# Yeongdeungpo terrace café with strawberry latte: Mela Times Square - By Haejun (https://superchart.com/en/@seoul-coffee-route/) - Written Sep 19, 2026 - Local places › Cafés › Yeongdeungpo, Seoul - Sponsored: This review is based on a store-visit sponsorship. - English edition: https://superchart.com/en/@seoul-coffee-route/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/ - Also in: [한국어](https://superchart.com/ko/@seoul-coffee-route/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/index.md) ## In short Mela Times Square is an Italian home-style brunch café on the 1st floor of Times Square in Yeongdeungpo, Seoul. Booked ahead during a shopping trip, Mela served minari (water parsley) vongole pasta and ragu tteokbokki (spicy rice cakes) with a cappuccino and a strawberry latte — the oil pasta was fragrant without any heaviness, and the ragu sauce was rich enough to scrape clean. For a sunlit terrace moment of calm inside the busy Times Square mall, Mela is a solid pick. ## Good to know - **Location**: 1st floor, Times Square, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul (15 Yeongjung-ro, Yeongdeungpo-gu) - **Type**: Italian home-style brunch café - **What we ordered**: Minari vongole pasta, ragu tteokbokki, cappuccino, strawberry latte - **Option**: Ragu tteokbokki can be switched to linguine noodles - **Seating**: Indoor tables and an outdoor terrace - **How we visited**: With a reservation *as written by the visitor on Sep 19, 2026* ![Exterior view of Mela, a brunch café on the 1st floor of Yeongdeungpo Times Square](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-01-11ove-1200.webp) ![Entrance area of Mela Times Square](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-02-1kjh6-900.webp) It had been a while since I visited Yeongdeungpo Times Square, and with so much to see and do, I shopped around and browsed until I got hungry — then headed to a spot I'd already booked for a nice, tasty brunch. ![Mela's storefront seen from inside the Times Square mall](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-03-nwh5u-900.webp) ![Sign for Mela, an Italian home-style brunch café](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-04-16xuo-900.webp) ## Mela Times Square: an Italian home-style café on the 1st floor of Yeongdeungpo Times Square Today I'm introducing Mela, an Italian home-style brunch café on the 1st floor of Times Square in Yeongdeungpo. > Mela — Italian home cooking that fills your everyday with warmth Mela means "apple" in Italian, and it's a brand that wants to share good ingredients, delicious food, happiness and love — the way you would with family. ![Interior of Mela with its high ceiling](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-05-18yw6-900.webp) ![Sunlit window seating at Mela](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-06-7y3j5-900.webp) It's a space that started with the wish to gift people, amid busy daily life, a moment to sit face to face with someone dear and share warmth and care. From outside already, a bright, cozy mood greeted me, and the soaring ceilings and warm sunlight pouring through the windows were healing. Just a few steps out and you're back in a bustling mall, but inside it feels like an entirely different world. ![Outdoor terrace seating at Mela](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-07-dojfm-900.webp) ![Mela's white-and-green exterior decorated with roses](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-08-s1aec-900.webp) ### Inside Mela: terrace seats, roses and high ceilings Outside there's a terrace, so enjoying brunch there on a weekend or afternoon would feel like being abroad. From inside, the white-and-green color scheme is clean and the rose decorations are so lavish that it's hard to just walk past. ![Open, airy interior of Mela](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-09-1qqe9-900.webp) ![Table layout inside Mela](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-10-i6mkl-900.webp) The interior feels open and never cramped, so even a casual snapshot comes out looking like your best photo ever — a genuinely dreamy mood. ![Dreamy window seat at Mela](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-11-8o3k4-900.webp) ![Spacious seating at Mela, good for group gatherings](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-12-ub4vg-900.webp) It's the perfect spot for a wedding-invitation gathering, a date, or catching up with friends — cozy yet stylish, ideal for chatting the time away at