Yeonnam-dong café: window seat & ₩15,000 Colombia drip, Central Site

What kind of café is Central Site Yeonnam?

Central Site Yeonnam is a Yeonnam-dong café that serves drip coffee and classic tiramisu, with specialty beans including Geisha brewing coffee. I don't know much about coffee and don't usually go for drip, but today I'm introducing a Yeonnam-dong café that's serious about coffee: Central Site. Even a coffee newbie like me ends up trying all sorts of beans here.

If you don't know what to pick, the staff recommend something based on the direction you want. The tiramisu is good too, and when you're worn out from wandering around Yeonnam-dong, you can come here for a coffee and then head back out. You can watch the hand drip being made right in front of you.

Central Site Yeonnam opening hours and parking

• Hours: weekdays 08:00–22:00, opens at 08:30 on weekends
• A Yeonnam-dong coffee favorite that roasts its own beans
• Sells a classic tiramisu with a pleasantly bitter dark chocolate flavor
• Parking: not available

Central Site is on the way from Yeonnam-dong toward Donggyo-dong, on a big road.

Can you smell the beans and watch a hand drip on the ground floor?

On the ground floor of Central Site Yeonnam, they grind the beans and let you smell them. It's not just a place that serves coffee; it's a local roastery café that roasts its own beans. I even watched them put the beans in the filter and brew before heading upstairs.

Sniffing around, I realized the iced Americano I usually drink has a simple smell and taste, while depending on the bean, you get bright, citrusy aromas or bitter ones.

It really is a café that takes coffee seriously.

Central Site Yeonnam floors and seating

The ground floor of Central Site Yeonnam has the brewing bar and roasting lab, the 2nd floor is a relaxed hall, and the 3rd floor is a rooftop, so sit wherever suits you.

A window seat on a day that looked like rain

It looked like it might rain, so I took a window seat to watch the outside while I ate, though the chairs are a bit uncomfortable.

A drop or two fell, and the moment I sat down to watch, the rain stopped as if on cue and the sun came out. Haha.

What are the stairs, table service and restroom like?

This is what the 2nd floor looks like. Maybe because the stairs up are narrow, they bring your coffee all the way to your upstairs seat when you order. Oh, one drawback: the restroom is so dark you can't touch up your makeup.

Central Site Yeonnam menu in Yeonnam-dong

Central Site Yeonnam sells cookies and several kinds of tiramisu. I'm not sure the strawberry one even counts as tiramisu, though.

If I'm having coffee anyway, I figured I'd try the pricey one: Colombia Las Flores Duo Cherry Velvet and Java Hydro Honey. Way too long a name, so I ordered the second one!

How do the 15,000-won Colombian drip and classic tiramisu taste?

The Colombian brewing coffee at Central Site Yeonnam was ₩15,000 a cup, and it was more refreshing than acidic, so it tasted almost like a beverage. I can't believe I drank a ₩15,000 cup of coffee. It came in something like a liquor glass (yangju glass) with a huge piece of ice. Not much coffee, though.

The aroma notes listed pineapple and mixed fruit, so I expected some acidity, but it's not the coffee you'd imagine. It's so refreshing it tastes almost like a drink. Maybe because of the big ice, it was less acidic and smoother than when I smelled the beans.

Ta-da, this is the Central Site classic tiramisu. Since it's a coffee specialist, the bread at the bottom is clearly soaked in coffee, and the cream layer is super thick. It's so neat and pretty that it almost doesn't look like food.

The cream is fairly firm, so it breaks apart like this.

Is Central Site Yeonnam worth it if you don't know much about coffee?

Central Site Yeonnam stuck with me because the coffee was so special! Even if you don't know much about coffee, try the hand drip once: the aroma is rich and it isn't the taste you'd expect, so you'll be surprised. I recommend Central Site in Yeonnam-dong. 👍🏻👍🏻