Summer date café in Dangjin: sliceable soft tofu ice cream at MIMI

Summer in Dangjin: where to rest after the sea?

Summer is here, with daytime highs close to 30 degrees. Nights can still be cool and breezy, but being outside in the daytime without a parasol is a bit much. When it's hot, the discomfort index goes up and we naturally get irritable, right? That's exactly when we need to be considerate and careful with family, friends and partners instead of acting on our mood.

On the flip side, one great way to spend summer happily with the people you care about is a trip to the sea to cool off and have a good time. The sea is beautiful all year round, but the summer sea is refreshing, and the crowded beaches have a lively, vacation feel that I love. And especially! Seeing spotless little kids screaming and laughing without a care in the world is just so lovely.

So here are a few spots in Dangjin, Chungnam, with views of the West Sea. Haengdamdo Rest Area, in the middle of the Seohae Bridge, is great for looking far out to sea; Hanjin Port is nice for a walk along the sea road; and Waemok Village is good for a vacation, beach included. If you've done all of Dangjin, you can head over to nearby Taean and enjoy summer there. I went around Taean alone in winter to film a domestic travel video.

I often visit Dangjin for the sea and a drive. Today's main topic is MIMI Coffee Mill (미미커피방앗간), a Dangjin café I've already visited three times. They're serious about coffee, the place feels comfortable every time, and many of the desserts are delicious too, so I'm a regular.

Where is MIMI Coffee Mill and what kind of café is it?

MIMI Coffee Mill is a warehouse in a countryside village in Bongso-ri, Sunseong-myeon, Dangjin, Chungnam, reborn as a stylish café. It's on the way when you travel from Hongseong or Yesan counties toward Dangjin, the Seohae Bridge and the West Coast Expressway, so access is decent. It sits right by the road, so it feels like a rest stop, a lovely place to take a break during a trip or drive.

MIMI Coffee Mill also actively uses Dangjin's local produce to develop drinks and desserts, which makes them special and tasty. Many of the Dangjin attractions I mentioned earlier are near the café too, so enjoy them together.

Getting to MIMI Coffee Mill and parking

Past the café's front entrance runs Nambu-ro, a quiet two-lane road. Follow it toward Hongseong and Yesan and you reach Sunseong-myeon; go the other way, toward Dangjin, and you reach downtown Dangjin, where Dangjin City Hall and the Dangjin bus terminal are.

The café's own parking lot is never short of space, so parking is easy. If you visit on a busy weekend and there's no room, you can park at Wonjo Dwaeji Iyagi (원조돼지이야기) right next door. If you go through the café to the terrace behind the building, there are trees and a stream, so you can feel the atmosphere of whichever season you're in.

What's the interior of MIMI Coffee Mill like?

The inside of MIMI Coffee Mill feels wide open, which puts me in a good mood. Plants are placed here and there, and a good balance of wood tones and white gives it a clean, comfortable feel. It's a really restful, healing atmosphere, and the customers' faces looked freer, calmer and more at ease than in any other café. ^^

What we ordered on the third visit

MIMI Coffee Mill has plenty of drinks and desserts. Every time, we order the iced Americano and butter bar as our fixed basics, and this time we also tried the new summer dessert, soft tofu ice cream (sundubu ice cream).

My girlfriend's favorites: the butter bar and iced Americano

The iced Americano and butter bar are my girlfriend's favorite things at MIMI Coffee Mill. She loves coffee, so coffee is a given. The butter bar is her favorite of all desserts, and she says she never gets tired of it, no matter how much she eats. Last time she even came to MIMI Coffee Mill purely for the butter bar. I'm usually reluctant to share a spot I want to keep to myself, but here I've revealed the butter bar we'd like to keep just for us.

What does the soft tofu ice cream taste like?

The soft tofu ice cream is a summer dessert I tried for the first time on my third visit to MIMI Coffee Mill. It's made with same-day tofu produced from Dangjin beans and sold in limited quantities, so you'll need to hurry to try it.

Even the look is fun: it comes in a plastic container, just like tofu being sold. My sharp girlfriend cut it up like tofu to eat, which made it even more fun. The ice cream alone is cool and smooth, and when you dip it in nutty roasted soybean powder, it's truly perfect. I was amazed with every single bite. It has become my favorite item, and I'll go back for it.

If you go to Dangjin, I recommend visiting MIMI Coffee Mill in Sunseong-myeon.