Seogyo-dong after-dinner dessert café for fruit soufflé: Petrico

Here's my visit to Petrico, where my girlfriend and I stopped for dessert tonight after dinner near Hongdae. We both love sweet desserts, and tonight we were craving fluffy soufflé pancakes. I searched around and the vibe looked clean and the soufflé reviews were good, so we walked over slowly from where we'd had dinner.

Where is Petrico? A Jandari-ro side street between Hapjeong and Hongik University stations

Petrico sits in an alley off Jandari-ro in Seogyo-dong, between Hapjeong Station and Hongik University Station. Walking over in the evening, the exterior lighting was on, giving the place a calm, atmospheric feel.

The front is full floor-to-ceiling glass, so you can peek inside a bit, and the exterior and sign design are clean and modern, so it's easy to spot at a glance. There's a nice-looking wall near the entrance, so I took a few photos of my girlfriend before going in — the lighting was good, so they came out well.

Inside Petrico: kiosk ordering and widely spaced tables

At Petrico you order at the counter kiosk.

Once we opened the door and walked in, the space was much bigger and more comfortable than I'd expected. The high, open ceiling meant nothing felt cramped, and the warm wood-tone furniture blended nicely with the beige walls.

I liked that the seats weren't crammed together but spaced out generously. A lot of Instagram-worthy cafés have such tight spaces or narrow table gaps that it's hard to talk comfortably, but here the distance between tables was wide, so my girlfriend and I could chat quietly. With soft lighting and mellow music playing, it was just the right mood for an evening date stop.

Ordering the fruit soufflé and matcha latte: a 15–20 minute wait

After grabbing a seat, we went up to the counter to check the menu. Petrico's signature item is soufflé pancakes, and there were a few types, from classic to chocolate. We went with the fruit soufflé, generously topped with a variety of seasonal fruit.

For a drink, we thought about what would pair well with a sweet dessert and added one matcha latte, my girlfriend's usual favorite. We were told the soufflé takes 15 to 20 minutes because the batter is mixed and baked only after the order comes in. Even though we'd already had dinner, the nutty smell while we waited got us excited. Looking around the space and chatting about our day, the time passed quickly.

What the fruit soufflé tastes like: light, moist, no eggy smell

First, the fruit soufflé arrived as two thick, chunky soufflé pancakes surrounded by fruit like banana, kiwi, and blueberry. It looked so soft that just nudging the plate made the soufflé jiggle.

I cut into it lightly with a knife, and it split apart smoothly with no dry resistance at all. Taking a bite, there was no eggy smell whatsoever — the batter was light and moist. Eating it with the soft whipped cream, sweet banana, and tangy strawberry together, the balance of sweetness and tartness was nice. The cream wasn't overly sweet either, so it never felt heavy even by the last bite. My girlfriend was happy too, saying the batter wasn't dense at all and was really soft.

Does the matcha latte go well with the soufflé?

The matcha latte we ordered alongside had a deep green matcha base at the bottom with nutty milk layered on top. Stirring it well with a straw to mix in the base, the flavor wasn't like the overly sweet mixed matcha you often find — it had a nice bitterness along with a nutty depth.

A drink that's only sweet can feel like too much alongside a sweet soufflé, but this matcha latte had a rich, subtle tea leaf aroma that came through well, so it paired nicely with the sweet fruit soufflé. Sharing one cup between the two of us as we ate the soufflé cut through the richness and gave a clean finish each time.

Wrap-up: who should visit Petrico in the evening

If you're looking for a good date spot near Hongdae or Hapjeong's Seogyo-dong for a quiet chat, or hunting for a fluffy, moist soufflé pancake spot, I'd recommend giving Petrico a try. Next time I plan to try a different kind of soufflé.