Takeout salt bread café north of Songdo Central Park: Cozy Bear

Today I'm introducing a salt bread spot I visited in Incheon. Located in Songdo-dong, Yeonsu-gu, Incheon, Cafe Cozy Bear Salt Bread Bakery Songdo Hagwonga Branch is a café that's great for picking up salt bread (소금빵, a savory-sweet butter-filled roll) in a variety of flavors. I stumbled onto it by accident while walking somewhere else after a meal — the word "salt bread" pulled me right in. Once inside, I found several kinds of salt bread along with Valrhona chocolate milk and more, so it seemed like a good stop whenever you need a sugar boost. The store itself is on the small side, so it's better suited to people planning to take out rather than eat in, and the americano is cheap too, so it's easy to grab one to go. It seems to be a popular place, and the bread looked like it sells out fast, so keep that in mind if you're planning a visit.

What kind of café is Cozy Bear Songdo Hagwonga Branch?

Cafe Cozy Bear Salt Bread Bakery Songdo Hagwonga Branch is a salt bread specialty café located in Songdo-dong, Yeonsu-gu, Incheon, just north of Songdo Central Park. I found it on the way from a nearby meal back to my hotel and decided to stop in. I searched for the branch name written on the sign, but couldn't find the same brand elsewhere. It seemed like it hadn't been open long, but given how many customers were there, I'd guess it's already fairly well known in the area.

Parking and how to get to Cozy Bear

Cafe Cozy Bear Salt Bread Bakery Songdo Hagwonga Branch, a salt bread spot in Songdo, sits just north of Songdo Central Park. There's no subway station within a 10-minute walk, but there are plenty of bus stops nearby, so getting there by public transit isn't too difficult. If you're driving, just enter the business name into your navigation app.

We visited after weekend lunchtime, and the building's basement parking lot had no spots left, so parking was tricky. Instead, there are free public parking lots nearby, so it's easier to just navigate to one of those. There's even a free public lot right in front of the building, like this — give it a try.

Do you need a reservation, and is there a wait?

Cafe Cozy Bear Salt Bread Bakery Songdo Hagwonga Branch, the Songdo salt bread spot, didn't require a reservation. We enjoyed our coffee and bread inside the café, but since the store is on the narrow side, those planning to eat in might need to wait during peak times. Most people seemed to be taking their orders to go, and takeout does seem like the more comfortable way to enjoy it.

The storefront and when the salt bread comes out

Here's the exterior of the store. You can see the "Cozy Bear" sign. There are quite a lot of illegally parked cars around the building, and the streets are one-way and narrow, so it's more convenient to check parking ahead of time before visiting.

Here's a quick clip of the storefront.

At the entrance, there's a sign showing when the salt bread comes out. Apparently it's baked twice a day, at 9 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Just how narrow is the inside of Cozy Bear?

Here's the interior. Since the inside is just a narrow hallway-like space like this, those planning to eat in might find it a bit tricky depending on how crowded it is.

Here's a clip of the interior.

You order at the counter right next to the entrance.

Salt bread flavors and the drink menu

Since salt bread was the whole point, we checked those out first. There was plain salt bread, plus potato, mentaiko, ang-butter, garlic, and castella versions — quite a lineup. I was curious about the ang-butter one, but it was already sold out. So we picked one plain salt bread and one potato salt bread instead.

Here's the drink menu. The iced americano was a cheap ₩3,800. We also added the Valrhona chocolate milk, which was marked as the signature drink.

How do the plain and potato salt bread and Valrhona chocolate milk taste?

Once the order was in, the food came out looking like this.

Here's the shot of the two salt breads, the iced americano, and the Valrhona chocolate milk from Cafe Cozy Bear Salt Bread Bakery Songdo Hagwonga Branch.

Here are the two salt breads.

And here are the two drinks.

The Valrhona chocolate milk needs a good stir to mix properly. But it doesn't want to mix easily, does it?

Stir hard, haha.

Done... it's done! Haha. It was thick and rich, great for a sugar refill.

Shall we try the iced americano too?

The americano was easy-drinking, almost like water. Good for hydrating on a hot day.

Time for the salt bread — we cut it into bite-sized pieces.

Shall we dig in?

The bread had a nice chewiness and moistness. The butter hole was small, but the butter aroma was surprisingly strong.

Next we tried the potato salt bread.

Let's try it right away.

Here's a look inside — the salt bread is filled with mashed potato. It was full of sweetness and saltiness, and honestly delicious.

Where the restroom is

The restroom is outside the store — you step out and go back into the building to find it. It's a shared restroom for the commercial building, gender-separated with a passcode, and it was pretty clean.

Final verdict on Cozy Bear in Songdo

Cafe Cozy Bear Salt Bread Bakery Songdo Hagwonga Branch, the Songdo salt bread spot I introduced today, was a café with delicious salt bread in a variety of flavors. The store is on the narrow side, so it's more convenient to order takeout, and since parking can be tricky, it helps to check nearby parking lots ahead of time. It might also be a nice stop before a picnic at Songdo Central Park, so you can enjoy tasty salt bread and drinks along with it.

A Songdo salt bread café with tasty bread in many flavors

• Highlight: Salt bread comes out at 9 a.m. and 2 p.m.
• Public transit: No subway within a 10-minute walk & many bus stops
• Restroom: Outside the store & gender-separated
• Friendliness: Friendly