Yeonji Baik · 3 stories
Notes on small restaurants and cafes around Seoul, jotted down after each visit. · Writes about: Restaurants · Cafés
MELA Hongdae is a brunch café on Worldcup-buk-ro 5-gil, between Hongdae and Hapjeong in Mapo, Seoul. A Naver reservation secured a table, and the order was the signature brunch plate at 22,000 won, salmon eggs Benedict at 22,000 won, a chocolate chip cookie, and a zero-sugar cola. The food arrived fast and the plating was pretty, but the friendly staff at MELA Hongdae are what made the brunch.
PICT Roastery Mangwon Branch is a roastery coffee shop in Mangwon-dong, Mapo, Seoul, a five-minute walk from Mangwon Station toward Mangwon Market, roasting green beans in-house every day. Two of us ordered an iced café latte for 5,500 won, an iced café mocha for 6,500 won and pistachio tiramisu for 8,000 won and shared them at a corner table beside the full-height window. The café mocha looked pale but tasted deeply of coffee rather than sugar, and the tiramisu arrived under a thick layer of chopped pistachio that melted as we ate.
Hyeonseonine Yongsan Main Branch is an instant tteokbokki (stir-fried rice cake) restaurant on Hangang-daero 39-gil near Sinyongsan Station in Yongsan, Seoul. The order here was instant tteokbokki for two plus fried rice and extra ramen noodles, and the basic spice level at Hyeonseonine turned out far hotter than expected, cooled down with an orange slushie given for a Naver receipt review. Follow the induction dial from 9 to 4 to keep-warm and even a first-timer can finish everything, right down to the sesame-scented fried rice.
