Hand-drip Colombia Peach Blossom & matcha basque cake: Pict Roastery

A Magoknaru roastery café found on a walk to Seoul Botanic Garden

On the weekend I had lunch with friends at One Grove, and since the weather was so nice we ended up walking toward Seoul Botanic Garden.

That's when I stumbled across this Magoknaru café, Pict Roastery.

I usually like coffee and enjoy checking out good roasting cafés, so the clean, modern exterior naturally made me stop in my tracks.

A store filled with natural light through floor-to-ceiling windows and coffee aroma

The interior vibe was clean and modern!!!

The soft natural light pouring in through the big windows gave the whole place such a comfortable feel.

It was the kind of atmosphere that's perfect for sitting comfortably with friends, sipping coffee and chatting. The subtle coffee aroma filling the whole space made my nose genuinely happy haha.

Once I found out they roast their own beans in-house, it made sense why such a great aroma filled the whole place!!

This is the actual roasting machine sitting right in the store ~ once I saw the roaster in person, my expectations for the coffee naturally went UP!!

What we ordered — iced Americano, vanilla bean latte, hand-drip

So here's what my friends and I ordered that day.

An iced Americano, a sweet vanilla bean latte, and a hand-drip coffee made with Colombia Finca Peach Blossom beans. Being able to choose the beans yourself to match your taste felt like a big plus, since you can end up with coffee that's just right for you ^^

So how does the Colombia Finca Peach Blossom hand-drip taste?

I usually love coffee made with Geisha beans and enjoy trying specialty coffees at different cafés, so the Colombia Finca Peach Blossom I had this time was really striking from the first whiff of aroma.

With one sip, a soft, bright floral aroma naturally spread through my mouth — it reminded me of the fragrant Geisha varieties I love, but with a different charm all its own.

The name 'Peach Blossom' really suited it — it had that cheerful, bright scent I hadn't easily come across elsewhere, and the more I drank it the more memorable this specialty coffee became.

That went without saying for the specialty coffee, but...

The iced Americano and vanilla bean latte were delicious too, of course, since this is a place with solid basic coffee. Being a self-roasting café, I could really feel that the fundamentals of their coffee were rock solid ^^

Kyoto matcha basque cheesecake

The handmade dessert we ordered alongside the coffee was the Kyoto matcha basque cheesecake. Maybe because it's baked in-house... one bite in and the moist, chewy yet soft texture really stood out.

There was a gentle bitterness distinct to matcha, but it wasn't too sweet, so it paired perfectly with the coffee.

Plus one free Americano refill

Since they make specialty coffee with in-house roasted beans and bake their desserts in-house as well,

everything, from the drinks to the handmade desserts, felt like it was made with real care.

On top of that, the Americano made with these delicious beans comes with one free refill, which felt like such a good deal....!!

We found this place by chance while walking with friends on the weekend, and both the coffee and the desserts turned out so much better than expected that it felt like we'd actually found exactly what we were looking for.

The fragrant aftertaste of the Colombia Finca Peach Blossom coffee in particular has stuck with me, so I think I'll have to go back soon and buy some beans.

If you're near Seoul Botanic Garden and Magoknaru looking for a place to enjoy freshly roasted, fragrant specialty coffee and handmade desserts, this place is worth stopping by.