Seocho cake shop, 53,000 won peach berry No.1 since Mullae: Chef Cho

These days when picking a cake, pretty visuals matter, but I find myself paying even more attention to how good the ingredients are. That got me thinking about Chef Cho, a place I used to go to for strawberry cream cakes.

Chef Cho in 2023: the Mullae flagship and its 36,000 won No.1

While cleaning up an external hard drive, I found old photos from a visit to Chef Cho's Mullae-dong flagship store. Looks like it was around July 2023, and even back then Chef Cho was already pretty famous for cakes in Yeongdeungpo.

The strawberry cream cake especially was famous, and I used to buy it for anniversaries. Seeing these old photos again made me weirdly nostalgic haha.

Looking at the whole cake prices back then, cakes weren't even 50,000 won yet. No.1 was 36,000 won, No.2 was 41,000 won, No.3 was 49,000 won.

Now Chef Cho also has a location in Sweet Park at Shinsegae Department Store Gangnam, so this time I met the brand again there.

What kind of cake shop is Chef Cho?

Chef Cho is known as one of the '4 Kings of Cake' from the show Master in the House (생활의 달인). Chef Jo Jeong-im, who has run Chef Cho for 23 years and made a name as a cake craftsman, holds the title of Korea's Master Confectioner. The brand aims to bring out the natural flavor of ingredients while balancing varied textures, high-quality ganache, rich cream, and refreshing fruit.

Chef Cho currently runs three locations: the Mullae flagship, Bread Company Chef Cho, and Chef Cho Boutique.

Inside the Chef Cho showcase at Sweet Park, Shinsegae Gangnam

Walking into Sweet Park, I found Chef Cho among the various dessert shops. Thanks to the wide cake lineup, the showcase itself caught my eye right away.

With everything from regular whole cakes to mini cakes and cake slices, it looked easy to pick something suited to whatever occasion you have.

Honestly, just looking at the showcase put me in a good mood.

Cakes topped with colorful fruit caught my eye — not flashy in themselves, but naturally pretty thanks to the fruit's color.

Summer cakes at Chef Cho: peach and fig

Chef Cho's whole cake lineup changes quite a bit by season. Usually there are plenty of strawberry and mango whole cakes, but since it's peach season, this time cakes made with peach and fig stood out.

The new fig pistachio menu especially caught my attention.

The pistachio cake had a signature label on it, which made me even more curious.

It felt refreshing to see new cakes come out as the seasons change.

The peach berry No.1 reserved this time, 53,000 won

What I reserved this time was the Peach Berry No.1. The price was 53,000 won.

I'd actually reserved this cake as a gift, but somehow it ended up in my hands haha. Since it was meant as a gift I picked it a little more carefully than usual, and I even paid 2,500 won extra for the cooler bag packaging...

But once the cake was right in front of me, curiosity won and I ended up tasting it myself.

It's a cake where fresh strawberries and sweet, fragrant in-season peaches meet soft cream.

I used to mostly get the strawberry cream cake before, but this time I picked something with a slightly different feel by adding peach.

Chef Cho reportedly uses 100% dairy whipped cream and sources fresh fruit daily to make its cakes.

Tasting it, there really is a generous amount of fruit inside. It felt like they didn't hold back on ingredients — I couldn't tell if I was eating fruit or cake.

The tartness of the strawberries and the sweet, fragrant taste of the peach came through together with the soft cream, and since the cream itself wasn't overly sweet, the fruit flavor really stood out.

Even after just one slice, I kept biting into more fruit, which I personally loved.

Is the peach berry cake worth it if you love fruit?

Chef Cho seems less about piling on fruit and more about the balance between cream, fruit, and sponge. Fruit cakes in particular can taste very different depending on the sweetness or acidity of the fruit, so I liked that they use fruit suited to the season.

Refrigeration is a must, and you need to be careful not to shake the cake while carrying it. Shelf life is 2 days when refrigerated.

Chef Cho then and now: how the cake compares

Years after first trying Chef Cho at the Mullae flagship in 2023, I got to meet the brand again at Shinsegae Department Store Gangnam. Back then it was the strawberry cream cake that stuck with me; this time it's the peach berry made with in-season peaches and strawberries.

The price has gone up a lot compared to before, but since cake prices overall have risen these days too, it didn't feel too surprising. More than anything, since the fruit cake lineup changes every season, I'm already curious what will come out next. This is a place that's been making cakes in Yeongdeungpo for a long time, so if you love cake, it's worth a visit at least once.

If you especially love a cream cake loaded with fruit, this one will likely suit your taste. It's the kind of place where nobody's just been once — you either haven't been, or you keep going back. Nice to meet Chef Cho again after all this time. See you again, Chef Cho haha.