Gangnam café for Gangnam Sand cookies and gifts: Bakerist Brown

Today’s pretty café pick is Bakerist Brown! I chose it because I wanted somewhere that would look good in photos, with lots of bakery items to choose from. There are seriously so many cafés around Gangnam Station, but I liked this one quite a lot!

Where is Bakerist Brown, and what is the space like?

The address is B1, 1F–3F, 21 Gangnam-daero 102-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, and it is open daily from 11:00 to 22:30. I recommend checking about separate closure days and reservation availability before visiting! There is no dedicated parking, so I recommend using a nearby paid parking lot. An Americano was ₩6,500, and Gangnam Sand was ₩2,400 each.

You can walk there from Exit 11 of Gangnam Station too, and it is about five minutes from Exit 6 of Sinnonhyeon Station, so it is super easy to get to!!

The red-brick exterior with the white upper part of the building was more noticeable than I expected. There are little outdoor tables out front too, so sitting outside would be nice when the weather is cool.

It is a bakery café that uses a big whole building, so it is also a decent option for anyone looking for a café in Gangnam with plenty of seats! Seating is available from B1 through 3F. It was busy, but the space itself is so large that there were still lots of places to sit!

Browsing the breads and Gangnam Sand menu

As soon as you enter the first floor, there is a whole spread of breads. There were so many kinds, from croissants and salt bread to pastries and bakery items that looked like melon bread, and the display case had pudding, cakes, and croissants topped with fruit too—it is honestly dizzying, haha.

When I went, they even had fig croissants, piled high with fresh figs. The visuals were insane... (It was fig season, and they totally got the assignment!!!)

I also spotted fig kouign-amann and banana pudding in a separate refrigerated display. And the thing that caught my eye the most was Gangnam Sand! They were lined up by color, and they looked so cute in photos. There were several flavors, including lychee ganache, London Fog, and Cream Forest, and they all looked sooo delicious... drool haha.

When I visited, each one was around ₩2,400. Gangnam Sand seems to be the signature item here these days, because lots of people at the surrounding tables were having them too!

They looked great for putting together several flavors as a gift, so I think it would be nice to pick some up when meeting coworkers or friends. (The colors are pretty, and they are sooo good haha.)

It had such a lovely European bakery feel, ughhh.

How was the Gangnam Sand and coffee pairing?

We had several kinds of Gangnam Sand along with iced Americanos and the signature salt coffee topped with cream. Just from the name, I wondered whether Gangnam Sand would be like the regional sandwich cookies sold at Seoul Station or in Jeju, but in person they were a nice size and each color had a different flavor, so it was fun choosing them one by one.

My partner does not usually eat sweets much, but kept reaching for them too, haha.

The outside had a light, crisp cookie texture, with cream inside, so they were perfect with coffee.

Rather than being a super-heavy dessert, they were the kind you can pick at one by one while drinking coffee. Having several flavors at once was especially fun, because we kept saying, “What flavor is this?” while choosing one, haha.

A sip of Americano after a sweet sand cookie cleanses the palate right away, so the pairing was good. With the cream coffee instead, the overall sweet-and-nutty feeling was stronger, so I think that combo would suit people who love sweets too.

Browsing the vintage space and goods

Personally, another thing I loved here was the space! It has a slightly vintage bakery mood, mixing white walls with wood and brick. It is not all shiny like a brand-new café, but that actually made it feel more comfortable.

There were also vintage display cabinets here and there with goods like mugs and T-shirts, which made it fun to browse. It almost felt like a little lifestyle shop, so it was a treat for the eyes, haha.

A Gangnam café where you can sit with friends for ages

Bakerist Brown was a great café for browsing breads, choosing a dessert, and chatting with friends for a long time. The space is so pretty too, so I think it is absolutely perfect for anyone looking for a cute café!

Cafés around Gangnam Station are often crowded, so you can worry about finding a seat first, but this place uses several floors, which is another plus! However, breads often sell out during popular hours, so if you want to see a wide range of baked goods, visiting during the day rather than very late seems best.

• Easy to reach from both Gangnam Station and Sinnonhyeon Station
• Spacious area from B1 through 3F
• A huge variety of croissants, salt bread, and desserts
• Fun to choose from several Gangnam Sand flavors
• Also good for anyone looking for dessert gifts
• Photogenic, with a vintage bakery mood
• But there is no parking, and drink prices are a little on the higher side

I would recommend it to anyone looking for a big café to meet up at in Gangnam, bread lovers who care more about browsing baked goods than coffee, haha, and anyone looking for a simple dessert gift.