Mangpo Station café with kaya jam toast and a keyring corner: Hongrad

I was looking for a café near Mangpo Station and ended up visiting Hongrad Mangpo Station Branch.

These days when I pick a café, coffee taste matters, but I also care quite a bit about how comfortable the seating is and how varied the desserts are. This place turned out to be bigger inside than I expected, with a good variety of seats, so from the moment I walked in I felt like I'd be able to sit back and relax.

So that day I ordered both drinks and dessert and took my time enjoying the café. :)

What we ordered at Hongrad Mangpo Station Branch, and what it cost

At Hongrad Mangpo Station Branch that day I ordered three things: a hot Americano for ₩5,500, iced omija (five-flavor berry) tea for ₩5,500, and kaya jam toast (kaya jam + unsalted butter) for ₩6,000.

• Hot Americano ₩5,500
• Iced omija tea ₩5,500
• Kaya jam toast (kaya jam + unsalted butter) ₩6,000

I basically always drink Americano at cafés, so that day too I went with a hot one. A warm cup of coffee was nice to talk over, and the person I went with ordered the iced omija tea, which had a sweet-tart flavor, definitely different from the Americano. It seemed like a good combo for going together even when your tastes differ, since you can each pick what you like.

🍞 Kaya jam toast with a hot Americano: how it tasted

And the thing I was most looking forward to that day was the kaya toast.

Kaya toast is the combo of sweet kaya jam and toast, and yeah, it went great with coffee. I took a sip of Americano, then a bite of kaya toast, back and forth, and the sweet dessert paired really well with the bitter coffee.

Above all, Hongrad doesn't just have toast — there's brownie, croffle, and other desserts too, so I want to try something else next time I visit. I was actually debating between the brownie and the croffle while looking at the menu, but I'd already ordered the kaya jam toast, so I saved those for next time. 😂

🛋️ Inside Hongrad: sofa seats, group tables and more room than expected

Visiting in person, what I liked most was really how spacious the inside was. Even with a decent number of people around, the variety of seating made it feel less crowded, and beyond the regular tables there were also sofa seats, which were comfortable to sit in.

There were also group tables where several people can sit together, so it seemed like it would work well for a get-together with a group of friends too. I personally prefer sitting and talking over drinks rather than just grabbing a quick coffee and leaving, and Hongrad felt like a space that's good for that kind of relaxed hangout.

So it seems like a good option not just for people looking for a good café near Mangpo Station, but also for meeting up with friends.

🧸 The keyring corner in the middle of the café

And something unexpectedly fun at Hongrad was browsing the keyrings.

There's a spot right in the middle of the café where you can browse and buy keyrings. Usually at cafés I only look at the drinks and desserts before leaving, but here, since the keyrings are right in the middle, I naturally ended up browsing while waiting for my drink. 👀

There were cute ones to look at one by one, and it seemed like a good idea if you visit with a friend — you could each pick one out to match as a friendship item. If you go as a couple, picking one each to match could be nice too. Since it's not just about drinking coffee but also having these little things to browse, time passed faster than I expected haha.

Is Hongrad Mangpo Station a good Suwon café for friends and couples?

After actually visiting Hongrad Mangpo Station Branch this time, it felt less like a place to just grab a coffee and leave and more like a café for comfortably spending time with a friend or partner.

The hot Americano and iced omija tea I ordered were both nice to enjoy according to your own taste, and the kaya toast worked well alongside coffee too. I especially liked that the inside is spacious with sofa seats and space for groups, and since there's variety in other desserts like brownie or croffle, I want to try different items next time.

Above all, being able to browse the keyrings in the middle of the café meant that visiting with a friend, you could spend some low-key time going drink → dessert → keyring browsing in order. 🧸 If you're looking for a café near Mangpo Station to chat comfortably in, check out Hongrad Mangpo Station Branch! Next time I go, I think I'll try the brownie or croffle I missed this time. ☕️🤎