Seochon dessert café for a Melona smoothie and custard baum: The Baum

I went out to Seochon and ended up enjoying a special dessert with deep, rich flavor in a neat hanok-style setting — baumkuchen. There were all kinds of baumkuchen and summer season drinks, so it was the perfect place to recharge on sugar. Let's get into my review of The Baum Gyeongbokgung Branch, a Seochon dessert café near Gyeongbokgung Station.

Where is The Baum Gyeongbokgung Branch, and where can you park?

The Baum Gyeongbokgung Branch sits at 13-2 Jahamun-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, just a 5-minute walk from the entrance of Gyeongbokgung Station on Line 3 — a really close spot. It's open daily from 10:00 to 22:00, and group seating, takeout, Wi-Fi, and reservations are all available.

It's also close to the entrance of Seochon's Sejong Village Food Culture Street, so it's a perfect stop when you're out exploring Seochon. Since it's in a busy commercial area, there's no dedicated parking lot, so if you're driving, I'd recommend checking nearby public parking lots in advance. Public transit access is so good that walking from the subway might honestly be way more convenient ☺️

Hanok-style first floor and group seating upstairs

The Baum Gyeongbokgung Branch is spread over two floors, and even the first floor gives off the store's signature calm mood. The interior is really neat and full of hanok feel, which suited Seochon's quiet, old-town atmosphere perfectly.

It's such a cozy, comfortable space that it's also perfect for a date course.

The second floor is also spacious and pleasant, with group seating, so it's great for gatherings too. It's a dessert spot near Gyeongbokgung Station perfect for hanging out and chatting leisurely with friends.

True to its reputation for distinctive desserts, just browsing the showcase packed with all kinds of baumkuchen (German-style layered cake) was already a treat for the eyes at The Baum 💕

From cute mini sizes to ones as big as a whole cake, the baumkuchen came in all shapes and flavors. They'd also make a great takeout gift when you need a special dessert for a special day.

The Baum menu and what this visit ordered

The Baum Gyeongbokgung Branch is serious about drinks too, not just baumkuchen haha. They had a wide range of coffee and ade, plus summer season menu items, so it was great for enjoying something seasonal too.

On top of that, the ice cream topped with choco shell and baumkuchen seemed to be one of The Baum's signature items — a lot of customers who came in to cool off were ordering it. I was torn between ice cream and a smoothie, but I went with the smoothie since it'd last longer.

Real baumkuchen, not a display model 🫶 Seeing it in person, it looked way prettier and more appetizing. I was so happy just walking around the showcase deciding what to get haha. Here's what I ordered 👇

• Melona smoothie ₩7,800
• Brûlée dark choco baumkuchen ₩7,800
• Custard baum ₩4,500
• Mini baum plain ₩4,500

How do the Melona smoothie and custard baum taste?

The drink and baumkuchen came out quickly. The Baum Gyeongbokgung Branch's melona smoothie looked refreshingly green right from the start. One sip in, and it was a familiar, welcome flavor 😍😍 Really similar to the taste of the store-bought melona (honeydew melon) popsicle, but slightly less sweet and in a crunchy slush form, which was totally my type. It was exactly the kind of refreshing drink you want in this scorching hot weather. The heat just melts away haha.

The baumkuchen I'd been looking forward to had a deep, rich flavor impressive enough to call it the textbook definition of baumkuchen.

The outside especially had a crisp, slightly crumbly texture, while the layers stacked like tree rings turned moist and soft the further in you went — that contrast in texture was really charming.

The baumkuchen with a crème brûlée-style caramelized top had a great combination of crackly texture and soft custard cream.

I picked this on the staff's recommendation, and it really lived up to being The Baum's No. 1 menu item 👍

Brûlée dark choco baumkuchen at The Baum

It was quite a large portion, so I thought about taking it to go, but I was too curious about the flavor and ended up finishing it right there — the brûlée dark choco.

Packed with rich chocolate cream, it felt much moister and more like eating a fancy cake than bread. As someone who loves cake, this was totally my type 🍫🤎

Compared to the mini baumkuchen I tried first, the cream-filled baumkuchen was definitely sweeter, but honestly I liked that even more haha. Full of a pleasant sweetness, it'd probably pair really well with a cold Americano too!! If you need a sugar recharge while walking around Seochon, this hits the spot — stop by whenever you're craving something sweet 🤎