Watermelon juice & Shine Muscat sando: Yeoksam café Roastery Stan

An afternoon enjoying drinks that let the fruit's true flavor shine, paired with a nutty, savory cream sando

How to walk to Roastery Stan Yeoksam Main from Yeoksam Station Exit 3

I was craving a cool fruit drink, so I headed to Roastery Stan Yeoksam Main. It's about 378m from Yeoksam Station Exit 3, so it wasn't hard to walk there. Turning into the alley, the orange sign and the watermelon juice banner set up in front of the shop caught my eye right away.

Boxes of watermelon and tomatoes were stacked in front of the shop. It naturally felt like a place that makes its drinks with actual fruit.

Maybe because I visited on a hot day, the moment I saw the watermelon juice banner out front, I was craving cold fresh fruit juice.

Inside Roastery Stan Yeoksam Main: the space and four house beans

Inside Roastery Stan Yeoksam Main, dark-colored walls, tiled floors, and gold-framed tables all came together. Rather than a flashy, large-scale café, it had the vibe of a comfortable neighborhood café that's easy to enjoy a drink in. Sunlight came in nicely by the window too, making it a good spot to rest for a bit in the afternoon.

Several coffee concentrate dispensers were set up at the counter. It was distinctive that the beans' characteristics were categorized as Deep Sleep, Deep Yellow, Deep Red, and Deep Black. It was a good Yeoksam café not just for fruit drinks but also for picking coffee to your taste.

What we ordered at Roastery Stan Yeoksam Main and what it cost

On this visit I ordered watermelon juice, fresh nectarine juice, and a Shine Muscat cream sando.

• Watermelon juice ₩5,500
• Fresh nectarine juice ₩5,500
• Shine Muscat cream sando ₩9,500

Watermelon juice, 5,500 won

The watermelon juice was a cool pink that looked refreshing just to look at. Rather than syrup-heavy sweetness, you could taste the clean, cooling flavor of watermelon itself. If you usually like rich, very sweet drinks, this might feel a bit plain, but if you like fruit's natural flavor, it's easy to drink without any guilt.

Fresh nectarine juice, 5,500 won

The fresh nectarine juice had a bright peach aroma and a soft, fleshy texture. This one also didn't taste artificially sweetened — it tasted healthy, like fresh fruit blended as is. It had a slightly heavier texture than the watermelon juice, and the nectarine's characteristic tanginess came through subtly.

Neither drink tasted of syrup, so they were clean and refreshing when I was thirsty. They weren't overly sweet, so they paired well with the Shine Muscat cream sando too. If you're looking for fresh fruit drinks that aren't sweet, this is worth picking from the menu at cafés near Yeoksam Station.

Shine Muscat cream sando, 9,500 won: how sweet is it?

The Shine Muscat cream sando had a generous amount of cream between slices of white bread, topped with Shine Muscat grapes. Looking at the cross-section, the cream was packed in, so it looked like it would be heavy and sweet — but when I actually tried it, it wasn't as sweet as I expected.

Rather than the sweet, light taste of vegetable-based cream, you could really taste the nutty, soft flavor of real dairy cream. Even with a generous amount of cream, the sweetness didn't linger in the mouth for long, so I could eat it comfortably to the end.

Eating the soft bread, nutty cream, and the pop of the Shine Muscat grapes together in one bite gave a nice texture too. The grape's fresh sweetness naturally matched the mild cream. It was a menu item that even people who don't usually enjoy sweet desserts could eat fairly comfortably.

It's a good side when a drink alone feels like not quite enough, and it also worked well as a filling little snack. If you're looking for a not-too-sweet cream dessert at a café in Yeoksam-dong, I'd recommend the Shine Muscat cream sando.

Is Roastery Stan Yeoksam Main worth a visit?

Overall, the menu at Roastery Stan Yeoksam Main leaned toward bringing out the natural flavor of fruit and cream rather than strong sweetness. The watermelon juice and fresh nectarine juice had no added syrup and tasted healthy, and the Shine Muscat cream sando was likewise centered on the nutty flavor of real dairy cream.

If you usually like fruit juices and cream desserts that aren't too sweet, this place should suit you well. With a range of options from fresh fruit juice to coffee, it also seemed like a fine spot to visit with people who have different tastes. Next time, I'd like to pick my own beans and try the coffee too.

When you want to rest for a bit near Yeoksam Station with a cool fruit juice, Roastery Stan Yeoksam Main is worth stopping by. Among cafés in Yeoksam, I liked that you can enjoy drinks that bring out fresh fruit's natural flavor alongside desserts that aren't too sweet.

Roastery Stan Yeoksam Main: address, hours and closing day

• Address: 52 Nonhyeon-ro 85-gil, 1F Unit 114, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• Location: About 378m from Yeoksam Station Exit 3
• Hours: Mon–Fri 07:00-17:00
• Saturday: Closed
• Sunday: 11:00-20:00