Hongdae brunch café in Seoul with an 11am morning special: MELA

MELA Hongdae: a Hongdae brunch café open from 9am

MELA Hongdae is a brunch café on the 1st floor at 41 Wolgokbuk-ro 5-gil, Mapo-gu, Seoul, open daily from 9am to 6:30pm (last order 18:00). It'd been a while since I had a reason to go to Hongdae, so I made plans to meet a close friend — but we're both pickup-time Cinderellas, you know?! ㅠㅠ hahahahahahaha. Since I couldn't stay out late because of school pickup, I went looking for a place that opens early and ended up at this Hongdae brunch café favorite, MELA Hongdae!

Opening at 9am is perfect for us fellow pickup-time Cinderellas hahahahaha

Whenever I walk around Hongdae, Yeonnam-dong, and Mangwon-dong, this building always catches my eye with its stylish look, and I'd always wanted to step inside at least once~! This time I finally got the chance to have a meal here with my friend!!

What MELA Hongdae looks like inside

The inside of MELA Hongdae is also really, really nice +_+

Walking into this Hongdae brunch café favorite, the interior felt just as comfortable as I'd imagined it would be.

It was a great spot to catch up with my friend at a relaxed pace, and the whole atmosphere felt somehow healing, so I could start the meal in a good mood even in the morning.

MELA Hongdae menu and prices

MELA Hongdae requires one menu item per person. The menu ranges widely from brunch plates to pasta, pizza, and bingsu (shaved ice dessert).

• Salmon eggs Benedict ₩22,000
• MELA's chuck tender steak ₩39,900
• Fragrant minari vongole pasta ₩23,000
• Ragu tteokbokki (rice cakes) ₩22,000
• Victoria French toast ₩21,000
• Signature brunch plate ₩22,000
• Fresh mango bingsu ₩24,000
• Grilled napa cabbage salad ₩19,000
• Classic carbonara ₩22,000
• Potato basil cream gnocchi ₩22,000
• Eggplant gratin ₩22,000
• MELA's kimchi fried rice ₩21,000
• Classic French toast ₩22,000
• Mushroom poached egg avocado salad ₩19,000
• Shakshuka (egg in hell) ₩21,000
• Avocado ricotta open sandwich ₩19,500
• Pistachio jalapeño pizza ₩24,000
• Sweet pumpkin gorgonzola pizza ₩24,000
• Honey lemon Malenka ₩8,000
• Honey chocolate Malenka ₩8,000
• Vanilla cream latte ₩7,500
• Vanilla bean latte ₩6,800
• Americano ₩5,000
• Café latte ₩6,000
• Homemade lemonade ₩7,500
• Homemade grapefruit ade ₩7,500
• Homemade apple ade ₩7,500
• Jeju matcha latte ₩7,000
• Yuzu apple tea ₩7,500
• Earl grey tea ₩5,000
• Chamomile tea ₩5,000
• Peppermint tea ₩5,000

The morning special, ordered before 11am

Since we visited at 10:30am, we were able to order from the Morning Special menu, which is only available until 11am~!

So we ordered the M Platter, potato basil cream gnocchi, vanilla cream latte, and bread haha

What comes on the M Platter

First, the M Platter, true to its name as a brunch dish, let us enjoy several things at once — it looked hearty the moment it landed on the table. Chatting with my friend and sharing it piece by piece meant we could taste a variety of things, which was great.

Piling salmon, cheese, avocado, egg, and cream onto the bread like this is honey-sweet ★ hahahaha

Potato basil cream gnocchi, 22,000 won

One of the dishes I'd been curious about at MELA Hongdae was the potato basil cream gnocchi~!

With basil cream added to the baby potato and gnocchi combo, this would suit anyone who loves a creamy flavor~ The soft cream sauce and the chewy texture of the gnocchi came together nicely, making it a good pick for brunch~!

Especially with the baby potatoes mixed in, the texture varied a bit more than if it were just gnocchi alone — that was fun to notice!

The coffee included with the M Platter

The iced Americano and vanilla cream latte that came with the M Platter! You can't skip coffee with lunch, and the vanilla cream latte lived up to its name by adding a sweet touch that paired well with the food +_+ Since it was a rare day meeting my friend, we talked about all sorts of things over the meal, and having coffee alongside it really made it feel like a proper visit to a brunch café haha

If you want to meet up early, eat something delicious and healing in a comfortable setting, and enjoy a cup of coffee, I recommend this Hongdae brunch café favorite near Mangwon-dong, Yeonnam-dong, and Hongdae — MELA Hongdae!