Yeonnam-dong espresso café for peach melba and romano: Pip

Pip Espresso Bar is an espresso-focused café in Yeonnam-dong. I'd visited before on a cool, pleasant day and kept missing the espresso I had that time, so I went back again.

Pip Espresso Bar in Yeonnam-dong: indoors instead of the terrace in summer

Pip Espresso Bar is an espresso café with a house-like feel on Seongmisan-ro 29-gil in Yeonnam-dong. In spring the outdoor tables were the popular spot, but on a hot day you end up heading straight inside.

Yeonnam-dong in Seoul just keeps getting better the more you visit. I love this kind of house-café vibe. It's crowded like the area near Hongik University Station, but there's still a relaxed feel to it.

I remember sitting at an outdoor table in spring, soaking up the sun — I had a leisurely espresso here before suddenly heading off to Jamsil Baseball Stadium. Back then the terrace seats were fiercely contested, but now I just bolt straight inside.

Seats and atmosphere inside Pip Espresso Bar

Honestly, the interior vibe of Pip Espresso Bar is stylish and really nice too — good for when you're chasing that trendy feel. They also made good use of the corridor space for seating. I've sat in this kind of spot many times before.

Head further in and you feel a different concept and mood. At first glance it feels cool and cold, but the lighting adds a warm touch.

She wanted to sit comfortably in the furthest corner, so that's where we settled. Pip is a Yeonnam-dong café known for its pretty terrace seats, but the interior overall was stylish too, and of course the air conditioning was blasting and nice and cool.

A café with tons of espresso options — what we ordered

We started with the whole reason we came: espresso. Pip Espresso Bar really has a huge espresso menu. It lives up to its reputation as a top espresso spot in Yeonnam-dong. There were also plenty of signature drinks. Is it a cream coffee specialist too? I was curious, but neither of us budged an inch — straight espresso it was. And oddly enough, it's a café that also sells cocktails and beer. These days I've become a total lightweight, so even daytime beer feels risky, haha.

There were plenty of financiers, great to pair with coffee for dessert. I hadn't noticed at the order counter, but walking toward the seating area a strong butter smell hit me. I thought about ordering a financier too, but we were already full from lunch and gave up. That butter smell was so good — next time I have to come back and try one.

Since it was hot, we decided on a pretty ice cream dessert. Sweet ice cream paired with intense espresso~

Espresso, ₩4,500 — a heavy shot with a teaspoon of sugar underneath

Espresso _ ₩4,500. Pip Espresso Bar's basic espresso has a teaspoon of sugar sitting under a well-pulled shot. You can really taste the intensity of the shot properly.

You'd think it'd just be bitter, but once the sugar melts in properly you get sweetness too. A heavy, solid base espresso — a menu item I really liked. It seems like it'd be crazy bitter, but thanks to the sugar's role, it comes out deep and concentrated but with a delicious, pleasant bitterness.

Romano, ₩4,500 — coffee that tastes like tequila with lemon

Romano _ ₩4,500. It felt like drinking tequila. After a bitter shot of espresso, biting into the lemon made it taste like tequila even though it's coffee. The espresso + lemon + sugar combo brought to mind tequila + lemon + salt. It felt less like a café and more like a whiskey bar.

That guy, eating it up eagerly.

Peach melba, ₩12,000 — yellow peach, sherbet, and vanilla ice cream combo

Peach melba _ ₩12,000. Taken separately, the flavors were pretty much what you'd imagine: yellow peach, tangy sherbet, and vanilla ice cream with cherries.

But eat them together and you understand exactly why this dish exists. The soft vanilla ice cream and tangy sherbet go really well together. The yellow peach and cherries add texture, and the raspberry sauce in the middle ties it all together. Each element is common on its own, but combined it becomes a dessert you think, wow, this is really good.

Wrapping up the revisit to Pip Espresso Bar

I'd come before as a Yeonnam-dong terrace café visit, but this time I spent my time indoors. The interior atmosphere was just as good — a proper feel-good Yeonnam-dong café. If you want to feel the charm of espresso, I recommend Pip.