Café near Hongik Univ. Station for flourless lemon terrine: Jitheunsan

What kind of café is Jitheunsan?

Jitheunsan (짙은산) is a terrine dessert specialist in Yeonnam-dong, close to Hongik Univ. Station, and its cakes are made without any wheat flour. I heard there was a café making really good cakes without flour, so I went, and because it's flourless, my stomach felt great afterwards.

Getting to Jitheunsan, parking and opening hours

The address is 27 Seongmisan-ro 29an-gil, Mapo-gu, Seoul, 1st floor. It's a 943 m walk from Exit 3 of Hongik Univ. Station (Line 2, AREX, Gyeongui-Jungang Line), and about a 2-minute walk from the Yeonnam underpass.

There's no parking at Jitheunsan. Please use a nearby lot: the Yeonnam-dong Public Parking Lot, the Yeonnam 4 on-street public lot, or the Yeonnam 3 Public Parking Lot.

It's open daily 08:30–23:00, and you can order until the last order at 22:30.

What's the atmosphere inside Jitheunsan?

The inside of Jitheunsan is cozy, and I think it's just right if you're looking for a café in Hongdae with a good vibe. The window seats are great, and if you head further in, the back area feels really warm and friendly too.

Jitheunsan menu and terrine prices

This time I ordered the lemon terrine cake for ₩8,500 and the Einspänner (coffee topped with sweet cream) for ₩7,000.

Terrine is a cake made without flour, so it's much denser and richer, with a nuttier flavor. Jitheunsan's terrine goes perfectly with an iced Americano (or a hot one). Here are the signature terrine menu items:

• Chestnut terrine cake ₩8,500
• Terrine parfait ₩11,500 (seasonal menu)
• Raspberry cream cheese terrine cake ₩10,000
• Sweet potato terrine cake ₩9,000
• Matcha mammoth terrine cake ₩10,000
• Oreo terrine cake ₩8,500
• Mugwort injeolmi (rice cake) terrine cake ₩9,000
• Pistachio cherry terrine cake ₩9,000
• Cream cheese terrine cake ₩9,000
• Matcha terrine cake ₩9,000
• Lemon terrine cake ₩8,500

Choosing a terrine to go with an Einspänner

Jitheunsan has quite a variety of terrines, so choosing took me forever. I really wanted an Einspänner, but I was told the signature chestnut terrine has a fairly sweet base... so I agonized over what to pair it with.

Anyway, when I went further inside, the seating area was so cute and cozy that I fell for it right away. It's a great café for a weekend or weekday date, or to come alone and decorate your diary, write or read a book.

How does Jitheunsan's lemon terrine cake taste?

Jitheunsan's lemon terrine cake (₩8,500) isn't flour-based, yet it's dense and moist, full of tangy-sweet lemon flavor. The drink and cake came out quickly, and I dug into the lemon terrine first, taking my time to savor it.

Wow, it's not flour-based, but it's seriously dense and super tangy yet sweet, packed with lemon, so the texture is really moist and the flavor is so fresh.

What's Jitheunsan's Einspänner like?

Jitheunsan's Einspänner is ₩7,000: an unsweetened coffee topped with sweet cream. This is honestly my favorite drink. These days I usually order an iced Americano, but if you want a drink that isn't sweet with sweet cream on top, an Einspänner is really great. So I ordered it, and of course it was delicious.

You can scoop up the cream with a spoon first, or eat the cream while drinking the espresso underneath it at the same time. Both ways are really delicious.

Free lemon sorbet and the summit-stone sign

At the end, Jitheunsan gave me a lemon sorbet as a freebie, and aaah, it was so good! A refreshing way to finish.

Outside the café, true to the name Jitheunsan, there's a sign made of a stone marker like the ones at a mountain summit, which makes a great photo spot. The inside has what people these days call "neujoh" (느좋), a good vibe. If you want a tasty cake that's easy on your stomach, I recommend Jitheunsan, a café in Yeonnam-dong, Hongdae.