Gwangju café for vanilla bean lattes and black sesame pound cake: Sum

We had a family gathering planned, so we decided to have a meal in Namhansanseong. Since it looked like we would arrive a little before the meeting time, my husband and I decided to stop by a nearby café first. There are so many cafés around Namhansanseong, but this time I was looking for a large café where we could sit spaciously and take our time, and that is how I found Sum (숨).

Sum, tucked between fields and mountains

When I first saw the location, I wondered whether there could really be a café in a place like this. As we followed the address, rice paddies and fields appeared around us, followed by a quiet atmosphere surrounded by mountains. Rather than being on a busy café street, it sits amid the nature of Dunjin Village in Ojeon-ri, so it felt a little different from the moment we arrived.

📍 108-11 Ojeon-gil, Namhansanseong-myeon, Gwangju-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea (경기 광주시 남한산성면 오전길 108-11) The café is about 800 m farther in from the Ojeon-ri direct farm-produce market in Namhansanseong. For visitors coming from Hanam or Gwangju, the directions say it is easier not to turn in immediately at the Ojeon-ri Village Hall entrance suggested by navigation, but to continue straight for about 400 m, make a U-turn at the direct farm-produce market, and then head up. We visited on a weekday, and there was plenty of parking, so we could park comfortably. Hours are 10:00–20:30 Monday through Friday and 10:00–21:30 Saturday and Sunday, with last orders at 20:00 and 21:00 respectively. Closing times may be adjusted seasonally, so it would be good to check before visiting.

Sum was in a place that truly felt hidden, just like its name suggests, but once we went inside, it was much larger than I expected.

Taking our time around the main building and annex

It is divided into a main building and an annex. The main building has a high-ceilinged, split-level layout, so it never felt stuffy. Both the first and second floors have full-height windows, making it lovely to look out at the natural scenery.

On a nice day, the outdoor terrace looked like a great place to sit, too.

The weather was nice on the day we went, so the terrace seats caught my eye as much as the indoor ones.

The second floor feels even quieter like this. Not every seat has an outlet, though, so keep that in mind when choosing a seat if you need a laptop or charging. Personally, it felt less like a café to come and work in, and more like a place to chat with family or friends, or relax while looking at the natural scenery.

There are also restrooms on both the first and second floors, which was convenient.

After looking around the main building for a while, we crossed the skybridge to the annex.

The annex felt a little quieter than the main building.

There was an area decorated to evoke an autumn mood in particular, so it gave a real sense of the season and looked nice for sitting down for a quiet conversation.

Both the main building and annex have rooftop spaces. When I visited, they felt better for going up to take in the surrounding views and snap photos than for sitting around for a long time.

Mountains and sky stretched out in every direction, so the atmosphere was definitely different from a café in the city.

Vanilla bean lattes and black sesame pound cake

After looking around for quite a while, we came back down to order.

Since Sum is a bakery café, it had quite a varied selection of breads, too.

We ordered black sesame pound cake for ₩4,800, a café latte for ₩7,000, and a vanilla bean latte for ₩8,000. The menu also marked its best sellers: mocha cream latte, vanilla bean latte, Bora Bora lemonade, fresh strawberry latte, and Jeju matcha latte. They also had mother jujube tea, so that could be a nice choice if you visit with your parents.

The drinks were ready sooner than I expected. The café latte came with a generous amount of coffee, and the vanilla bean latte was especially good to me, with its sweet vanilla syrup flavor.

As I slowly drank and talked with my husband, our meeting time came up quickly. Rather than eating the black sesame pound cake right away, we packed it up and brought it home. I had it with coffee at home, like a little home café, and it was delicious: nutty with that distinctive black sesame flavor and pleasantly chewy in texture.

A relaxed weekday atmosphere

These days, even when a café is large, it can turn out to be crowded when you get there. Maybe because we visited on a weekday, Sum was relatively easy to look around at a relaxed pace. More than anything, with rice paddies and fields nearby and mountains all around, simply sitting in the café made me feel as though I had stepped away from everyday life for a moment. So if you are planning a meal or drive in Namhansanseong, I think it is a nice place to add to your itinerary.