If I’m being honest, cute cafe’s are my love language and I’ve never met a signature drink I didn’t like (well, at least one I didn’t want to try). I’ve been known to order more than I need just so I can try a variety of different drinks and goodies. Seoul cafe culture is one of the city’s greatest assets and you can find me tucked away in the back corner of one on any given day. From Rain Cafes to Harry Potter inspired themed cafes, you can find just about anything your heart desires, just not before 10:00am.
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How Many Cafés Does Seoul Really Have & Why So Many?
While there are many worthwhile reasons to visit Korea, I was most surprised by Seoul’s cafe culture—from hanok courtyards fragrant with the smells of fresh bread to bagel shops that draw long lines, to whimsical interiors that bring out more instragrammers than devout coffee lovers. Seoul’s café density is astonishing—and it’s easy to see with cafe’s on nearly every street corner. City data collated in May 2024 put the figure at 24,295 cafés in Seoul alone. That’s not a typo: twenty-four thousand two hundred ninety-five places to enjoy your favorite specialty latte or iced Americano.
In Seoul, cafés aren’t merely places to caffeinate; they’re community hubs, dessert labs, remote work stations, and social media stages. In a dense, hyperconnected city of 9.6 million people, they have become the designated third space outside of home and work. Cafés double as neutral ground: a place to work, socialize, host group study sessions, and decompress. They are a thriving part of everyday life. Seoul cafe culture is woven into the modern Korean cultural strands and I’m loving every part of it.
What Do Seoul Cafés Serve? (Short answer: everything—and then some.)
Many cafe menus usually begin with meticulous espresso drinks and then veer into signature territory:
- Dalgona-inspired drinks. The whipped-coffee craze that exploded during the pandemic remains part of the flavor vocabulary—sweet, fluffy, and incredibly photogenic.
- Bingsu & seasonal desserts. From towering milk-snow bowls topped with fruit or red bean, Korean shaved ice remains a summer essential in cafés.
- Bakery powerhouses. Seoul’s café-bakery hybrids take pastry seriously: specialty croissants, sculptural cakes, mochi-cream buns, rustic loaves, and bagels with cult followings.
Menus often also include non-coffee options—teas, ades, yogurt bowls, salad plates, and vegan items—reflecting a café scene that wants to feed and delight as much as it wants to caffeinate. You can just as easily assemble a light lunch as you can snag a seasonal dessert that doubles as your Instagram content for the day.
Five Popular Seoul Cafés to Add to Your Map
Below are five perennial crowd-pleasers that also capture different facets of Seoul cafe culture. Save their Instagram handles to check hours, drops, and location details.
- Cafe Onion (Anguk, Seongsu, more)
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cafe.onion/ Instagram
Why go: A poster child for the hanok-meets-bakery aesthetic, Cafe Onion pairs photogenic wood beams and courtyard seating with mountains of pastries. Expect everything from crusty breads to signature cakes and a well-dialed espresso program. It’s the spot to experience how Seoul fuses tradition with modern café craft. - London Bagel Museum (multiple locations, incl. Anguk & Yeouido)
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/london.bagel.museum/
Why go: Believe the hype. LBM’s chewy bagels, whimsical flavors, and carefully styled spaces made it the carb pilgrimage in town—and a social media star. Lines are common; plan accordingly and browse the feed for daily sell-out items. - Greem Café (Yeonnam/Hongdae area)
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greem_cafe/
Why go: Step into a monochrome cartoon. Everything—from chairs to cups—reads like a 2D drawing, which is precisely the point. Beyond the gimmick, it’s a cozy space for a sweet drink and a guaranteed photo op. - Thanks, Oat (Yeonnam/Hongdae)
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thanksoat/
Why go: When you’re ready for something light and nourishing, this beloved spot serves Greek yogurt bowls, granola, fruit-topped plates, and tidy sandwiches alongside coffee and tea—a perfect reset between pastry blitzes. - Teddy Beurre House, (Yongsan)
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/teddy.beurre.house/?hl=en
Why go: With European inspired decor, you are instantly transported to the streets of France. Teddy Bears delight but the pastries are the real stars. Don’t sleep on the pistachio latte.
