Gangneung gift café: parents' sand gift a week later—Gangneung Sand

During a 5-night, 6-day trip around Gangwon, I couldn't decide what to bring my parents as a gift or souvenir, so I figured an easy snack would do and stopped by Gangneung Sand Main Branch (강릉샌드 본점). Lots of reviews say people buy it as a travel souvenir or snack gift. This post covers refrigeration, freezing, storage, how to eat it, shelf life, price and taste :)

Gangneung Sand has a pretty long shelf life, so even handing it to my parents a week after buying it was no problem. Room temperature, fridge and freezer storage all work, and eating it is easy too.

Where is Gangneung Sand Main Branch, and is there parking?

Gangneung Sand Main Branch is at 31 Seonggokgoyang-gil 5beonan-gil, Gangneung, Gangwon, South Korea, floors 1 to 3. You can park around the shop for free.

Gangneung Sand Main Branch opening hours

Gangneung Sand Main Branch is open every day from 09:30 to 19:00, with last order at 18:30.

Gangneung Sand Main Branch floor by floor

• 5F: Observatory
• 4F: Offices only
• 3F: Rest area, women's restroom
• 2F: Counter
• 1F: Hands-on learning room, outdoor restroom
• BF: Entrance

Inside Gangneung Sand Main Branch

I was only getting takeaway, so I couldn't use the facilities inside, and it's a café so nicely done that I really regretted it. Fresh, refreshing interior, wide and comfortable space. There's a sand play learning room on the 1st floor and a view observatory on the 5th, so it looks like a good place to visit with kids.

What's on the menu at Gangneung Sand Main Branch?

Sand Box flavors

Gangneung Sand's Sand Box comes in coffee, dried persimmon, Chodang corn, black sesame, purple sweet potato and strawberry. They don't sell single pieces, and they don't do mixed half-and-half boxes either. Many people buy several boxes at a time as snack souvenirs or travel gifts.

The posted storage and shelf life is 14 days at room temperature and 30 days in the fridge. If you want to keep it even longer, freezing is fine, and to eat it you just let it thaw naturally for about 20 minutes.

Drinks

Dried persimmon latte, strawberry latte, Daegwallyeong Samgye latte, iced tea, Americano.

Other items

Breakwater bread (방파제 빵), dried persimmon jam.

How to order at Gangneung Sand and ship gift boxes

You order at Gangneung Sand Main Branch with a kiosk. If you enter an address and product quantities, you can also have it shipped, FYI.

Price of the Chodang corn and purple sweet potato sand boxes

I bought one box of Chodang corn (10 pieces) and one box of purple sweet potato (10 pieces), and the price was 17.0 per box.

They wrapped it neatly in a pretty pink box.

Gangneung Sand shelf life, storage and how to eat it frozen

※ The genuine product has "Gangneung Sand" (강릉샌드) stamped on the cookie surface, so watch out for imitations.

• Shelf life: marked separately (14 days after sale)
• Contents: 250g (25g × 10 pieces)
• Storage & how to eat: room temperature (14 days), fridge (30 days), freezer (1–2 months / thaw at room temperature for 10–20 minutes before eating)

Compared with the other branches, the taste itself isn't very different, but a lot of people seem to feel the filling in the products sold at the main branch is more generous. The menu differs a little from branch to branch, so it's worth checking before you go to buy snack gifts or souvenirs for your trip.

How do Chodang corn and purple sweet potato sand cookies taste?

I tried them right next to my parents when I gave them over, and Gangneung Sand had a much softer, easier bite than I expected, and the moderate sweetness that really brings out each flavor was very good. The purple sweet potato had a sweet roasted sweet potato taste, and the Chodang corn had kernels that pop as you chew, and so on.

Eating tip: freeze it and eat it cold, and the cookie part stays crisp while the cream inside turns firm like ice cream, which gives it a different charm.

We ate them so fast there was no time to refrigerate any, which was a shame. The shelf life is long, so buying in bulk should be fine. If you're looking for a snack gift to buy as a souvenir on a Gangwon trip, go visit Gangneung Sand Main Branch ♡ Highly recommended :)