Sinnonhyeon café, mango lemonade and matcha canelé: Upper and Under

On a weekday afternoon, my friend and I had dinner and weren't quite ready to say goodbye, so we decided to hit up a café near Sinnonhyeon Station. There are so many cafés around Gangnam Station, but I chose Upper and Under since it has a terrace and I'd heard the desserts were good!

Where is Upper and Under, and what are its hours?

Upper and Under is at 28 Gangnam-daero102-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, spread across the basement, 1st, and 2nd floors, and it's open daily from 11am to 10pm.

If you walk up the alley with the CGV theater, between Exit 6 of Sinnonhyeon Station and Exit 11 of Gangnam Station, you'll reach Gangnam café street. From there, the three-story building was easy to spot!

It's a brick building with a European feel, and since you can use everything from the basement up to the 2nd floor, it's a pretty large café! Every time I come here it's packed, so there might be a wait — it's a genuinely popular spot haha.

Terrace seats on the 1st and 2nd floors of Upper and Under

Upper and Under has terrace seating on both the 1st and 2nd floors! There were so many people on the 2nd floor that I felt bad taking photos there, so I skipped it, haha. In this cool weather, sitting outside with a coffee is absolutely perfect haha.

The dessert lineup at Upper and Under, from baked goods to fig cake

I think one reason Upper and Under got so popular is this dessert lineup! It's set up in a corner beside the ordering counter, and everything looked amazing — from the delicious-looking baked goods to the fig desserts that are popular right now in season.

The yellow cheese Basque cheesecake looked really good too haha. If you visit late, note that these popular desserts might already be sold out.

They also have cakes lined up — tiramisu, raspberry, lemon, Earl Grey grapefruit, and other refreshing citrus cream cakes — all flavors that felt perfect for after dinner.

Coffee menu and prices at Upper and Under, decaf included

I liked that Upper and Under's coffee menu can all be made decaf! I remembered the sparkling ade being pretty tasty from a previous visit, so I ordered the mango lemonade.

• Americano ₩6,500
• Einspänner ₩8,000
• Deep cacao ₩7,500
• Amande ₩7,500
• Salted caramel ₩8,000
• Espresso ₩6,000
• Flat white ₩6,800
• Latte ₩7,000
• Cappuccino ₩7,000
• Mocha ₩7,000

How busy is Upper and Under at 8:30pm?

Order first, then grab a seat!! It was around 8:30pm and there were only a few empty tables left, haha. There were terrace seats on the 2nd floor, and with the cool weather it looked like a great spot to enjoy coffee.

You pick out desserts like at a bakery! I got the yellow cheese financier, a plain financier, and the last matcha canelé they had left.

How the mango lemonade and decaf einspänner tasted

The mango lemonade was refreshing with plenty of sparkle, and there was mango jelly-like layer at the bottom that was really good haha.

The einspänner, loaded with cream, was soft and nutty and delicious! It was even better that it could be made decaf, so I didn't feel bad drinking it in the evening haha.

Upper and Under's financiers: crisp outside, moist inside

There are so many places selling financiers these days, which honestly makes it harder to find a really good one — but these financiers here are genuinely delicious!!! If you like that crisp-outside, moist-inside style, you have to try Upper and Under's financiers haha. Rich butter flavor, crisp exterior, moist and dense inside — it was so good that pairing it with a warm coffee would be absolutely perfect!! Chef's kiss!!

Upper and Under is one of the most popular cafés near Sinnonhyeon Station, and visiting in person, I could see why — the terrace atmosphere is great and the baked desserts are delicious haha. I'll definitely come back next time I need a late-night café around Gangnam Station!!