Yeonnam-dong roastery café: Guji Haro Wachu & roast talk, Central Site

There are countless cafés around Yeonnam-dong and Hongdae, but it's surprisingly hard to find a roastery café where you can really enjoy the character of the beans and carefully made hand drip coffee..!

Today I visited Central Site Yeonnam (센트럴사이트 연남점), a local roastery hot spot where you can try specialty beans hand-picked by a professional roaster, brewed coffee, and a steady-seller dessert! I fell for the combination of fragrant Guatemala and Ethiopia drip coffee with classic tiramisu, so here's my honest review!

Getting to Central Site Yeonnam and parking

Central Site Yeonnam is in the Central Site building at 29-1 Yeonhui-ro, Mapo-gu, Seoul, and you can walk there from Exit 3 of Hongik Univ. Station. Come out of Exit 3, walk up the main road toward Yeonnam-dong past Donggyo-dong Samgeori, and you'll find it just to the right of Tae Guksu (태국수), so it's easy to spot.

• By bus: Get off at the Yeonnam-dong stop and head toward the GS25 at the intersection, and you'll see the neat-looking storefront.
• By car: Use the private parking lot (Urban Port), a 1–2 minute walk from the shop.

What can you experience at the 1F brewing bar?

The 1st floor has a roasting lab where roasting and QC happen, plus a live brewing bar, so you can watch the barista carefully make hand drip coffee right in front of you.

At the 1F brewing bar, the barista let me smell the aroma of each bean one by one, which made coffee really easy and friendly to understand.

They also kindly explained everything from the roasting process to the extraction characteristics, so I understood coffee much more deeply and easily!

It was so fascinating!!

The atmosphere is great too,,,

Dessert options at Central Site Yeonnam

They had a really wide range of tiramisu, the dessert everyone knows, so you can pick one to your taste!

There are lots of cookies too, so I think they'd go nicely with your coffee :)

2F hall and 3F rooftop: the space floor by floor

Step inside Central Site Yeonnam and a stylish, charming space spread over three floors catches your eye.

The 3rd floor is an open rooftop, perfect for feeling the breeze and spending a lovely time when the weather is good.

Head up to the 2nd floor and a warm, airy natural-mood hall with wood-toned tables opens up, a great atmosphere for a relaxed chat.

How do the Guatemala and Ethiopia Guji Haro Wachu drips taste?

The Guatemala brewed coffee at Central Site Yeonnam was well balanced yet bright, with a clean finish, and the Ethiopia Guji Haro Wachu had a gorgeous, radiant aroma and an elegant fruity flavor that lingered all through my mouth. I loved it!

Classic tiramisu with the drip coffee

The classic tiramisu I had with the drip coffee is said to follow a traditional Italian recipe, and the moist, fluffy sponge with smooth mascarpone cream gave a deep, rich texture!

The pairing of bittersweet, fragrant specialty hand drip coffee with soft, sweet tiramisu was perfect, and every bite made me sigh in admiration. A true Hongdae gem... wow

Who is Central Site Yeonnam recommended for?

With the friendly guidance of a professional barista, plus more than 10 kinds of specialty beans and high-quality hand drip coffee to explore in depth, it was a really satisfying visit.

If you want a fragrant, refined cup of coffee in the alleys of Yeonnam-dong, or a happy dessert break, I confidently and strongly recommend this Yeonnam-dong café, Central Site Yeonnam! Come experience the deep, rich world of coffee with the people you love!

• Name: Central Site Yeonnam
• Address: 29-1 Yeonhui-ro, Mapo-gu, Seoul, South Korea (Central Site building)
• Location tip: Exit 3 of Hongik Univ. Station, past Donggyo-dong Samgeori toward Yeonnam-dong, on the main road to the right of Tae Guksu
• Opening hours: Mon–Fri 08:00–22:00 / Sat–Sun 08:30–22:00
• Parking: Private lot (Urban Port), 1–2 minutes on foot
• Layout: 1F brewing bar & roasting lab, 2F natural-mood hall tables and restroom, 3F rooftop