ease. ## What does Mela's minari vongole pasta taste like? > Minari vongole pasta Loaded with fresh clams and littlenecks, plus sun-dried tomatoes and fragrant minari (water dropwort), it hit just the right savory note — not too spicy, not too bland. ![Minari vongole pasta loaded with clams](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-13-16lfs-900.webp) ![Vongole pasta topped with sun-dried tomatoes and minari](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-14-96mjt-900.webp) There was none of the heaviness you get with oil pastas, and the fresh, pleasant scent of minari made it impossible to put my fork down. ![Fork lifting noodles from the minari vongole pasta](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-15-wlkbe-900.webp) ![Close-up of Mela's popular minari vongole pasta](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-16-e05jz-900.webp) The savoriness kept bursting out with every bite — I heard it's Mela's best-seller, and now I get why. ## Ragu tteokbokki at Mela, and how to switch it to linguine > Ragu tteokbokki A quirky fusion tteokbokki (stir-fried rice cake) made with a rich ragu sauce simmered in-house for hours, paired with chewy rice cakes — somehow it felt like eating this would make you healthier. ![Mela's ragu tteokbokki topped with rich ragu sauce](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-17-1rb2h-900.webp) ![A plate of ragu tteokbokki loaded with meat](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-18-31ept-900.webp) Worlds away from the usual sweet-and-spicy tteokbokki, this felt luxurious, loaded with meat — a premium version of the dish. ![Chewy rice cakes coated in ragu sauce](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-19-8qfp8-900.webp) ![Table set with both ragu tteokbokki and pasta](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-20-p4p7u-900.webp) You can apparently switch it to linguine noodles, but since I also wanted the minari vongole pasta and wanted to enjoy the chewy rice cake texture as is, I kept it as is — the sauce was so good I scraped the plate clean, saving the dishwasher some effort. ## Mela's cappuccino and strawberry latte > Cappuccino & strawberry latte The cappuccino came topped with soft milk foam, somewhere between wet and dry foam, with a little heart drawn on top — made me want to learn that skill myself. It paired beautifully with the rich espresso, tasty enough to make me want a second cup. ![Mela's cappuccino topped with heart latte art](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-21-15u6o-900.webp) ![Mela's strawberry latte with strawberry flesh](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-22-1uxn0-900.webp) The strawberry latte was packed with sweet strawberry flesh in every sip — a pleasant, happy kind of sweetness. ![A cappuccino and a strawberry latte together](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-23-1xasl-900.webp) By the way — following Korean romanization rules for loanwords (where a vowel after a plosive isn't written as a tensed sound), the official spelling of "latte" in Korean is 라테 (ra-te), and that's what this café uses everywhere. But to Korean ears, 라떼 (ra-tte) just rolls off the tongue more naturally, so that's the version people actually use in daily life and in most cafés. ![A closing view of a corner of Mela](https://img.superchart.com/images/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo-24-1bzzv-900.webp) ## A finish as fresh as the name Mela By the time we finished eating, it must have been the staff's snack break. Mela means "apple" in Italian, and there they were, biting into a big, glossy, unpeeled red apple — I couldn't help but smile to myself at how perfectly that matched. True to its name, the space, the food, even the staff somehow brought to mind a fresh, crisp apple — a genuinely feel-good place. If you want to enjoy delicious Italian home cooking with warm sunlight and a relaxed mood in the middle of bustling Times Square, I recommend spending happy time at Mela. ## Where it is - Mela Times Square (멜라 타임스퀘어점) - 1F, 15 Yeongjung-ro, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, South Korea - 서울특별시 영등포구 영중로 15 103-9호 1층 멜라 타임스퀘어점 - 37.5172145, 126.9025629 - Google Maps: https://www.google.com/maps/search/%EB%A9%9C%EB%9D%BC%20%ED%83%80%EC%9E%84%EC%8A%A4%ED%80%98%EC%96%B4%EC%A0%90/@37.5172145,126.9025629,17z --- Superchart · https://superchart.com/en/@seoul-coffee-route/mela-timesquare-terrace-brunch-yeongdeungpo/ · https://superchart.com/llms.txt