Gwanghwamun café for a decaf flat white before closing: Center Coffee
In short
Center Coffee Gwanghwamun is a Blue Ribbon specialty café in the basement of SFC Mall, a five-minute walk from Exit 5 of Gwanghwamun Station in Jung-gu, Seoul. Arriving an hour before the 21:00 weekday closing, the writer ordered a decaf iced latte, a decaf iced flat white and two baton financiers in dark chocolate and fig, all rich and nutty with no caffeine worry. Center Coffee Gwanghwamun is an easy choice for coffee and dessert on a night when caffeine feels like too much.
Good to know
- Location
- Five-minute walk from Exit 5, Gwanghwamun Station (Line 5); basement of SFC Mall
- Hours
- Mon–Fri 07:30–21:00 / weekends and holidays 11:00–21:00, open year-round
- Parking
- First 90 minutes free, then 1,000 won per 10 minutes
- Espresso / Americano
- 5,400 won
- Latte / flat white
- 6,000 won / 5,500 won
- Vanilla latte, oat latte
- 6,500 won
- Orange Bianco
- 7,000 won
- Geisha cold brew / decaf cold brew
- 7,500 won / 6,500 won
- Hand drip
- Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Banko Taratu Washed 6,500 won; Colombia Diwan El Mirador Geisha Washed 9,000 won; Panama Finca Lerida Esplendorosa Geisha Natural 9,000 won
- What was ordered
- Decaf iced latte, decaf iced flat white, two baton financiers
- Price reference
- ₩1,000 ≈ $0.7 · ₩6,500 ≈ $4.7 · ₩9,000 ≈ $6.6 (2026-09-22)
as written by the visitor on Sep 21, 2026
I had some business in Gwanghwamun today and suddenly really wanted a good cup of coffee. So I looked up Gwanghwamun cafés and found one with 8 Blue Ribbons — that's a lot!
The coffee photos looked so good, and since it was evening I was a little worried about caffeine, but it turned out to be known for decaf, so I figured it was perfect timing. This is Center Coffee Gwanghwamun, a Gwanghwamun coffee spot.
I visited on a weekday evening — it was quiet and genuinely delicious, so I left very satisfied. Let me introduce Center Coffee Gwanghwamun now.
Where is Center Coffee Gwanghwamun, and its hours and parking
Center Coffee Gwanghwamun is a 5-minute walk from Exit 5 of Gwanghwamun Station on Line 5, in the basement of SFC Mall.
Hours are Monday–Friday 07:30–21:00, weekends and holidays 11:00–21:00, open every day of the year. Parking is free for the first 90 minutes, then ₩1,000 per 10 minutes.
What Center Coffee Gwanghwamun looks like inside and out
Here's the exterior of Center Coffee Gwanghwamun, a Gwanghwamun coffee spot.
This is the main entrance, and there's also a back door you can enter through. Here's the back entrance.
Near the entrance there are Blue Ribbon Survey selection stickers plastered all over. It really built up my expectations for the coffee.
When I went, it was about an hour before closing, so the kiosk was off and I ordered with a staff member instead.
I took some photos while ordering. Since they serve hand drip, there was a dedicated hand-drip zone to one side.
The interior was on the larger side and really clean. Maybe because I went late, but the quiet atmosphere was also really nice.
Center Coffee Gwanghwamun menu and prices
Let me introduce the menu at Center Coffee Gwanghwamun, a Gwanghwamun café.
- ESPRESSO: Espresso / Americano ₩5,400
- LATTE: Latte ₩6,000, Flat White ₩5,500, Vanilla Latte / Oat Latte ₩6,500, Orange Bianco ₩7,000
- COLD BREW: Geisha Cold Brew ₩7,500, Decaf Cold Brew ₩6,500
Besides coffee, there's a wide variety of other drinks too.
This is the hand-drip menu. Prices vary depending on the beans. The hand-drip options at the time were Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Banko Taratu Washed at ₩6,500, Colombia Diwan El Mirador Geisha Washed at ₩9,000, and Panama Finca Lerida Esplendorosa Geisha Natural at ₩9,000.
For desserts, they kept it simple with cakes, financiers, and pound cakes — but everything looked so delicious I had a hard time deciding what to get, haha.
They also had Greek yogurt and paninis, so it seems like a good place to visit for a brunch feel too.
On one side, they sell coffee beans, drip bags, cold brew, cups, and more.
And what I really loved — each bean had a description plus a way to smell it. You press the side and the aroma spreads out, and oh, the smell of freshly ground coffee is amazing!!
How the decaf flat white, decaf latte and baton financiers tasted
Here's what I ordered at Center Coffee Gwanghwamun! A decaf iced latte, decaf iced flat white, and 2 financiers.
There were two types of financiers: dark chocolate baton financier and fig baton financier.
The coffee and financiers looked so delicious the moment they arrived!!! The visuals alone won me over.
The coffee slowly mixing together, haha. It's decaf but so good I almost wanted to buy the beans. But I already had beans at home, so I held back that day.
Genuinely the best decaf coffee I've had recently — number one, no contest. Now I get why decaf is so popular. When I looked up Center Coffee, it was described as a decaf spot!!!! Definitely try it if you get the chance.
And the financiers are seriously insane.
The financiers were genuinely nutty — the butter flavor came through strongly, while the fig and chocolate's natural flavors were also well preserved. So clean and light, I kept gasping while eating them. These were the best financiers I've had recently too.
I went here after searching around for a café to visit, and I really didn't expect to be this satisfied. Both the coffee and the desserts were excellent, so it made for a happy way to end the day. I'm planning to visit again soon, and this time I'll pick up some beans too. If you're looking for a great coffee spot near Gwanghwamun, I recommend Center Coffee Gwanghwamun.
Where it is
136 Sejong-daero, B1 Room 105, Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea서울특별시 중구 세종대로 136 B1층 105호
