Seongsu factory-turned café with decaf americano: Biat Seongsu

You've got to have coffee after a big lunch, right~? I was looking for a café near Seongsu Station and headed to Biat Seongsu. Seongsu is always so packed that finding somewhere quiet and pretty is surprisingly hard, but maybe because I went in the daytime, I got to sit there at ease.

Where is Biat Seongsu? Location, hours and parking

Biat Seongsu is on the 2nd floor at 24-45 Achasan-ro 5-gil, Seongdong-gu, Seoul, about a 3-5 minute walk from Seongsu Station Exit 1. Hours are Mon-Sat 12:00-22:00 and Sunday 12:00-19:00, with last order 30 minutes before closing. There's no dedicated parking, so you'll need to use a nearby public lot.

You have to go up the stairs on the right side of the building. The 1st floor is a place called Biat Company that makes picture frames. The café is on the 2nd floor. Apparently a lot of people accidentally walk into the 1st floor. The stairs are a bit steep, so I took them slowly.

Inside the converted factory: Biat Seongsu's second-floor interior

Once you open the door and step into Biat Seongsu, the space is bigger than you'd expect. The vibe splits left and right around the open kitchen, and I took a seat on the left as you walk in.

In the center on both sides are backless stool-style sofas, which give off a comfortable feel like a Southeast Asian resort or hotel lounge.

The sofas, chairs, and tables are all set at roughly the same height, which made the large space feel more grounded and stable. It's a tidy look where nothing blocks your line of sight. Green plants scattered between the tables naturally divide up the space and add a fresh accent.

The photos in the frames hung on the walls act like windows. Apparently the frames themselves are made downstairs in the 1st-floor factory.

Since it's a converted factory, the ceiling has exposed rebar and high ceilings, so it feels open rather than cramped. The exposed metal blends naturally into the interior, giving it a raw yet put-together feel. I'd heard Seongsu has a lot of converted-factory cafés, but seeing this style in person, it's a nice, different texture.

Biat Seongsu menu and prices

Coffee menu at Biat Seongsu

• Americano ₩4,500
• Café Latte ₩5,000
• Vanilla Latte ₩5,500
• Nutmosphere ₩6,000
• Einspänner ₩5,500
• Ice Cream Latte ₩6,500
• Cappuccino ₩5,000

Desserts: croffles, affogato and Malenka

• Fig Greek Croffle ₩15,000
• Plain Croffle ₩7,000
• Ice Cream Croffle ₩9,000
• Tiramisu Affogato ₩9,000
• Pistachio Walnut Malenka ₩8,000

Casual drinks: ades, juices and milk tea

• Apple Lychee Ade ₩7,000
• Peach Latte ₩6,000
• Watermelon Juice ₩7,500
• Deep Chocolate ₩6,000
• Jeju Green Matcha ₩6,000
• Earl Grey Assam Milk Tea ₩6,000

Herbal teas

• Royal Chamomile ₩6,000
• Rooibos Vanilla ₩6,000

Swapping to decaf coffee costs an extra ₩500, and Einspänner and Nutmosphere can't be made decaf.

What I ordered at Biat Seongsu

Iced americano ₩4,500, hot decaf americano ₩5,000, fig Greek croffle ₩15,000.

How does the ₩15,000 fig Greek croffle taste?

Biat Seongsu's fig Greek croffle is a cream-sandwiched croffle topped with five slices of jam-drizzled fig, gently placed on the cream. It looked like it would collapse if I cut it right away, so I decided to eat the figs first.

One bite of fig and I was moved. Even without the jam it was fresh and sweet enough on its own. After eating about half the figs, I split the remaining croffle in half to taste the croffle itself.

Cream and croffle together — need I say more, haha. Paired with coffee, whoever said they were full a minute ago clearly wasn't me anymore~

Croffles usually go soggy after a while, but even though quite a bit of time passed as we chatted and ate slowly, it stayed crispy right down to the last bite. ₩15,000 felt like a lot, but with two thick croffle pieces and five generous fig slices on top, it delivered on both looks and taste.

Iced americano vs decaf americano at Biat Seongsu

Iced americano ₩4,500, decaf americano ₩5,000. Both the regular and decaf were strongly brewed but not overly bitter — instead both had a nutty flavor, and the iced americano in particular had a nutty, dark coffee taste as the ice melted and mixed in, quenching thirst nicely.

Pairing the sweet croffle with a cool iced americano hit the spot — sugar and caffeine both covered, a perfect combo.

Good to know before visiting Biat Seongsu

It's a 3-5 minute walk from Seongsu Station Exit 1. It's on the 2nd floor and there's no dedicated parking, so public transit is recommended over driving. The left side has a bright, open atmosphere while the right side is dimmer and calmer, so pick a seat based on your mood.

Switching coffee to decaf costs an extra ₩500, and Einspänner and Nutmosphere can't be made decaf. It's gotten busier lately, so if you want to sit comfortably, weekday afternoons or right after opening are best. There may be a wait on weekends or during peak hours.

Is Biat Seongsu worth a visit? Final verdict

With the high ceilings unique to a converted factory, wood accents, plush stools, and a tidy interior unified at matching heights, you can enjoy a comfortable, distinctive atmosphere. The fig croffle earned its price with a thick croffle piled high with fig, and the crisp texture that lasted to the end kept me thinking about it!! It feels like I've saved up one more place to come back to whenever I'm in Seongsu!!