Pet-friendly café near Olympic Park, Seoul with parking: Damgeum

The weather's been so nice lately that I took a trip to Olympic Park, and while I was out I wanted to share the healing time I spent at a great café near the park, so I quickly wrote it up haha! Once again with my lifelong best friend, my mom 😘

Actually this wasn't my first visit!! A few years ago I came once with my older brother for gelato haha. Even back then the café's vibe and the gelato flavor left a strong impression, so I'd kept it in mind, and I'm so happy I finally got to document it properly this time ♡

[Preview] Dropping some photos here

Ah, seeing these photos makes me want to go back again.. The weather was cool and pleasantly warm too, so it felt like a proper trip even without going far!! By now you're probably wondering where this is?? 🙈

It's a place called 'Damgeum' haha! It's really close to the JYP building!

Where is Damgeum, what are the hours, and are pets allowed?

Damgeum is a café located at 37 Seongnae-ro 18-gil, 101-ho, Gangdong-gu, Seoul, South Korea, 992m from Dunchon-dong Station Exit 3. It's open Mon-Fri 10:00-20:00, Sat-Sun 09:00-21:00, open year-round with no break time.

• 📍 37 Seongnae-ro 18-gil, 101-ho, Gangdong-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• 992m from Dunchon-dong Station Exit 3
• 🚘 Parking available ⭕️
• ⏰ Mon-Fri 10:00 - 20:00
• ⏰ Sat, Sun 09:00 - 21:00
• 💪 Open year-round, no break time
• 🐶 Pet-friendly ⭕️
• 🚨 Reservations ⭕️, Catch Table waitlist ⭕️

It's been a while since I found a café right in the middle of Seoul that ticks all these boxes, honestly I was moved just writing it down 🥹 If you're looking for a brunch café near Olympic Park with parking and pet access, this is it!! Naver reservations work too haha

Where do you park at Damgeum?

Parking at Damgeum is available in the two spots right beside the café. Search 'Damgeum' in your navigation, and just before arriving at the café, on the right, you'll see the parking spot marked with an ice cream model.

Right here!! It's right next to the café! If this fills up, they said you can use the Olympic Park North Gate 2 parking lot, cross the crosswalk (4-minute walk), and head straight into the Coffee Bean alley haha

Damgeum's atmosphere: open yet cozy

Strangely enough, it felt both open and mysteriously cozy at the same time, and I really thought about why. Maybe it's because physically everything is open (spaciousness), but the view you see from inside looking out is so warm and gentle (coziness)? 🤔

At the entrance you can register for Catch Table, and while waiting you could check the menu QR code visible from outside too. Such a nice touch..

Inside the Damgeum café

Damgeum menu and prices, from brunch to wine

The kiosk you see right when you walk in! Maybe because I only had gelato last time, I had no idea the menu was this big. Beyond the handmade gelato, there's pasta, lasagna, panini, salads and more brunch items, plus tiramisu, panna cotta, cookies and all kinds of unique handmade desserts, and of course coffee, drinks, and even wine and other alcohol….!!! It's all ♡handmade♡, so lucky are the people who live nearby, I'd probably come every week and work through the whole menu 🤤

You can order at the kiosk, or there's a QR code at every table so you can order while seated!! I actually took photos of the whole kiosk but they didn't turn out cute, so if possible I'd like to keep those small……. Haha I'll only include a few here, but you can check the full menu with descriptions, photos and prices on the café's info site!

How do the classic panino and handmade gelato cup taste?

What I ordered at Damgeum was the classic panino for ₩13,000 and a two-flavor handmade gelato cup for ₩7,000. Since I'd already had lunch, I kept it light! The classic panino was described on the menu as 'a hot panini with hand-trimmed roasted eggplant 🍆, homemade basil pesto 🌿, and homemade oven-dried cherry tomatoes 🍅,' and since I've been obsessed with roasted eggplant lately I ordered it without a second thought!! Honestly, with such a huge menu, making all of it by hand is really impressive.

The gelato flavors were makgeolli (rice wine) 🍶, pistachio 🥜, rice 🌾, super sweet corn 🌽.. and so many I wanted to try, but after much deliberation I picked rice + super sweet corn!! I think I had pistachio last time, but I couldn't remember if it was a real-ingredient flavor or Baskin Robbins-style, so I asked the chef, who just laughed and said there's no comparison haha. If you go to your table, look outside, chat a bit, the chef brings it right over!

You have to eat with your eyes first.. Is this really Korea, you ask. Actually I love Korea. There are probably quite a few people looking for a brunch café course near Olympic Park, and I don't think you'll regret this vibe at all!! Can't keep this one to myself..

? : Even set down carelessly, it looks like a magazine spread

Can you feel that crispy-outside, moist-inside texture ㅠㅠㅠ

Exactly as the menu described, it was all layered in neat order! My beloved roasted eggplant 🍆♡ The rye bread really suited it so well!! 🤤 Crispy rye bread → fragrant basil pesto → moist, savory roasted eggplant → whole-grain mustard (I think..? 😅 just my personal read haha) in that order, it was a textbook crispy-outside, moist-inside flavor!!

I quickly took a bite of the gelato before it melted, and it really lived up to expectations..! The same emotion I felt before, maybe even more this time.. It doesn't feel icy in your mouth, it melts in smooth and chewy! The rice flavor had actual rice grains you could bite into? (Is my vocabulary really this limited,,) and that was such a fun surprise, and super sweet corn can go really cloying if done wrong!! But this gelato was perfectly seasoned with a refined, elevated corn flavor..♡

This is the overall indoor vibe, and I think the wood + beige + green + delicious food all come together so harmoniously..

At the table next to us, some lovely little creatures showed up too?! We'd never met before, but their back view was so pretty I couldn't help taking a photo, sorry about that..! ..! 🤎

Takeout pickup at Damgeum for an Olympic Park picnic

Damgeum isn't just for dining in, takeout pickup is available too, so it seems perfect for gifts or an Olympic Park picnic!! I wish someone would gift this to me too haha. Aren't even the shopping bags and packaging containers so pretty?

Between the interior, the menu, and the food, the owner clearly has an exceptional sense for this. We both really enjoyed the panino and gelato, took in plenty of pretty scenery, and after that spent a long while chatting and laughing with my mom in the cool air before heading home. It's the perfect Olympic Park date course before it gets too cold, so go 'soak' in some healing at 'Damgeum' as soon as you can ♡