Busy evening Sinnonhyeon café, Chodang corn pie: Upper and Under

What kind of café is Upper and Under?

Upper and Under is a large café on Gangnam-daero 102-gil, near Sinnonhyeon Station and Gangnam Station, that uses an entire building. It starts in the basement and goes up through the 1st, 2nd and 3rd floors! You can use every space freely, so it's great for dates, and with so many kinds of bread it's perfect for a dessert healing session. Let me show you one by one.

• Address: 28 Gangnam-daero 102-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul (basement, 1st floor, 2nd floor)
• Hours: daily 11:00–22:00

How much is the coffee at Upper and Under?

The basic Americano at Upper and Under is ₩6,500. The Einspänner (cream-topped coffee) and Salty Caramel are ₩8,000, espresso is ₩6,000 and a latte is ₩7,000. That's the basic coffee pricing, and since the whole building is one big café, the table seating varies a lot from space to space.

Are there seats in the evening? Grab a table before you order!

Upper and Under is busy even at 7–8 p.m., so I recommend getting a seat before ordering drinks. We went somewhere around 7 to 8 in the evening. The heat hadn't cooled down even after dinner, so we came for some café healing. I thought it would be a bit more relaxed at that hour, but a really popular café is just like this, packed. (Lots of foreign guests too!)

There were about 3 empty tables in the basement, and I thought, "I'll order coffee and sit here!" But when I came back from ordering, all 3 of those tables were already taken ^ㅠ,,, I regret being so relaxed about it! Seriously, first, , , grab a table, then order your drinks, that's my advice.

Still, Upper and Under has high turnover! There's lots of table space, and as many people come in, many also leave, so turnover is decent. A seat opened up soon enough and we ended up sitting near the big glass windows.

What desserts does Upper and Under have?

The pies at Upper and Under are mango pie ₩8,000, choco banana pie ₩8,000 and corn pie ₩8,300. There's a huge variety of financiers too! Salt choco ₩4,100, hojicha pecan ₩4,700 and yellow cheese ₩4,500, so choosing is half the fun.

Corn pie taste

We chose the corn pie (made with chodang corn, a sweet Korean variety). The outside looked a little crispy, but when I actually ate it, it was super soft and blended well with the cream! It's not very sweet and went really well with coffee. Nice! 😋

There are small-size desserts too, plus fruit cakes, tiramisu and more, in a huge range of sizes! And since so many guests visit, even cakes that sell out quickly get refilled in real time.

Even though we visited in the evening, we could choose from a wide variety of desserts almost as if we'd come early, which I loved.

What does the Salty Caramel taste like?

Upper and Under's Salty Caramel (₩8,000) is a basic Einspänner with a salty kick and an extra cookie added. The soft cream sits on top thick and dense, so even eating just the cream on its own is really delicious!

No straw, just sip! Tilt the cup slowly and drink it.

With each sip, the salty flavor and creamy richness come first, then the coffee follows right after and blends together. It was truly a dreamy cup of coffee.

How acidic is the Americano at Upper and Under?

The basic Americano at Upper and Under (₩6,500) isn't strongly acidic, just pleasantly mild. It comes as a clean glass with plenty of ice, and that just-right mildness made it perfect to have with sweet desserts.

A dessert that pairs well with coffee: tiramisu

The tiramisu at Upper and Under was, as expected, super soft~ 😋😋 It's not very sweet, so it was a satisfying coffee dessert.

Even as we finished our coffee and headed out, guests kept coming in. Upper and Under, the really popular big café near Sinnonhyeon Station, is recommended :)