Basic and chocolate castella takeout at a Gimpo bakery: Jinsim Castella

My sister suddenly said she was craving castella, so I looked around for a good spot and ended up visiting Jinsim Castella Gimpo Gurae Main Branch (진심카스테라 김포구래본점) haha. I usually enjoy castella as a light, no-fuss snack, but this place had way more variety than I expected, so it was fun just browsing.

Along with the plain castella, there were versions with fresh cream, plus chocolate, mocha, mugwort, and more — plenty to choose from depending on your taste. My sister and I went back and forth and ended up picking one basic and one chocolate.

Jinsim Castella Gimpo Gurae — a takeout-focused shop

The store is mainly for takeout, so it's pretty compact overall. It's less of a sit-and-linger café vibe and more of a place to grab a tasty castella or drink and go, which suited us fine since we just wanted to pick something up and head home.

Free parking for up to 15 minutes

The parking situation was really convenient. You can use the building's underground lot and it's free for up to 15 minutes, which is plenty if you're just grabbing takeout like we were. Order, pick up, and head back down — that's enough time, so it's worth keeping in mind if you're driving.

More menu variety than expected

Looking at the menu board, there were quite a few castella options — the basic Jinsim Castella, cream castella, chocolate castella, chocolate cream castella, mocha castella, mocha cream castella, mugwort castella, and mugwort cream castella.

You can also choose the cream separately — Jinsim cream, chocolate cream, Oreo cream, mocha lotus cream, injeolmi (sweet rice cake) cream, Earl Grey cream, salted caramel cream, and apple cinnamon cream, among others. Even with one castella, you can add cream to match your taste, so mixing and matching sounded fun.

The half-and-half cream castella especially caught my eye. It's original castella sandwiched with two different cream flavors, and you can pick two out of eight cream flavors so you get two tastes at once. It's ₩9,700, and seemed like a good choice if you want to try a bit of everything.

The castella I picked

This time I got the basic Jinsim Castella for ₩8,700 and the Chocolate Castella for ₩8,700. Since my sister wanted castella from the start, I figured I should get at least one basic flavor haha.

The basic Jinsim Castella was moderately sweet with a savory flavor of egg and milk — an original castella menu. Rather than something loaded with extra flavors, it was good for when you just want to enjoy castella in its cleanest form. I thought it would also make a good snack for kids since it's not overly rich. The bread itself is on the soft side, so it goes well with coffee or milk, and it's easy to cut and eat piece by piece.

The other one I chose was the Chocolate Castella for ₩8,700. It's said to be the chocolate cream castella minus the cream, with chocolate chips on top of the chocolate castella. It seemed like a good fit for people who prefer the flavor of chocolate itself over a cream-heavy cake-style dessert. I picked the basic and chocolate together and shared them at home, and switching between the two flavors gave a different feel each time.

Enjoying it at home after takeout

After picking up the castella at the store, I got home and opened the box :) It was packed neatly so the shape didn't get messed up during the trip, and it was easy to just take out and eat at home.

What I ordered was the two kinds — Jinsim Castella and Chocolate Castella.

How to enjoy Jinsim Castella

The store also had tips on how to enjoy it best. First, eating it warm! Microwaving it for about 30 seconds apparently gives it a warm, fluffy texture. If you like your castella warm, this method is worth trying :)

Second, chilling it in the fridge and eating it cold! It's said to be moist and delicious straight from the fridge too. There's also a method of freezing it and microwaving briefly, or even partly thawing it to enjoy it cold like ice cream.

They also said that adding fresh cream and fruit turns the castella into something like a mini cake. If you've got strawberries or bananas at home, topping it with those sounds nice, and they recommended pairing it with Greek yogurt or fruit jam too.

Personally, castella with milk or coffee is still the combo I'm most used to haha. A glass of milk or a warm Americano goes really well with the sweet castella. And it was fun to learn that the half-and-half cream castella lets you enjoy two cream flavors at once! Next time I'd like to pick my favorite cream flavors and try that combo.

The taste of the basic Jinsim Castella

First, I tried the basic Jinsim Castella.

The outside had a light golden-brown color, and the inside was fluffy and soft.

With one bite, you get a subtle savory taste of egg and milk, and the sweetness isn't overpowering — overall it's on the mild-sweet side, good for a snack. Castella really does go best with milk haha — one bite of soft castella, one sip of milk, and it goes down naturally together. Since the basic castella has no cream or other toppings, it's the one to pick when you want to enjoy the castella itself, plain and simple.

What does the Chocolate Castella taste like?

Next up, the Chocolate Castella!

The color was noticeably darker than the basic one, clearly giving off a chocolate vibe. Between the layers of chocolate castella, there's

no cream — it's meant to be enjoyed as chocolate castella on its own, so it was lighter than I expected.

Chocolate chips are on top, so you get bursts of sweet chocolate flavor throughout the soft castella. If the basic Jinsim Castella is savory and soft, the Chocolate Castella is a bit sweeter and richer! I set both out and alternated between them, and the difference in flavor was clear enough to be fun. My sister, who loves castella, ended up preferring the chocolate one haha.

Personally, I thought it'd also work as a simple kids' snack at home. Cut into soft pieces and served with milk, it seems easy for kids to eat as a snack. Next time I'd like to try the cream castella or the half-and-half cream castella where you can pick two cream flavors. This time I went with basic and chocolate, but looking at the menu, there's mugwort and mocha too, so trying a different flavor next time sounds fun.

Jinsim Castella Gimpo Gurae info

• Address: 525 Gimpohangang 4-ro, 1st floor units 101, 102, 103, Gimpo-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea
• Directions: About 271m / 5–10 min walk from Exit 4, Gurae Station (Gimpo Gold Line); 1st floor of the Olive Young Gimpo Gurae Rodeo building
• Hours: Daily 10:00–21:00 (hours may shorten if ingredients sell out, so it's good to check before visiting)
• Parking: Building's underground lot available, free for up to 15 minutes