Forest café in Sangbuk, Ulsan: Grandma-approved red bean bun at MUG

There are lots of big cafés in Ulsan, close to Busan, so I visit them fairly often. This time I went to MUG (카페 먹), where you can enjoy a forest atmosphere! 🌳 There's a forest path out back and you can get close to nature, so I really recommend it to anyone who loves grass and trees haha.

What does the MUG building look like?

MUG is a black building that blends in with the forest. Just like the café's name (meok means ink), the building is black too, so the exterior was striking from the start.

I heard the space was built so people wouldn't forget the pain of a huge wildfire that swept through the area. Knowing that meaning made the place feel a little more special.

The view through MUG's floor-to-ceiling windows

Inside MUG there's a wide open space, and the way the sunlight came in was really pretty.

In front you can see mountains and water, and the reflections looked beautiful, while the back looks onto the forest. Just sitting there taking in nature through the big windows put me in a good mood. ☀️

What breads does the MUG bakery have?

The display case at MUG had a huge variety: salt bread, white rolls, injeolmi (roasted soybean rice cake) rolls, squid ink red bean bread, cream cheese cinnamon rolls and more. The bread here looked really good! 🍞 I browsed one by one and took photos haha. I heard the salt bread is great too,

and the white roll and injeolmi roll are said to be popular too.

I spotted the squid ink chestnut red bean bun and picked one out. My grandmother likes red bean bread so much that she eats it every day, so I wanted to take one home for her.

The cream cheese cinnamon roll looked amazing too, and everyone's eyes must work the same, because I saw it all over the reviews!

Reviews also said to try the real corn bread and the olive cheese ciabatta, and with cute melon bread and even Lamington cake, I thought it'd be worth visiting just for dessert. 🥐

What I picked at MUG: all black

At MUG we ordered a squid ink garlic baguette and a squid ink chestnut red bean bun, plus a café latte and a Meok black latte. Since we were at MUG, we decided to go all black and chose the squid ink garlic baguette haha.

For drinks, I ordered a café latte and a Meok black latte.

I tried the bread first. Two jet-black round buns, so cute haha 🖤

Squid ink chestnut red bean bun: the best red bean bread grandma has had lately

I cut off a little of MUG's squid ink chestnut red bean bun just to taste it and packed the rest for my grandmother. And she said it was the best red bean bread she'd had lately! Haha. She's pretty picky, so when she liked it I figured they must really know how to bake.

Squid ink garlic baguette: garlic sauce and cream cheese

A squid ink garlic baguette is a hard combo to get wrong, right? Garlic sauce plus cream cheese, and I enjoyed it. The garlic flavor and the soft cream cheese go well together. Next time I'd like to pick it along with other breads.

What does the Meok black latte taste like?

The Meok black latte is MUG's signature drink, with a condensed milk base and cold brew. At first I thought it'd be just like a condensed milk latte, but I felt a unique, ink-like flavor too, and it was unusual and tasty.

Thanks to the condensed milk it was sweet and smooth. If you like sweet coffee, I recommend it! ☕🤎

Eating tasty bread and drinks while looking at the forest through the big windows put me in a great mood.

MUG's outdoor seating and forest walk

Outside MUG there's a lot of outdoor seating stretching up the mountain. Shall we step outside and take a walk? 🌿

Out there, there really was so much outdoor seating! As you head uphill, tables keep appearing.

I saw lots of dogs and kids too, and being able to spend relaxed time in such a big space looked like a plus.

There are even tables set right in the mountain, so nature lovers should enjoy looking around.

The path over the ecological pond, and why we turned back (wild boars)

We thought about following the path over MUG's ecological pond up to the lookout. But nobody was around, and I'd heard a lot lately about wild boars coming down, so we ended up turning back lol.

I suggested that if a boar showed up we could just throw the bread we were holding, and my companion said, would it even care about the bread? 🥹 Thinking about it, that's probably true, so we had no plan at all. In the end we both quietly walked back down like scaredy-cats haha.

I searched later and found the lookout is only 5 minutes away, so if you visit, it'd make a nice little walk! The view of MUG from above was gorgeous too.

Who is MUG recommended for?

MUG sits in the forest, so it was nice to get fresh air and see nature. You can enjoy tasty desserts and drinks and then take a walk, so it's a good place to spend a relaxed time near Busan. 🌳

• People looking for a big café near Busan
• People who love green forests and nature
• People looking for a bakery café with lots of breads
• People who want to drink coffee while enjoying the view through big windows
• People who want to spend time outdoors with dogs or kids
• People who want a café and a forest walk in one trip

I especially liked the forest view through the windows and the outdoor walking space. There was a good variety of bread and drinks too, so you can pick to your taste. If you want to feel nature and rest near Busan, visit MUG in Ulsan~ 🍃