Ieung Bridge night-view café in Sejong: chocolate cake at Apere

The other day I had dinner with my second son, and of course we needed dessert after, right? ^^ Going straight home felt like a bit of a letdown, so the two of us hopped in the car and headed to a café. Today's place is a big Sejong café in Boram-dong where you can see the Geumgang River and Ieung Bridge (이응다리) all at once: Apere (아페레).

Where is Apere in Sejong, and how does parking work?

Apere is on the 4th floor of the River Picnic building at 137 Sicheong-daero, Sejong, and you use the building's underground car park. If you register your car at the café, parking is free for up to 6 hours.

On the way there, the huge Apere sign on top of the building jumped out at us from far away. "There it is!" We spotted it right away, haha. The car park entrance was easy to see too, so we slid right in without getting lost. With 6 hours, you can chat away without noticing the time.

• Address: 4th floor, River Picnic, 137 Sicheong-daero, Sejong
• Hours: daily 11:00–23:00
• Last order: 22:00
• Parking: building's underground car park

How big is the inside of Apere?

The interior is split into two areas, and the tables are nicely spaced out. I took the elevator and pressed the 4th floor button, and the moment the doors opened I blurted out, "Oh? It's way bigger than I expected!"

A Sejong café that's relaxing even with kids

The space itself is so roomy that you worry much less about disturbing others when you bring children. It would work just as well for a family outing or a group of friends.

When your kids are small and you take them to a café, you never even smell the coffee because you're watching the next table's reactions. What if they're too loud? What if they run around? Your heart just keeps pounding.

Here the space is so wide that those worries shrink a lot.

The rooftop wrapping around the 4th floor: can you see Ieung Bridge at night?

The star of Apere is the outdoor rooftop. It isn't just on one side: tables are set all the way around the 4th floor, with the Geumgang River flowing in front and Ieung Bridge in view.

Sitting out there at night, the view was a real treat.

If you're looking for a night-view café in Sejong, this is exactly the feel~ Maybe because it was evening, there were few people outside, which made it even nicer to sit quietly.

Apere menu and prices: what did we order?

This time we ordered one americano (₩4,800), one chocolate latte (₩5,800), and the chocolate cake (₩7,000) we couldn't skip. The menu is wide, from coffee to bingsu (shaved ice dessert), meals and snacks, and alcohol.

Coffee, lattes and bingsu

• Coffee (HOT/ICE): espresso ₩4,800, americano ₩4,800, café latte ₩5,800, café mocha ₩6,200, vanilla café latte ₩6,200, brown sugar café latte ₩6,200, Apere Bomb Schpenner (ICE) ₩7,500, affogato ₩7,500
• Lattes (HOT/ICE): brown sugar/green tea latte ₩5,800, black tea latte (milk tea) ₩5,800, chocolate latte ₩5,800
• Bingsu: injeolmi (roasted soybean powder)/black sesame bingsu ₩18,000, Oreo bingsu ₩18,000, apple mango bingsu ₩18,000

Tea, smoothies and juice

• Herbal tea (HOT/ICE): peppermint/chamomile/Earl Grey/hibiscus ₩5,300
• Smoothies (ICE): plain yogurt smoothie ₩6,700, yogurt smoothie (blueberry/mango) ₩7,000, coconut smoothie (+cinnamon) ₩6,700
• Fresh juice & ade (ICE): fresh tomato juice ₩6,700, grapefruit/lemon ade ₩6,200
• Tea (HOT/ICE): lemon/grapefruit/yuja (citron) tea ₩5,800, iced tea (regular) ₩4,300/(zero) ₩4,800

Meals, snacks and alcohol

• Meals & snacks: Apere aglio e olio ₩13,000, Apere risotto (regular/mild) ₩13,000, gorgonzola naan + honey ₩9,500, French bread/brioche ₩6,000/₩7,500, dried pollack + dried persimmon ₩18,000, brie cheese with nuts ₩15,000, 4-item snack platter ₩15,000, nachos (wasabi sauce) ₩5,000, extra sauce ₩1,000
• Alcohol: Apere highball ₩8,500, wine on inquiry, Guinness ₩9,000, Blanc ₩7,500, Stella/Heineken ₩7,000, Budweiser ₩5,300, Cass/Terra ₩4,800, Cass/Heineken (non-alcoholic) ₩4,300/₩5,800

My son had the sweet chocolate latte and I had my americano~ and with the chocolate cake on top, what more can I say, haha. A sip of hot coffee in the cold wind, then a bite of sweet chocolate cake. You all know that taste, right!? We'd eaten a big dinner, but I guess there really is a separate stomach for dessert, haha.

Is the Apere outdoor seating too cold on an autumn night?

On an autumn night the river wind on Apere's rooftop is quite a bit colder than you'd expect. Luckily blankets are provided, so even I, who went without a coat, could hold out.

Actually, I didn't even wear a coat that day. Sitting there, I slowly started to get cold.

One blanket went on the chair, the other over my body, hahaha.

Inside would be warm and comfortable, so I did wonder why I was out here on purpose, but I just love drinking coffee outdoors like this ^^

The Geumgang River and Ieung Bridge in one view

From Apere's rooftop, the Geumgang River flowing in front and the lit-up Ieung Bridge fill your view. My son and I talked about this and that, then sat quietly for a while just looking at the night view.

In the evening, the thoughts that have been in your head all day sometimes come up one by one. Sipping coffee and watching the night view quietly, I found I could put down those tangled thoughts for a while.

It's nothing grand, but it was a time to empty my head for a bit and pick up the energy to go back ^^

Apere: next time I'll come for the sunset

If you go around dusk, I think you could watch the sunset and then the Ieung Bridge night view right after. I visited in the evening, so I only saw the night view.

Sitting here, the thought suddenly hit me: how pretty would it be at sunset~

Coming in the late afternoon, gazing at the Geumgang River, watching the sun go down and then the lights of Ieung Bridge come on one by one would be lovely too.

If you're looking for a Geumgang River view café or an Ieung Bridge café in Sejong, try a rooftop seat on a nice day. I'm sure there are other people like me who sit outside even when it's a little cold, haha.

Dinner, then dessert at Apere~ I wrapped up our Sejong date, just me and my second son, with a quiet view of the Geumgang River at night ^^