Gyodae Station café for a cold day: rooibos tea hourglass, Mini Male

Where is Mini Male Coffee Roaster Gyodae Court Branch, and when is it open?

Mini Male Coffee Roaster Gyodae Court Branch is a café 176 m from Exit 7 of Gyodae Station. It is open 08:00-22:00 on weekdays and 09:00-19:00 on weekends, and public holidays and long holiday periods follow the weekend hours. It's a great place to stop by after a relaxed weekend lunch.

There's an umbrella stand at the entrance, and there are seats outdoors too. The exterior is done in black. Inside, the interior is just as clean and modern as the outside.

What is babka?

I haven't seen any café other than Mini Male that sells babka. The name "babka" comes from the word for "grandmother" or "little grandmother" (baba) in Eastern European languages. One theory says the name came about because the pleated shape of traditional babka looks like the folds of a grandmother's skirt.

Mini Male Gyodae Court Branch displays a variety of babkas, including hotteok (Korean sweet pancake), matcha and butter. I couldn't decide between the signature O Chocolat babka and the Noisette Blossom babka. I'd been craving something sweet lately, so I went with the chocolate babka.

Behind the weight of the dark chocolate, a subtle citrus freshness spreads out. It's excellent.

What other baked goods does Mini Male sell besides babka?

Mini Male Gyodae Court Branch also has salt bread, where rich butter flavor fills your mouth, and a classic Victoria scone, an English-style scone with a creamy flavor, sandwiched with cream and strawberry jam.

There were egg tarts too, so I picked one up!

There are handmade New York cookies as well. You can choose to your taste: Dark S'mores with chewy marshmallow and rich dark chocolate, or the Original Levain, generously packed with chocolate chips and nutty walnuts.

How much are Mini Male's bottled Flache drinks?

There's also something interesting called Flache, and they're all ₩6,500. There's the Helsinki Latte Flache; a bottled milk tea Flache made by cold-brewing only Assam tea leaves for over 36 hours; and a matcha latte Flache made by whisking 100% Boseong, Jeonnam matcha powder by hand in the traditional way.

How did the O Chocolat babka and egg tart taste?

The sweetness of the signature O Chocolat babka (₩6,500) was about 3.5 out of 5. I cut it into small pieces with the knife and fork they kindly provided, so it was easy to eat. The egg tart's sweetness was excellent. I cut that with a knife too and shared it with my companion.

Rooibos vanilla tea on a cold day: why Mini Male serves an hourglass

Since I had a cold, I ordered the rooibos vanilla tea at Mini Male Gyodae Court Branch. They gave me an hourglass with it.

They told me to take the tea bag out once all the sand had run up to the top. Leave a tea bag in too long and the tea turns bitter. I think thoughtful touches like this make the difference.

The tea bag is from Ronnefeldt, a premium German tea brand founded in 1823, with 200 years of tradition. They blend only carefully selected top-grade tea leaves and herbs, and it's said to be loved at luxury hotels and restaurants around the world. It was the best rooibos tea I've ever had!

How sweet is the Helsinki Latte?

The Helsinki Latte is Mini Male's popular signature menu item. They say it recreates, with Mini Male's own recipe, the best latte of the writer's life that they met while traveling in Helsinki, Finland. It's said to be excellent for its rich milk flavor and smoothness with no bitterness. The sweetness is 1.5 out of 5!

You can choose everything: size, temperature, whether you want decaf, and more!

Is Mini Male Gyodae Court Branch worth a visit?

Near Gyodae Station, I could enjoy babka, a unique dessert you rarely find, together with deeply flavored premium tea and a latte, so it was a very satisfying time. If you're looking for a clean café with tasty desserts, definitely visit Mini Male Coffee Roaster Gyodae Court Branch once. The combination of a sweet bakery treat and a drink will blow your stress away. I highly recommend it as a healing spot in a tiring daily routine.