Rainy day matcha latte at a large Gimpo café: The Nillai

On a day when it rained non-stop, going far felt like too much, and I wanted to spend the day somewhere relaxed indoors, so I went to The Nillai — my pick for a Gimpo date course. The Nillai turned out to be an impressively large café in Gimpo. The building's exterior is big and sleek, but once inside, plants, water features, bakery, brunch, and media art all flow together in one space, making it feel less like a café and more like a small cultural complex. It's run by Chef 63, so I had high hopes for the food...

Most of all, since it's a café run by Chef 63, I was looking forward to the brunch menu, but unfortunately, by the time we arrived, brunch orders had already closed. So that day we decided to order bakery items, coffee, and a matcha latte instead and just enjoy the space slowly.

A large Gimpo café that felt spacious from the start

The Nillai is located at 80 Yangchonyeok-gil, Yangchon-eup, Gimpo-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea, G Floor. Once you arrive in front of the building, the big THE NILAI sign makes it easy to find. The exterior mixes black glass with a bright facade for a clean, modern look, and on a rainy day like this, the wet road and building actually looked even calmer together. The scale is big from the entrance, so it seems comfortable for families or groups to visit. Once inside, the interior was even more surprising. I get why it's a popular spot for things to do in Gimpo...

The first thing I noticed after opening the door was the sense of open space. The ceilings are high and the seats are spaced generously, so nothing felt cramped, and plants placed liberally between the floor and tables let you see greenery up close even indoors.

In particular, a wall full of plant décor, trees scattered around, and rattan chairs with parasols all came together to make it feel like sitting in an outdoor garden even though we were indoors. I'd come in to escape the rain, but instead I felt like I'd stepped into nature — which was great.

A water feature stretching through the middle of the café

What caught my eye most at The Nillai was, unsurprisingly, the wide water feature. Water runs in a long line through the middle of the café with tables placed around it, giving off a resort-café kind of vibe. Add in the blue lighting, and it felt subtly dreamlike even in daytime — being able to look at both plants and water made the seating itself feel special. Compared to typical large Gimpo cafés, this was definitely a memorable point among things to do in Gimpo.

A separate media art space

Further inside there's a media art space with a completely different mood. Unlike the bright, green main space, this area is dark and calm overall. Video projected across an entire wall shifted from blue tones to scenes of flowers scattering, and sitting there watching it felt like stepping into a small exhibition. This media room is popular for Gimpo dates too...

There were tables and chairs set up too, so it's not just a spot to glance at and leave — you can actually stay there with your coffee. Families with kids would probably enjoy this media art zone quite a bit.

The brunch I'd been looking forward to, since it's run by Chef 63

The Nillai isn't just a café selling coffee and bakery items — the brunch menu is quite varied too. Looking at the menu board, they had salads, pizza, risotto, and pasta, with plenty of solid meal options like truffle cream risotto, rosé shrimp risotto, double pepperoni pizza, and prosciutto & arugula pizza.

Since it's run by Chef 63, I'd honestly come with high hopes for the brunch that day, but by the time we arrived, brunch orders had already closed. If you want to actually get brunch, I'd recommend for a Gimpo date...

It was a bit disappointing, but looking at the menu made me want to come back earlier next time and properly try the brunch.

So that day, we went with bakery instead

Instead of brunch, we browsed the bakery corner. Of course... the bakery was also nearly sold out haha. There was a wide variety of delicious-looking bread, but to really enjoy the full range, you'd need to come in the morning.

Bread was laid out in a long row on one side, ranging from cream-filled breads to long crumble-type breads, cheese-topped pastries, and bite-sized cookies — quite a variety.

We picked a few different things and put them on one tray, and with all the different colors and shapes it looked pretty appetizing laid out together. The little cookies in cups were especially easy to pick up one by one, and the cream-filled bread went well with coffee. I was disappointed not to get brunch, but there was still plenty of fun in picking out different bakery items.

Coffee and matcha latte

For drinks we ordered coffee and a matcha latte. I chose the coffee iced, which paired well with the bakery items, and since the space is so large, it was also nice to carry a cup and slowly move around soaking in the atmosphere.

I ordered the matcha latte hot. The green matcha powder sat finely on top of the cup, looking pretty, and with the first sip the milk's smoothness blended naturally with matcha's characteristic bitterness. Maybe because it was a rainy day, I found myself reaching for the warm matcha latte more than a cold drink.

Drinking it while watching the rain fall over the green scenery outside the window suited the mood really well.

A place worth lingering in for the bakery and drinks alone

That day, we didn't get brunch and only had bakery items and drinks, but oddly enough, instead of feeling shortchanged, I ended up spending more time slowly looking around the space.

Sitting by the window watching the rain, checking out the water feature, and browsing the media art zone naturally made our stay longer. A large café isn't just about having lots of seats — each area here had a distinctly different mood for this Gimpo date course, which made moving between spots fun in itself.

A large Gimpo café that's good even on rainy days

What I especially liked about The Nillai is that the weather doesn't really matter here. Even on a rainy day, the indoor garden and water feature kept things from feeling stuffy, and with media art on top of that, there was more to look at than a café that just serves coffee.

It's a good spot for a Gimpo date course with family, works well when you're looking for somewhere to take kids, and suits a day when you want to have a long conversation on a date too. This time brunch had closed so I didn't get to try it, but true to being run by Chef 63, there's a wide range of pizza, pasta, and risotto, so next time I'd like to come a bit earlier and get to try brunch as well. Even just with bakery, coffee, and a warm matcha latte, The Nillai was more than enough to relax in — a large Gimpo café worth the visit.

Store information

• Name: The Nillai
• Address: 80 Yangchonyeok-gil, Yangchon-eup, Gimpo-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea, G Floor
• Hours: 10:00 - 21:00