Gangnam autumn dessert café, fig cream cheese pie: Upper and Under

Where is Upper and Under, and what are its hours?

Upper and Under (어퍼앤언더) is a dessert café at 28 Gangnam-daero 102-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul. It uses the basement level, 1st floor and 2nd floor, and is open daily 11:00–22:00. Come out of Exit 6 of Sinnonhyeon Station on the Shinbundang Line and it's the closest walk~

That day I had eaten around Yeoksam and was walking it off, and I wanted a fig dessert, so I dropped in~! Upper and Under is a Gangnam Station café I visit a lot, because it has lots of baked goods and cakes and they're delicious haha

The weather has been so, so good lately ㅠㅠ Maybe it was the warm sunlight, but the café's exterior was just so pretty.

What autumn desserts does Upper and Under have?

There were lots of seasonal items you can only get in autumn, like Mont Blanc (chestnut), fig and pistachio~ Autumn has really arrived, hasn't it!!! You could feel it right from the dessert menu~ Even in the cakes!! hahaha

The baked goods included financiers, egg tarts, crème brûlée, pies, madeleines and canelés. I picked three: one fig pie~ plus a pistachio financier and a pistachio canelé haha. I got the pistachio ones because my younger sibling likes pistachio.

Right next to the baked goods there were also a vanilla Basque cheese coffee cake and an Oreo chocolate Basque cheesecake. There were lots more fruit cakes by the order counter too, but I forgot to take photos;;;;ㅠㅠㅠ Anyway, Upper and Under has so many kinds of cake that choosing is half the fun!!!

I figured you'd want to see the dessert lineup in more detail, so I filmed a video too~~ Oh, they had an Earl Grey fig madeleine here too..? lol ㅠ I thought it was a lemon madeleine and skipped it, what a shame~~

What to drink at Upper and Under

I took a photo of the café's drink menu too. That day we ordered one hot Americano and one matcha cream oat latte haha. Can't resist matcha~~~

The cream lattes seem to be where the good stuff is. There's an einspänner (coffee topped with cream), salty caramel, pistachio, matcha cream oat latte, matcha pistachio and coconut matcha, and the einspänner is good too. Since it's Gangnam, lots of foreign visitors come, so there's a separate English menu as well.

How were the fig pie and pistachio desserts?

On the fig pie, fig mixed with cream cheese sits on top of the pie. The pistachio canelé and pistachio financier also have more crushed pistachio and cream spread on them than I expected.

All the items we ordered came out~~ The colors are so pretty ㅠㅠㅠ Doesn't a more colorful dessert always photograph better?? Figs are in season right now, so you know you've got to eat plenty!

However I look at it, I think I chose the desserts well that day, I love it haha

Is the matcha cream latte very sweet?

The matcha cream latte at Upper and Under was less sweet than I expected, so it suited me really well!! I can't handle drinks that are too sweet, but the bitterness of the matcha really came through, and the balance with the nutty, sweet café latte was great.

Normally I only have iced Americano with desserts, but having the sweet-and-nutty combo for the first time in a while made everything taste even better haha

Upper and Under's receipt review event: a free financier

When I visited, Upper and Under gave one free financier if you wrote a receipt review haha. Everyone, join the event and get one~~

I chose the Mont Blanc financier!! I ate it at home, and it was super crisp and the chestnut pieces were plump and satisfying.

Is the fig pie good if you don't like very sweet desserts?

The fig pie at Upper and Under didn't have a strong tartness like other fruits; it tasted calm yet sweet. Figs have that subtle sweetness and soft texture, right haha

Desserts with figs let you enjoy the taste of the fruit itself, and they have another charm when eaten with cake or cream!!! I think people who like sweet desserts but find overly intense sweetness a burden would like fig desserts too?? I loved the soft texture in each bite and the fig's gentle fruity flavor, and the crunchy pop of the fig seeds was totally my thing.

Inside the fig pie there's granola mixed with syrup, and rather than eating it on its own, it's tastier eaten together with the fig and cream cheese!!

That day my mom took lovely photos of me at the café, so the weather was nice~ the desserts were delicious~ it was just a wonderful day!! If you like baked goods or are looking for autumn seasonal desserts, I highly recommend Upper and Under!!