Gangnam Station café catch-up, iced Americano & cookie: Selected Nicks

Selected Nicks, a big Gangnam Station café: how was it for meeting a friend?

Selected Nicks (셀렉티드닉스) is a large café on Teheran-ro 4-gil near Gangnam Station, and it uses the whole building from B1 up to the rooftop. Last weekday I was meeting a dear friend I hadn't seen in ages, and while picking a spot I ended up at Selected Nicks, which has been getting great word of mouth as a meetup place lately.

When you make plans in the middle of Gangnam, the seats are often crammed together or the noise echoes so much that talking is hard. Honestly, most meetup spots I've tried around Gangnam were so hectic that I got a headache after just 30 minutes. But Selected Nicks, which uses everything from B1 to the rooftop, felt like a breath of fresh air in the crowded city.

How are the seats at Selected Nicks divided by floor?

Selected Nicks has about 30 seats on B1, the main counter and 45 seats on 1F, gallery-style seating on 2F, and the 8F and rooftop photo zone, so each floor has its own mood. The writer felt this five-floor sense of space was special enough to make you forget the busy Gangnam Station streets.

Step into the alley and the modern, stylish exterior catches your eye right away. The first thing I noticed once inside was how smartly the space is divided, enough to make you forget you're in a busy downtown area.

The flow of movement and the ceiling height felt open, never stuffy. B1 is a cozy space of about 30 seats, while 1F has the main counter and a generous 45 seats. 2F adds seating with a little gallery feel, and with the 8F and the rooftop photo zone at the very top, every floor had a different vibe haha.

The 1F counter and dessert showcase

On 1F of Selected Nicks there is a bright, neatly arranged main counter and a dessert showcase. The moment you step in, the counter and showcase are the first things spread out in front of you.

Under soft lighting, neatly displayed boxes of colorful tiramisu and freshly baked handmade baked sweets caught every customer's eye at once.

The pickup counter and the ordering line are laid out in a wide, open structure, so even at busy times I could pick a menu item and pay comfortably without bumping into anyone.

The staff taking orders were calm and quick too, so the first impression was very comfortable.

The 8F rooftop and the yellow logo photo zone

The top-floor rooftop at Selected Nicks has white outdoor tables and a photo zone with a big yellow English-letter logo sculpture. Take the elevator to the top and a cool breeze and an open rooftop greet you. Facing the blue sky in the middle of a forest of buildings felt like a weight lifting off my chest. Sitting at the clean white outdoor tables, I even felt like I was at a little resort in the city.

The photo zone with the big yellow English logo sculpture especially makes photos come out beautifully from any angle. On a nice day, it's a perfect healing spot to bring up a cold coffee, enjoy the city view and zone out for a while haha.

How do the iced Americano and cookie at Selected Nicks taste?

At Selected Nicks, my friend and I ordered two iced Americanos and a thick cookie. The Americano was clean and nutty with no bitterness, and the cookie was crisp outside and hearty inside, so the two went well together.

My friend and I went to the counter and ordered a sweet cookie along with two cold iced Americanos.

Selected Nicks is famous as a specialist in chewy tiramisu based on an authentic Italian recipe, but that day I wanted something crisp and rich, so I picked the thick cookie. Standing in front of the dessert display, a sweet aroma hit me and my mouth watered on its own.

Taking a sip of the Americano, I was impressed by the clean body with no harsh bitterness. The beans' acidity wasn't overpowering and the nutty balance was well kept, so it paired with the sweet cookie like a perfect match. Biting into the cookie, it was pleasantly crisp outside and hearty inside, and my friend and I couldn't stop our forks. The weekday fatigue from work just melted away thanks to the sweet-bitter combo.

Is there parking at Selected Nicks? How do you get there by subway?

If you bring a car to Selected Nicks, ask the 1F staff at the rear-gate barrier first, and SUVs or large sedans are hard to park on site. By public transport, it's about a 5-minute walk from Exit 3 of Gangnam Station on the Shinbundang and Line 2.

If you're bringing a car, you need to ask the 1F staff at the rear-gate barrier first. However, tall SUVs and large sedans are hard to park on site because of the mechanical parking or height limits, so I'd recommend putting your mind at ease and using a paid lot near Teheran-ro. For those of you on foot, come out of Exit 3 of the Shinbundang or Line 2 and go straight, and it's a 5-minute walk, so access is excellent.

It's a 5-minute walk from the subway station, so public transport access is excellent.

My honest reasons for wanting to go back to Selected Nicks

Selected Nicks has roomy table spacing and zones divided by floor, so it was great for talking with a friend near Gangnam Station for a long time without worrying about noise. There are so many similar cafés everywhere these days, but what I liked most about this Gangnam Station big-café tour was being able to stay comfortably without worrying about the people around me. To be honest, whenever I made plans near Gangnam, we usually ended up moving seats within an hour because of the noise. But Selected Nicks has zones split by floor, plus calm music and cozy lighting wrapping around you, so it was just right for a long, heart-to-heart talk with my friend.

If you want a cozy chat with a friend, or some quiet time to yourself after work, be sure to try a healing cup of coffee at Selected Nicks, the big café near Gangnam Station. And what dessert do you like to pair with your Americano when you go to a café?