Gangneung cookie shop with engraved souvenir sand: Gangneung Sand

I couldn't leave Gangneung without packing home a dessert. While looking for something to bring back as a travel souvenir, I stopped by Gangneung Sand Main Branch, a place famous in Gangneung.

Gangneung Sand is one of Gangneung's signature tourist souvenirs — they make sand-style cookies using ingredients that evoke the city, like coffee or dried persimmon.

Gangneung Sand Main Branch

Which Gangneung Sand flavor to choose at the main branch

Gangneung Sand Main Branch has everything from coffee sand to dried persimmon sand, chodang corn sand, black sesame sand, and strawberry sand. I'd wanted to try this place for a while, so since I was already in Gangneung, I visited in person. Walking in, there were more flavor varieties than I expected.

With so many options, I stood there for a moment trying to decide.

I ended up picking the strawberry and black sesame flavors of Gangneung Sand. Both had me curious, so rather than choosing just one, I just packed both haha.

The "Gangneung Sand" lettering engraved on each cookie

I brought them home and tried one at a time — first thing I noticed was how clean the packaging looked, which made it feel like it'd make a good gift too.

Looking closely at the cookie, you can see the words "Gangneung Sand" actually engraved onto the surface. That kind of detail makes it feel less like a generic cookie and more like something you actually brought back from Gangneung.

What does the strawberry Gangneung Sand taste like?

First I tried the strawberry flavor. It had that sweet, tangy strawberry taste that goes well with coffee. Combined with the filling between the cookie layers, the crisp cookie and the soft filling worked together nicely, and it was easy to just keep pulling out one at a time as a snack.

After a trip, I prefer brewing coffee and eating packaged desserts one piece at a time rather than all at once, and the strawberry sand fit that habit perfectly. If you like sweet desserts, starting with the strawberry flavor seems like a good call.

Black sesame Gangneung Sand compared with strawberry

Next was the black sesame flavor. I personally love desserts with black sesame, so of the two, I was more curious about this one. The nutty flavor of black sesame gave it a completely different mood from the strawberry.

If strawberry is the sweet, refreshing side, black sesame is nutty and mellow, and it paired especially well with coffee. Trying them alternately, I thought this would be easy to choose based on personal taste — strawberry if you like bright, sweet flavors, black sesame if you prefer something nutty.

Best of all, a boxed set packs easily into a travel bag, and eating it at home with coffee felt like extending the afterglow of the Gangneung trip a little longer.

Gangneung breakwater bread and the souvenir contest awards

Besides the sand cookies I packed, Gangneung Sand Main Branch also sells Gangneung breakwater bread. It won a Silver Prize at the 2025 Gangneung Tourism Souvenir Contest, so seeing it in the shop made me curious about that too.

This time I only packed the sand cookies, but next time I visit Gangneung I'd like to try the breakwater bread too. Gangneung Sand itself is award-winning too — it won the Gold Prize at the 2022 Gangneung Tourism Souvenir Contest.

Free canned Americano for a receipt review

If you're looking for a special snack you can only get in Gangneung, or a gift for family or friends after your trip, this kind of regional dessert seems like a solid choice. The shop is also running a receipt review event — participate and you get a free canned Americano, so it's worth keeping in mind if you visit.

Eating dessert while traveling is great, but coming home, brewing a cup of coffee, and pulling out a Gangneung Sand cookie brought the trip right back to mind.

If you're looking for a souvenir or dessert while traveling in Gangneung, it's worth stopping by Gangneung Sand Main Branch and picking a flavor that suits you. I went with strawberry and black sesame this time, so next visit I'd love to try the coffee sand or chodang corn sand too :)