Drink Companion · 35 stories

Over a Drink

I write about bars I visit in Seoul. · Writes about: Cafés · Bars · Restaurants · Hair & beauty salons

PlaceMapo, SeoulCafés

Sangsu Station bagel café with bean-choice coffee: Minkyu Appane Bagel

Minkyu Appane Bagel Hapjeong Branch is a bakery café near Sangsu Station in Mapo, Seoul, where bagels are baked in a wood-fired oven every morning. At the 10am opening the writer looked over the wood-fired bagel lineup and ordered an almond choco bagel with an americano (4,500 won), picking the fruity signature blend from the classic, signature and decaf beans on offer. Minkyu Appane Bagel is as much a coffee stop as a bagel stop, with comfortable seats for working or reading.

Written Sep 24, 2026Sponsored
PlaceMapo, SeoulRestaurants

Mangwon Station bossam set for two with pollock salad: Pyeongidambaek

Pyeongidambaek Ppyeo Kalguksu Main Branch is a pork bone kalguksu (knife-cut noodle soup) and bossam (boiled pork with wraps) restaurant between Mangwon Station Exit 1 and Hapjeong Station Exit 9 in Mapo, Seoul. A medium bossam at 42,000 won with pollock salad (myeongtae hoe-muchim) at 8,000 won and Bongpyeong buckwheat makgeolli at 5,000 won made a full table for two adults, and the pork was boiled clean with no gamey smell. If you order bossam at Pyeongidambaek, the pollock salad is a must-add.

Written Sep 24, 2026Sponsored
PlaceMapo, SeoulCafés

Chestnut Basque cheesecake and grapefruit apple tea in Mapo: Ieo

Ieo Coffee Roasters Gongdeok Branch is a roastery café tucked in an alley toward the Gyeongui Line Forest Park, between Gongdeok and Daeheung stations in Mapo, Seoul. On a weekday afternoon visit, the order was an iced americano with a choice of beans (₩4,300), grapefruit apple tea (₩5,000), and a chestnut Basque cheesecake loaded with a whole chestnut (₩6,800). Pet-friendly and selling its own beans, it's the kind of Mapo café made for spending an afternoon with a book.

Written Sep 21, 2026Sponsored
PlaceMapo, SeoulRestaurants

Hongdae brunch café in Seoul for mushroom avocado salad: MELA Hongdae

MELA Hongdae is a brunch café on the first floor of Nudite, a mixed-use complex near Hongik University Station in Mapo, Seoul. The writer ordered the mushroom poached egg avocado salad (19,000 won) with added bread (2,500 won), while her husband chose the salmon eggs Benedict (22,000 won) topped with two poached eggs. Open from 9am to 6:30pm, MELA Hongdae is a roomy spot that works for an early breakfast or an early dinner alike.

Written Sep 21, 2026Sponsored
PlaceMapo, SeoulRestaurants

Sweet potato mousse pizza in Hongdae, Seoul: Hongdae Hwadeok Pizza

Hongdae Hwadeok Pizza is a Naples-style wood-fired pizzeria on Dokmak-ro 7-gil, between Hapjeong Station and Hongik University Station in Mapo, Seoul. The writer ordered the Croccante and Patata Dolce half-and-half, plus Gamberi e Rucola oil pasta (19,500 won), so one tray held both a spicy shrimp-and-garlic pizza and a sweet potato mousse pizza. With house-made cucumber and radish pickles on the side, Hongdae Hwadeok Pizza is an easy booking for a date or a group dinner.

Written Sep 20, 2026Sponsored
PlaceMapo, SeoulRestaurants

Yeonnam-dong noodle restaurant: jumbo prawn noodles at Ttasijia

Ttasijia Yeonnam is a Singaporean shrimp noodle restaurant in Yeonnam-dong, Seoul, a short walk from Exit 3 of Hongik University Station. From a terrace table the writer ordered cucumber salad at 6,000 won, shrimp broth fried noodles at 16,500 won, fried shrimp rolls at 10,000 won and shrimp noodles with jumbo prawns at 16,500 won, then added sambal sauce and chili oil for heat. Since Ttasijia Yeonnam lets you pick your prawn size and noodle type, the jumbo prawns are worth the extra.

Written Sep 18, 2026Sponsored
PlaceYongsan, SeoulHair & beauty salons

One-hour ash brown dye on short hair at ONLY FOR YOU, Hannam salon

ONLY FOR YOU Hannam Main Branch is a cut, perm and dye hair salon on the 3rd floor of the Hyundai Liberty House complex at Hannam Five-Way Intersection in Yongsan, Seoul. Booked through Naver Reservations on a weekday lunch break, the visit began with a detailed color consultation and ended with an ash brown dye plus a tidy-up cut on short hair, with the color fully changed in one hour. Even a short cut feels new with the right color and trim, which makes ONLY FOR YOU Hannam a place to settle down for anyone still salon-hopping around Yongsan.

Written Sep 17, 2026Sponsored
PlaceMapo, SeoulBars

Yeonnam-dong izakaya with tori paitan and anago tempura: Koma Yeonnam

Koma Yeonnam is a newly opened izakaya on the basement level in Yeonnam-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul, a short walk from Hongik University Station. On a rainy evening the order was tori paitan (chicken paitan soup) at 15,500 won, sesiri yaki (grilled chicken neck) at 17,500 won and anago tempura (fried conger eel) at 22,500 won, with a peach-scented soju served as a welcome drink. Koma Yeonnam cooks well enough to recommend for a date or a small group night out in Yeonnam-dong.

Written Sep 1, 2026Sponsored
PlaceMapo, SeoulRestaurants

Hongdae tteokbokki restaurant with cheese and fried chicken: Eungkeum

Eungkeum Tteokbokki Yeonnam Branch is a 24-hour tteokbokki (spicy rice cake) restaurant in Yeonnam-dong, a short walk from Hongik University Station in Seoul. The order was the Eungkeum tteokbokki (7,900 won) at spice level 1 with added cabbage and mozzarella cheese, plus fried chicken (17,900 won) and pineapple sherbet (8,000 won) for a full chicken-and-tteokbokki course. At Eungkeum Tteokbokki Yeonnam Branch the cheese softens heat close to Shin Ramyun level, and the sherbet is the right way to finish.

Written Sep 6, 2026Sponsored
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