Gangneung hanok café with weekend seats and mugwort toast: Cafe Giwa

I'm Jojanggeum, and I hold Korean, Western and Chinese cooking licenses. Let me introduce a Gangneung Chodang café I visited during a trip that let me really relax. The garden was so beautiful, and I had a happy time enjoying great coffee and dessert in a traditional hanok café — this was Cafe Giwa, a café in Chodang-dong, Gangneung.

The wide garden and the large windows give it such an open feel! With plenty of space, I think kids could run around happily even if you visit as a family — that's what stood out about this Chodang-dong café, Cafe Giwa.

Where is Cafe Giwa, and what are the hours and parking?

• Name: Cafe Giwa
• Address: 15 Chodangwon-gil 54beon-gil, Gangneung-si, Gangwon-do, South Korea
• Hours: Mon–Tue, Thu–Sun 10:00–21:00
• Regular closed day: Every Wednesday

Cafe Giwa, this Chodang café in Gangneung, has a generous parking area right in front — you can park in the private lot! It was so easy to visit without worrying about parking.

A 130-year-old hanok and garden: what Cafe Giwa looks like

This is a hanok café in Gangneung renovated from a traditional hanok! The overall mood was calm, and everyone was talking quietly — a good spot to rest and heal during a Gangneung trip.

The indoor seating had a lovely atmosphere too, but the outdoor garden and tables are well set up as well! In autumn weather like this, sitting at an outdoor table and taking in the smell of grass and plants seems like a great way to spend time.

The garden looked carefully tended too! Various plants, flowers and trees are cultivated all around, and it was really nice to spend time looking at nature bit by bit.

Sunlight really pours into the inside of the café~! There's also group seating like a table for six, so it's comfortable even for a bigger group! If you're planning a group visit in particular, booking through Naver Reservations gets you a separate, spacious area.

With vintage-feeling decor pieces, the hanok charm was captivating! Since it's near Chodang Sundubu Village, it seems like a great plan to eat a satisfying meal at the tofu village and then enjoy coffee and dessert here.

From the pretty garden lovingly kept in a 130-year-old hanok to the decor details cared for throughout the space, the atmosphere was really charming! The interior does show its age here and there, but it's clearly well maintained.

Every corner has such pretty details that photos come out beautifully! A Gangneung café that's great for photos — I couldn't stop pressing the shutter.

Can you get a seat at Cafe Giwa on a weekend?

The space is arranged like little rooms, which was fun to explore! Thanks to the spacious layout and roomy tables, I could settle in comfortably without any competition for seats even on a weekend visit.

The restrooms inside are separated into men's and women's, and they were kept clean and easy to use — especially reassuring if you're visiting with kids.

Cafe Giwa menu and the drinks we ordered

At Cafe Giwa, this Chodang-dong café in Gangneung, there's a wide variety of coffee and drinks! The signature menu, hand-drip coffee, regular coffee, lattes, teas, ades and smoothies are all organized clearly by category, which made ordering easy.

There are three handmade signature lattes you can only find at Giwa! The Giwa Black Latte, a meeting of black sesame cream and espresso; the Mung Bean Flower Latte, sweet and bitter with mung bean milk and cold brew; and the Pink Blossom Latte, made with strawberry milk and cold brew, as pretty as spring cherry blossoms!

There was quite a variety of cakes too! Starting with mugwort injeolmi toast, there's also chocolate, mugwort, injeolmi (glutinous rice cake), green tea, tiramisu and plain milk versions — plenty to choose from depending on your taste.

We tried a good variety: mugwort injeolmi toast along with Giwa hand-drip coffee, a caffe latte, lemon ginger tea, strawberry ade, and a blueberry yogurt smoothie.

The drinks were so colorful! Without even planning it, each one showed off a different color and look!! The strawberry ade in particular was served in a special glass painted with a red flower.

How does the mugwort injeolmi toast taste?

This was the one I was most looking forward to — the mugwort injeolmi toast! A scoop of mugwort ice cream sat on top, and the toast itself had mugwort rice cake tucked inside, making it a special, filling dessert.

It wasn't too sweet, so it never felt overwhelming! Plenty of nutty soybean powder, and the slightly bitter, chewy mugwort rice cake made it a charming toast that people of any age would like.

Final verdict on Cafe Giwa

A single male staff member was running the place on his own, but the food still came out quickly, and I could tell real care went into the drinks and desserts. Cafe Giwa, this Chodang-dong café in Gangneung, was a place where I could unwind in a serene hanok, sipping good coffee and dessert for a healing kind of afternoon.

Getting to see a hanok with so much history up close, and being able to actually spend time inside one, felt like a special experience. Add the relaxed garden and the decor thoughtfully placed throughout, and there was plenty of fun in just looking around — a quiet Gangneung café that's good to visit with kids. It's also close to Chodang Village, and easy to visit without worrying about parking, so I'd recommend stopping by during a Gangneung trip. That's my honest review of Cafe Giwa, this Chodang-dong café in Gangneung.