Gwangjin café for mugwort latte and corn ice cream: Center Coffee

Getting to Center Coffee Guui East Pole from Guui Station

I simply can't walk past a menu with root vegetables in it, so when I saw that Center Coffee had a mugwort latte, I quietly popped over to the Guui East Pole branch by myself! It's on B1 of NC East Pole, so it's also great for a quick stop while shopping~

• Location: B1, NC East Pole, 402 Achasan-ro, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• Hours: 10:00–22:00 (open daily)
• Parking: Paid parking at NC East Pole
• Pets: Not allowed
• With children: Welcome; children's facilities and high chairs available

Come out of Exit 3 at Guui Station and you'll see East Pole. Head underground and walk straight along, and the café appears right away~

The way there and inside the café

As soon as you enter through the entrance, you'll see an escalator. Take it down just one floor,

and you'll see Ashley!

Then turn left and keep walking,

and there is Center Coffee Guui East Pole.

I originally went just for the mugwort latte, but as a root-vegetable lover, there was no way I could skip the corn... haha. And they even top it with brown cheese, the ultimate sweet-and-salty touch—how could I not order it?!

The first thing I noticed upon entering was that the café was much bigger than I expected! When you're looking for good coffee in Gwangjin, there are quite a few places where the seating is tight and you can't linger long, but there was none of that pressure here~ Of course, I quickly finished my ice cream and got up anyway, haha.

And perhaps because it is inside a mall, there were really lots of people visiting with their children in strollers. With plenty of shops to browse nearby, it has just the right setup for taking a break with your child while shopping! There are separate group tables too, so larger parties were sitting comfortably~ Even though I was alone, I never felt awkward about taking a seat; on the other hand, groups don't have to split up either, so it works easily for any combination of visitors.

How the mugwort latte and Chodang sweet corn ice cream tasted

I ordered the mugwort latte for ₩6,500 and the Chodang sweet corn ice cream for ₩4,800~

The mugwort latte is seriously intense!! It isn't just lightly scented with mugwort—the flavor rises right up from the first sip, then carries through with a nutty richness, so I could drink it to the end without getting tired of it. If you love root vegetables like I do, you absolutely have to try this! I came after reading reviews too, and everyone was raving about the mugwort latte. Rightly so! There actually aren't that many cafés near Gangbyeon Station serving mugwort lattes, which makes it even better.

And the Chodang sweet corn ice cream was sooooo good! It comes topped with brown cheese, and that was genuinely the genius move!! The sweet corn cream itself is gently sweet, but the salty brown cheese comes through alongside it, creating a complete sweet-and-salty combination~ It seems like it might become too sweet after one bite, but the cheese keeps it balanced, so I couldn't stop spooning it up until the end. As someone who loves root vegetables, both the mugwort latte and the ice cream were exactly my kind of thing, and I enjoyed them so much. I don't think it is easy to find desserts this good at cafés near Gangbyeon Station.

I wanted to drink the latte while walking, so I only had one sip and asked for it to go. The service was lovely too, and I never felt awkward despite visiting alone~

For people who love root-vegetable menus

To sum it up, the mugwort latte and corn ice cream alone are enough reason to come here!! If you especially love root vegetables, this is the first place I'd tell you to try among Gwangjin coffee spots~ The café is spacious and has group tables, so I can comfortably recommend it to people coming with children in strollers or groups planning to sit for a while! The service felt easygoing and there was plenty of seating, so it was also nice for quietly spending time alone. If I have reason to come to East Pole again, I plan to stop by once more~ If you're looking for a café near Gangbyeon Station to rest during a shopping trip, or good coffee in Gwangjin, it would be worth dropping in.