Gangnam Station café, four items for ₩31,600: Something About Coffee

I was suddenly craving something pretty and delicious for dessert… I'd just had lunch near Sinnonhyeon and was looking for a good café nearby when I spotted a really pretty spot right in front of me. This is <Something About Coffee>, a café near Gangnam Station.

There seemed to be a lot of pretty cafés in the area, but this one's desserts looked especially good, so I went in. Honestly I'm more into dessert than coffee or drinks, so dessert quality is what matters to me…

What each floor of Something About Coffee is like, and the 3rd-floor seats

Something About Coffee uses all three floors — 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. The moment I walked in, the whole place felt antique and pretty. There's terrace seating too, so on cool days like these, enjoying it outside on the terrace would be nice.

We sat on the 3rd floor, which was quieter and more relaxed than the other floors — I liked that.

Tray return is on the 2nd floor.

The drinks: hojicha choux milk tea and Americano

There were so many menu items I browsed through them all, and I found a new item — a hojicha choux milk tea! My friend and I both like milk tea, so we ordered this. There were also lattes, coffee, non-coffee options, teas, and sparkling ades, but I went classic with an Americano too — honestly, when you're eating sweet dessert, you need something a bit bitter and light.

A look at the cake showcase

And then, the main event — the cake display! Ah, so many kinds of cakes, all so varied and looking absolutely delicious ㅠㅠ How can cake visuals be this aggressive… I actually came here because of the cake, and gâteau or cheesecake style is my favorite kind of cake, and they were all like that! Dense, rich style, you know that kind… And the flavors — hwangchi cheese, mugwort red bean injeolmi, matcha oreo — were all exactly my kind of thing, so I wanted to buy them all, but I ended up picking one with fig, which seemed to be a seasonal item.

But there were other desserts besides cakes too, and while browsing I almost bought everything… Why does everything look this pretty and delicious?

What we ordered and what it cost

• Americano ₩6,500
• Hojicha choux milk tea ₩8,500
• Black sesame fig cheesecake ₩9,800
• Lemon Earl Grey cookie ₩6,800
• Total ₩31,600

Seeing pretty desserts just makes me happy…

Americano, ₩6,500

The Americano was appropriately cool and strong, perfect with the sweet desserts. Good that it wasn't too acidic.

Hojicha choux milk tea, ₩8,500

There's a choux pastry sitting on top of the milk tea, and inside it there's cold cream that's almost ice-cream-like in texture, which I actually liked even more — sweet and delicious. The hojicha flavor came through strongly without being overly sweet. I expected it to look super sweet, but! Of course it is sweet, but it was also smooth, nutty, and had a nice tea aroma — I enjoyed it a lot.

Black sesame fig cheesecake, ₩9,800

I agonized over this one but ended up ordering it because I was craving fig, and it was even better than I expected. The visual was already great, but the taste was just as great. Very, very soft black sesame cream with fig on top, and fig cheesecake underneath.

It wasn't just plain cheesecake — it was a soft, sweet cheesecake with the little pop of fig seeds, so overall it was harmonious and delicious. The black sesame cream was nutty and paired well with the cake. Most of all, I loved that the black sesame flavor came through clearly. Speaking as someone with an old-lady palate… I've seen so many desserts labeled 'black sesame flavor' that barely taste like black sesame at all, but this one truly delivers.

The fig and cheesecake combination was better than I expected. The fragrant, refreshing taste unique to fig against the heavy, sweet richness of the cheesecake…

There were dried figs inside the cheesecake too, which added nice texture and sweetness. There's a generous amount of black sesame cream, and since it's the kind of dairy cream that melts smoothly, it wasn't greasy at all — very delicious.

Lemon Earl Grey cookie, ₩6,800

I like both Earl Grey and lemon, and I was suddenly craving a cookie, so I ordered this. The look alone already promised it couldn't be bad, and it really did exceed expectations. A lot of things labeled 'Earl Grey' don't actually taste much like Earl Grey, but this one had real Earl Grey flavor and aroma.

And the lemon ganache in the middle was rich, dense, and sweet, with a soft touch of acidity — overall harmonious and delicious. It wasn't a sharp, tangy lemon flavor, more of a gentle lemon flavor. I do like desserts with that sharp, tangy lemon acidity too, but I think this one will be less polarizing.

It had that dense texture that leaves teeth marks, and the cookie base under the ganache was chewy too — exactly the texture I love. It seems like it'd be a heavy dessert, but the freshness of the lemon keeps it from getting cloying too quickly.

Is Something About Coffee worth a stop near Gangnam Station?

<Something About Coffee>, a café near Gangnam Station! The bitter, strong Americano that's perfect with dessert; the soft hojicha choux milk tea where the hojicha flavor really comes through; the black sesame fig cheesecake with its nutty black sesame cream and sweet cheesecake with popping fig texture; the lemon Earl Grey cookie with its softly tangy lemon ganache and fragrant, sweet Earl Grey — every single item was delicious, and I felt the dessert quality here was quite high.

Needless to say the cakes all look delicious, and the cookie had such great texture with clear flavors all around — I was very satisfied. I feel like anything you order here would be good… If you're looking for a great dessert café near Gangnam Station, I highly recommend this one!