Jongno dessert café for parents: Ssuk's Choco Pie Seoul

Gwangjang Market desserts close to Jongno 5-ga Station

It is only a one-minute walk from Exit 7 of Jongno 5-ga Station. Hours are 10:00–18:30 Monday through Friday and 10:00–20:00 on weekends.

Walk a little way out of Exit 7 and you will reach the entrance to Gwangjang Market. It had been a while since my last visit to Gwangjang Market♪ Even on a weekday, it was packed.

Here is the exterior of Ssuk's Choco Pie Seoul. Its signature color is green! Such a tiny, adorable storefront. The hanging panda doll totally steals the show... so cute.

They also offer free samples, so it would be nice to taste one as you pass by before buying :D

The interior of Ssuk's Choco Pie Seoul was so cute that my eyes kept wandering everywhere. It is charmingly decorated with Bearbrick characters, and Ssuk's gift shopping bags are displayed on the shelf above the cute waiting bench.

They were selling Ssuk's Wine too. It is said to be made with Shine Muscat grapes and apples grown through eco-friendly farming methods. I think it would make such a nice gift as well.

Display case and gift-wrapping service

The display case has a wide variety of treats, including Ssuk's choco pies, scones, and cheesecake.

They sell milk tea too. The packaging is so cute, and the serving is generous. I thought it would be lovely to buy one to drink alongside the choco pies.

There was an Instagram follow event going on. If you follow Ssuk's Choco Pie on Instagram, they select three people every week and send them choco pies :D

Ssuk's Choco Pie has only two locations: the original shop at Gwangju 1913 Songjeong Station Market and this one at Gwangjang Market. I was so happy to be able to try Ssuk's Choco Pie in Seoul too. Keep in mind that you can also receive a three-piece Ssuk's Cookie sampler by joining the Naver receipt-review event~!

They also offer a free sticker service. When buying a gift, it would be so nice to attach the sticker you want. Stickers can be added to three- and six-piece boxes.

The six-piece gift set I chose to share with my parents

I chose a six-piece choco pie gift set to enjoy with my parents.

This is the set! You can try one of every flavor, and it is less expensive as a set, which I loved. The packaging is just so pretty too...

Ssuk's Choco Pies are made with safe, antibiotic-free eggs, so I felt even more comfortable eating them :D Purchase complete!! Off home in a happy little hurry...

First of all, I loved that the Ssuk's Choco Pie box was securely sealed with a sticker. Even after peeling it off, it looked this neat! Ta-da-da-dah—

The six-slot gift package is so pretty that it is truly perfect for giving.

• Best: Haepung Mugwort Injeolmi
• Best: Nonsan Strawberry
• Haepung Mugwort Whole Red Bean
• Geomundo Sea-Breeze Mugwort
• Udo Peanut
• Gwangju Real Chocolate

There are six flavors like this!

There was also a leaflet inside the box. The bear character on the right is so cute. Legend has it that it started eating Ssuk's because it wanted to become human...

I liked how clearly the leaflet explained the choco pies, scones, cookies, milk tea, and cheesecake sold at Ssuk's Choco Pie. It even carefully listed storage instructions and the best ways to enjoy everything, so it really felt like they had put a lot of care into it.

My review of flavors from Haepung Mugwort Injeolmi to whole red bean

I had seen mugwort choco pies on a trip to Yeosu before. As it turns out, Ssuk's Choco Pie is the original! They say it was Korea's first mugwort choco pie :D These are wholesome choco pies without colorings, preservatives, emulsifiers, shortening, margarine, or other compounds that are not good for you. They are made as snacks children can enjoy without worry, and that says it all, right...

Each individual box carefully lists the use-by date and ingredients, which made me feel even more reassured. I thought they would be great to give one by one as gifts too. The photo above is the Haepung Mugwort Injeolmi flavor; I ate it up so quickly that I could not take a photo of the actual pie, but it was reaaally delicious. Even my parents, who are not that into desserts, said it was so good and asked whether there was any more Haepung Mugwort Injeolmi.

It had a delicate mugwort aroma, while the injeolmi (roasted soybean powder rice cake) was nutty and included chewy rice cake pieces, so the texture was seriously good. Now I understand why it is one of their best sellers.

Nonsan Strawberry and Gwangju Real Chocolate Chip

Next up was the Nonsan Strawberry flavor. It is one of the two best-selling choco pie flavors! It comes wrapped in plastic inside the box like this. This is what the side looks like. Quite thick, right? There was strawberry jam (?) inside, making it sweet, tangy, and so delicious.

This one is Gwangju Real Chocolate Chip. It felt almost like a chocolate cake, with a pleasing sweetness and chocolate chips to bite into. It was perfect as dessert after a meal.

The Haepung Mugwort Whole Red Bean flavor has whole red beans inside the choco pie. Mugwort and red bean are just a no-brainer combination, honestly... The gentle mugwort flavor, red beans, and fresh cream work beautifully together. My husband said it was so delicious too.

My parents liked them so much that I brought them the Udo Peanut and Geomundo Sea-Breeze Mugwort flavors too, and they said both were delicious. We have eaten lots of desserts together, but this was the first one that got such a great reaction, so I thought I should definitely buy them again next time.

Ssuk's Choco Pie is a dessert that people of all ages will enjoy. You can buy it at Gwangjang Market in Seoul too, so do visit Ssuk's Choco Pie sometime~!