If there's one thing that surprised me about Korea, it's that their café scene is unmatched!
Usually when I travel, I don't spend a lot of time at restaurants and cafés as I try to make the most of my time seeing the place. However, when I was researching about Korea, I came across many interesting cafés and my itinerary quickly flipped into a culinary experience.
I was intrigued to see how each place has a personality of their own, and knew right away that I couldn't miss it. I ended up with a list of 20+ cafés I wanted to hit on my visit. Did I get to all of them? Unfortunately not, but I'm sure I managed to visit some of the best ones.
I didn't have much time in Seoul and given the convenience of having a car rental in Jeju, I explored a lot more cafés on the island than anywhere else. I thought I'd share my favourite ones with you to inspire you to take a break on your next trip. It's the perfect break, that may even come with an extra treat: a beautiful view.
JEJU
Café Delmoondo
Café Delmoondo is a probably one of my favorite café stops while in Korea. It's located near Hamdeok Beach and offers breathtaking views of the sea. We got there quite early in the morning for breakfast. Their peanut latte was phenomenal, and one worth trying.
While they do have quite a lot of seating facing the water, you can also find seating inside. They have a lot of options to choose from for baked goods (and believe me when I say we had a hard time deciding what to get!) Everything we ordered was delicious. You can absolutely not go wrong with the spectacular views offered from this location.
Cafe Gyulkkot Darak (Cafe Tangerine Flower Attic)
While Jeju is known for their tangerines, when I stumbled upon Café Tangerine Flower Attic, I wanted to visit mostly for the ambiance rather than the tangerine (though you must try their tangerine dessert here, as they have some of the best ones on the island). This cafe turned out to be in my top three as well.
The impression I got right when we pulled up was positive and I knew right away that this place would blow me away. Surely enough, we walked in to a postcard perfect setting. The place is filled with the owner's memories from growing up with their grandmother, creating a cozy, warm atmosphere reminding you of home. You can also find a lush garden of tangerines (so you can only imagine how good it smelled).
Tribe Café
Perhaps I am rating my top three café spots from the ambiance, views and food combined or it's just a coincidence that my top spots checks all the marks. Tribe is known for its famous soufflé pancakes and the views overlooking the sea.
You can guess what my breakfast was the day I visited. I found the pancakes so light, fluffy and delicious, topped with the cutest macaron. Perhaps not the wisest option for breakfast, but it was worth it. I came early to avoid the crowds. Try the hallabong one if you want to opt for something local. This spot would also be perfect for sunset. The thing is, while upstairs you are treated to the beautiful landscape just outside, going down the flight of stairs leads you to a real-life Pinterest board.
Innisfree Café
This Innisfree Café is located at the Innisfree Jeju House. You can expect to find organic products which are made with fresh local ingredients. If you are not familiar with Innisfree skincare products, you can find more about it right here and even try soap-making.
I especially loved that there is so much to do here. The Innisfree Jeju House is located next to the O'ssuloc Tea Museum (tea lovers rejoice!), so you can do two activities in one shot. We spent quite a bit of time shopping, taking pictures with the tea plantations and made our own souvenirs at the stamp zone.
You can test cosmetic products to see what works for you. Want a money-saving tip? If you visit closer to closing time, you can get the products from the café at a discounted price. If you are a green tea lover, you will especially love this place and you will get the opportunity to try unique desserts, including tangerine ice cream, "volcano" cake and more. Some of their "sets" come with a cake, drink and a toy.
Boraed Bakers
A place with a scenic landscape, simple, yet beautiful interior design and fresh bread? Yes please! We had to park on the side of the road to get here.
The place itself is connected to a hotel. We visited early morning and was excited to see everything freshly made, hot out of the oven, being served. If you love coffee, you can also expect to find some coffee brewed with roasted beans here. This place was very relaxing and quiet. I loved the vibe and especially loved the fragrant smell of freshly baked goods. An experience of the scenes, a feast of the eyes and peace for the soul.
Seongeup Folk Village
This ancient village has been welcoming visitors from around the world since 1974, We didn't really intend on eating here, but we came across a small business selling fresh hallabong juice and decided to give it a try.
It was the perfect boost of hydration and refreshment that we needed to explore the area and continue our drive around the island.
The village itself is worth exploring, as you can get a glimpse of traditional Korean houses and learn about the traditions and customs. If you visit alone, you may not come across many people, but it is a peaceful place worth a stop regardless.
Grimm's Forest
While driving around the island, we came across an area with several museums, such as the Little Prince Museum, a teddy bear museum and a mural of Grimm's Forest. What caught our eye was the art on the Starbucks building. Though we didn't eat anything at the Starbucks, we had to stop to get a photo with the building as the design was pretty cool.
SEOUL
Café Layered
I must say we came across this one out of pure luck! As we were walking to the Bukchon Hanok village, I passed by this café and the aesthetics instantly caught my attention. From outside, I noticed how each pastry, scone and cake was placed beautifully surrounded by a vintage-style vibe. I immediately fell in love with the décor and thought, why not stop for five minutes to look around inside? I was mesmerized to find the variety of scones and knew right away that I had to try one.
I strongly recommend you do your own research and find the best café suitable to your interests. Whether it be a Harry Potter themed café, or to write a letter to your future self (yes, there is a café for that!), I have no doubt that you'll find something for you. The majority of the places we went to, happened out of convenience, since they were on the way. A lot of the ones I missed were either too far out of reach, or missed due to the lack of time. Regardless, I am happy that I got to try a few and found some favorites along the way.
I might consider a trip to Korea in the future, just to explore more of the café scene...I mean, can you really blame me for it, when it's THAT good?
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