Honorable Mentions
If you’re building a longer itinerary, add NUDAKE for surreal, design-forward pastries and croissant riffs—Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nu_dake/
Planning Tips for a Better Café Day
- Go early for the good stuff. Popular bakeries sell out of headline pastries fast—especially weekend mornings.
- Expect lines—use Instagram for intel. Most of the cafés above post hours, specials, and temporary closures to their feeds first. Check Stories before you go.
- Use cafés as neighborhood anchors. Build a half-day around a café: Layered or Onion after a Bukchon/Anguk stroll; Greem before vintage shopping in Yeonnam; Thanks, Oat to refuel before a Hongdae gallery or the Gyeongui Line Forest Park.
- Mind Monday/Tuesday closures. Smaller shops often take a weekday off; announcements typically go to Instagram first.
Cafés & Attractions in Seoul
If you are planning an itinerary full of cultural and historical landmarks, add a few cafe pitstops into the mix. Here are some great options near some of the major tourist destinations.
1. Café Onion Anguk – Near Gyeongbokgung Palace & Bukchon Hanok Village
A traditional hanok–meets–modern café that blends Korean architecture with stylish pastries.
- Best Menu Items: Salt bread (buttery, flaky, and sprinkled with sea salt), Pandoro (Italian-style sweet bread), strawberry croissants with cream, yuzu tea, smooth lattes, cold brew, and seasonal treats.
- What to Expect: Just minutes from Gyeongbokgung, it’s a peaceful oasis after palace exploring—with photogenic interiors that reflect old-meets-new Seoul.
- Instagram: @cafe.onion
2. Osulloc Tea House (Bukchon branch) – Near Gyeongbokgung & Insadong
An elegant spot for tea enthusiasts, with a three-story café and retail space dedicated to premium Jeju teas.
- Best Menu Items: Matcha latte, Green Tea Tiramisu, premium Jeju green teas, and unique tea deserts. Also offers beauty products infused with green tea.
- What to Expect: Perfect for a calming break amid heritage sites—the modern interior and matcha menu elevate your cultural stroll.
3. Rain Report (Itaewon) – Close to Namsan & Itaewon shopping
An immersive café experience: indoor “rain” simulates a gentle drizzle from the ceiling, complete with transparent umbrellas and puddle-like flooring.
- Best Menu Items: Sunrise beverage with orange sorbet, espresso-style black lemon sorbet coffee, and the dramatic “Cloud Strawberry Shortcake.”
- What to Expect: A visually striking and mood-driven café—ideal for a sensory break after climbing the N Seoul Tower or shopping in Itaewon.
4. NUDAKE Seoul – Near Gangnam’s shopping and trendy streets
A chic, avant-garde café linked to Gentle Monster—dark, moody, and visually charged.
- Best Menu Items: Peak Cake (squid-ink croissant ring with matcha center), Fog Cake (ombre sponge with cheddar cream), plus mini croissant sliders.
- What to Expect: A dessert gallery in itself—perfect for fashion-forward exploration in Gangnam’s stylish district.
5. Gongmyoung Café – Mapo Area, near Seoul Forest
A cozy, stylish café known for its beautifully layered milk tea.
- Best Menu Item: Gongmyoung Latte—a creamy, visually layered specialty drink.
- What to Expect: A quiet gem perfect for relaxing after a stroll through Seoul Forest or nearby cultural spots.
6. Hakrim Dabang – Jongno / Daehangno Area
A historic “dabang” (traditional café) established in 1956—anchored in literary and cultural history.
- Best Menu Items: Homemade cream cheese cake, parfaits, and classic coffee in a nostalgic setting.
- What to Expect: Once called “the 25th classroom” of Seoul National University, it’s a must for culture lovers exploring nearby theaters and museums.
- Instagram: @hakrim_coffee
Seoul cafe culture is a full-blown urban ritual—one that celebrates culinary creativity, cultural trends, digital habits, and coffee obsessions all into a daily dopamine hit. Whether you’re plotting a two-café afternoon or a week-long pastry pilgrimage, Seoul offers endless opportunities to sip, snap, and stay awhile—no reservations required.
exploring:
This could be one of my favorite entries yet!! My mouth is watering!!
Come to visit, we’ll eat our way through Seoul!