Spacious 24-hour café in Sinnonhyeon for a heatwave catch-up: Selecto

I had plans with a friend in Sinnonhyeon a while back, and after eating we went looking for a café. There are so many cafés around Sinnonhyeon that we were trying to figure out where to go, and my friend mentioned a 24-hour café, so we headed over together — that's how we ended up at Selecto Coffee Sinnonhyeon Branch.

It was my first time there, and the place was bigger than I expected, with a good variety of bakery items, so it was nice for relaxing and chatting with my friend. Best of all, I liked that it was open even late at night.

Selecto Coffee Sinnonhyeon Branch location — 2-3 minutes from Exit 1 of Sinnonhyeon Station

Selecto Coffee Sinnonhyeon Branch is located at 31 Gangnam-daero 79-gil, Seocho-gu, Seoul, 1st floor, about a 2-3 minute walk from Exit 1 of Sinnonhyeon Station. Since it's close to the station, it wasn't hard for my friend and me to find. Walking a little from the exit, the café came into view right away, so we had no trouble finding it.

A café open 24 hours — what are the staffed and unstaffed hours?

Selecto Coffee Sinnonhyeon Branch operates with staff during the day and unstaffed at night, depending on the time. Monday to Friday it's staffed from 08:00 to 22:00 and unstaffed from 22:00 to 08:00; Saturday and Sunday it's staffed from 10:00 to 21:00 and unstaffed from 21:00 to 10:00.

There's a staff member during the day, and at night it runs unstaffed. It seemed like a good option for when you want to keep chatting with a friend a little longer after a late night out. For anyone in Sinnonhyeon looking for a café open late, this seemed pretty convenient.

The café's exterior and outdoor tables

Walking slowly from Sinnonhyeon Station with my friend, the café came into sight sooner than I expected. It's a decent-sized place, so it stood out even from a distance.

There were outdoor tables in front of the café, but the day I visited was so hot that we went straight inside without a second thought, haha. On a cooler day, having coffee outside with a friend would probably be nice too.

A bigger-than-expected space, and the weekday evening vibe

Once inside, the place was bigger than we'd expected. And even though it was a weekday, there were quite a lot of customers. Some had come with friends, and others were sitting alone using laptops.

Overall, it wasn't an overly quiet atmosphere — more like people comfortably chatting and spending time. So it felt like a relaxed place to sit and talk over coffee with a friend.

Easy ordering via kiosk

You order through a kiosk. My friend and I looked over the menu and each picked what we wanted. There were more options than expected, and after a lot of deliberation, I ended up choosing an americano mocha and a chicken sandwich! My friend picked a drink too, and we ordered a little something to eat together.

So much bakery variety, it's fun just to look around

While waiting for our drinks, I looked around the bakery counter. There were quite a lot of options — cakes, bagels, cookies, chocolate muffins, scones, sandwiches, and more. I liked that it wasn't just about the coffee; there were plenty of things to eat too.

A cool americano mocha

It was really hot that day. We kept saying how hot it was walking from Sinnonhyeon Station, but once we got inside and had a cold americano, I finally felt human again, haha.

The coffee was clean and easy to drink, with a subtle but rich coffee aroma. It was a solid, no-frills americano, perfect for a hot day. Chatting away with my friend, the coffee disappeared pretty quickly.

We also tried the chicken sandwich

It felt like a shame to just drink coffee, so we also tried the chicken sandwich we'd ordered. At first I didn't realize it had chicken breast in it, but once I bit in, there it was.

My friend and I split it in half, and it was surprisingly light and good. I expected chicken breast to be dry, but it was more moist than I thought, and not overly seasoned, so it was easy to eat without feeling heavy. Paired with the coffee, it worked well as a simple meal.

A good spot to sit and talk with a friend

We sat for a while eating our coffee and sandwich and just talking. When you meet up with a friend after a while, it feels like a shame to just eat and part ways right after. That's when having a cup of coffee together and chatting is nice, and Selecto Coffee Sinnonhyeon Branch has relatively spacious seating and a comfortable vibe, so it was a good place to sit and talk with a friend. It wasn't so quiet that you'd feel awkward having a conversation.

Selecto Coffee Sinnonhyeon Branch info summary

• Address: 31 Gangnam-daero 79-gil, Seocho-gu, Seoul, South Korea, 1st floor
• Location: About 2-3 minutes' walk from Exit 1 of Sinnonhyeon Station
• Hours: Mon-Fri 08:00-22:00 staffed / 22:00-08:00 unstaffed, Sat-Sun 10:00-21:00 staffed / 21:00-10:00 unstaffed
• Parking: Paid parking available, ₩900 for the first 30 minutes, ₩150 per 5 minutes after, max ₩43,200 per day
• Amenities: Wi-Fi / group seating / takeout / delivery
• 24-hour unstaffed print zone (printing, copying, scanning)