Gyeongbokgung café for apple baumkuchen: The Baum

After my friend and I enjoyed our outing around Gyeongbokgung Palace—and a delicious lunch, too—the next stop was naturally dessert! Since we had come all the way to Gyeongbokgung, I wanted somewhere with a nice atmosphere and unusual desserts rather than a typical chain café. That is how we found The Baum Gyeongbokgung Branch (더바움 경복궁점). As a café specializing in baumkuchen, it had such a wide variety, along with plenty of drinks, so choosing was fun. Best of all, we loved settling in by the second-floor window and having a cozy chat over dessert.

The Baum Gyeongbokgung Branch after a Gyeongbokgung outing

The Baum Gyeongbokgung Branch is at 13-2 Jahamun-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul. It is conveniently located for stopping by as you head toward Seochon after exploring Gyeongbokgung, so it made a nice dessert stop after our palace outing.

The café has a first and second floor, and the many kinds of baumkuchen caught my eye as soon as we walked in. At most cafés I look for cake or scones first, but baumkuchen is the star here!

There were so many varieties and shapes that I spent ages looking at them all and wondering what to get, haha.

The drink selection went beyond coffee to include juices and refreshing drinks, so it was easy to choose something that suited both the dessert and our tastes.

Taking a break with a friend by the second-floor window

After ordering, we headed upstairs. The space felt a little like a loft, and with window seats as well, the atmosphere was even nicer than I had expected.

We took a window-side table, which was comfortable for sitting across from each other and chatting, and perfect for taking a slow break after lunch.

When you explore Gyeongbokgung, you end up walking quite a lot without even realizing it. With a cold drink and sweet desserts in front of us, we chatted away and time flew by, haha. I liked being able to enjoy a leisurely dessert break even near such a busy tourist spot.

Brulee apple baumkuchen and yanggaeng cream baumkuchen

We ordered two desserts: brulee apple baumkuchen for ₩7,800 and yanggaeng cream baumkuchen for ₩5,800.

First, the brulee apple baumkuchen has soft custard cream and apple filling inside plain baumkuchen, topped with a sweet, crisp brulee layer.

One bite in, the baumkuchen was soft and moist, followed by the sweetness of the cream and apple filling—totally my kind of dessert! The crisp brulee texture on top meant I could enjoy softness and crunch at once.

The yanggaeng cream baumkuchen was a little plainer in style. It has yanggaeng (sweet red-bean jelly) and choux cream inside soft baumkuchen, and I liked that the bean paste was not as sweet as I expected. I thought yanggaeng would be quite sweet, but paired with the choux cream and baumkuchen, the overall balance was good. I recommend this one if very sweet desserts feel a little overwhelming!

Watermelon juice and green tangerine red orange

The drinks we ordered with the desserts were watermelon juice for ₩7,500 and green tangerine red orange for ₩6,800.

The watermelon juice went down smoothly, as if the watermelon itself had been finely blended. More than anything, it did not taste artificially sweetened; I could really taste the natural flavor and aroma of watermelon.

Since the baumkuchen was sweet, this clean-tasting watermelon juice was actually a great match. The green tangerine red orange immediately drew the eye! The red drink, sliced green tangerine, and green mint leaves made for such pretty colors.

It was properly tangy too, and one sip on a hot day made my mouth feel refreshed—as if the heat had vanished! It is a photogenic drink as well, so it would be lovely to order alongside a sweet dessert.

Receipt review event and Chuseok gift sets

Beyond the desserts to eat in, The Baum Gyeongbokgung Branch also had products that looked great for gifting.

When we visited, limited holiday gift sets were being sold ahead of Chuseok, and I thought gifting baumkuchen instead of the usual holiday present would be something a little different.

And there was another small bit of fun! They had an event where you received a dessert for writing a receipt review, so we joined in too.

The dessert was random, but they gave it to us packaged in a pretty box.

The packaging was so pretty that I briefly considered taking it home... but in the end, we opened it and ate it right there, hahaha.

We came for dessert and thoroughly polished off the complimentary dessert too! The Baum Gyeongbokgung Branch was a nice sweet ending after exploring Gyeongbokgung and having lunch with my friend.

Instead of the usual cakes, it was fun to choose from so many baumkuchen options, and the variety of drinks meant we could enjoy them however we liked. In particular, the moist, sweet brulee apple baumkuchen was exactly my taste! If you are visiting Gyeongbokgung or Seochon and looking for a café with a nice atmosphere, or want to try a different kind of dessert, enjoy a relaxed dessert time with baumkuchen. :)