Oreo & injeolmi half-and-half castella cake, Gimpo: Jinsim Castella

My younger sister came to visit today, so we finally made it back to Jinsim Castella, a beloved snack spot in Gurae-dong. She lives far away and always begs to come here whenever she's back home — this is the story of Jinsim Castella, the group-snack favorite of Gurae-dong.

Location and hours of Jinsim Castella Gurae Main Branch

• Address: 525 Gimpohangang 4-ro, 1st floor, units 101, 102, 103, Gimpo-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
• Open 10:00 / Close 21:00
• Closes early once ingredients run out

How's the parking?

Jinsim Castella's Gurae branch has an underground parking lot with 15 minutes free per turnaround, so it's really convenient for a quick pickup. You could also just pull over on the street for a moment, but I actually drove into the lot today — plenty of spots open.

Takeout only, order at the kiosk

Jinsim Castella Gurae branch is a takeout-only shop, and they've expanded so much lately that you can find branches all over Incheon, from Geomdan to Cheongna. You order at the kiosk right by the entrance. The menu board is laid out clearly so picking was easy.

What we ordered: half-and-half cream combo

That signature nutty, sweet castella smell was already drifting through the shop. They sell everything from original castella to mocha, chocolate, mugwort, and more — fluffy, soft cake with the nutty flavor of egg and milk, and you can add whipped cream on top to suit your taste. Today I went with a half-and-half cream combo.

• Jinsim Castella - oreo cream + injeolmi (sweet rice cake) cream
• Grapefruit sour ade

At Jinsim Castella Gurae branch you can freely grab whatever disposables you need for takeout — forks, knives, and wet wipes are all set up by the entrance, handy when you're planning to share with a group. Since the cake is so big, a knife is a must-have item★

Grapefruit sour ade

It was hot on the way over so we also ordered a grapefruit sour ade. Ever since getting pregnant I've been weirdly drawn to fizzy, sparkling drinks, and this one hit the spot — tangy and bubbly, really delicious. It suited the hot weather perfectly. I've been here many times so I know this for a fact: this place is genuinely great for drinks. Lattes, coffee, all of it is good.

Why it makes a good group gift or hospital-visit snack

The packaging is clean and the castella itself is huge, so it's great for gifting to people around you. This giant castella isn't overly sweet, so it's popular both as a hospital-visit snack and as a daycare group gift. I even ordered one once to give to my new neighbors when I was moving.

Oreo cream castella

As soon as we got home we opened up the Jinsim Castella box. First up was the oreo cream castella. The distinct cookie flavor of Oreo blends with the sweet cream — it wasn't too sweet at all, a flavor even little kids would love.

Injeolmi cream castella

Of the two, the injeolmi cream was my personal favorite. If you like injeolmi, you absolutely have to try this combo. The nutty, toasty flavor of injeolmi cream is fantastic — the fluffy castella layered with that distinct injeolmi aroma was so good.

The verdict on the half-and-half cream combo

There was something fun about alternating bites — oreo, then injeolmi — at Jinsim Castella Gurae-dong. The castella itself is soft and fluffy, so it pairs beautifully even with a generous amount of cream on top. Jinsim Castella Gurae branch, a giant castella specialist that uses antibiotic-free eggs, is a great snack to enjoy solo or to bring along with a group so everyone can pick their favorite flavor :-)