit: Singapore Memory ProjectIn a third account, a British soldier asked a stall holder in Sembawang for a hamburger (in the 1960s). The stall holder improvised a hamburger by serving him a sliced French loaf with a chopped onion and minced mutton omelette inside. The hawker invited the soldier to eat her creation saying rather politely "Silakan makan roti, John" which means "Please eat this bread, John".

Tanglin Camp in the 1960s. Image Credit: National Archives of Singapore Taman Serasi was a popular lunch spot for folks working in the Ministry of Defence and the Foreign Ministry at Tanglin camp. Located across the Botanical Gardens, it was also loved by visitors to the gardens. Everyone was there for Roti John!

Taman Serasi food centres in the 1990s. Image credit: National Archives of SingaporeTaman Serasi food centre near Tanglin camp was the Roti John hotspot till it closed in 2001. In the fourth account, it is said that Roti John was created at Taman Serasi in the 1970s by Shukor Makanan Istimewa stall to cater to the Johns based in Tanglin Camp. Yet another account credited the dish to Cik Zawiah Anuar at Geylang Serai Food Centre in the 1970s. On the origins of Roti John, I am personally more inclined to the Koek Road and Changi Village accounts as the rather elaborate Sembawang, Tanglin and Geylang Serai versions seemed to me more like Roti John version 2.0 and 3.0.

Disbandment parade of the British Far East Air Force in 1971 at Tengah Air Base. Image credit: National Archive of SingaporeThe British forces withdrew from Singapore in 1971. They left Roti John behind and didn't take it with them to England. So today, while you can find Roti John in most hawker centres in Singapore, street side food stalls in Malaysia and Indonesia, you cannot find it in the United Kingdom, except perhaps hopefully in the memories of some ex-servicemen. When the British forces withdrew in 1971, the Five Power Defence Arrangement was signed as a co-operative defence framework with Singapore and Malaysia. Every year British, Australian and New Zealand forces join Singapore and Malaysia forces in joint military exercises under the auspices of the arrangement. I wonder how many of today's Johns know about Roti John and its legacy. Roti John in Surabaya, Indonesia - far away from Singapore and a long way from Abdul's simple French loaf and fried egg. Indonesians have taken Roti John to a whole new level 😋

Roti John stall at Ramadan bazaar in Johor BahruEven though Roti John is a relatively new dish, it can count as a comfort dish in Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia now. It is a popular choice for breaking fast during Ramadan. Where do you get your Roti John fix? References: