Gangneung café for frozen black sesame sand: Gangneung Sand

Whenever I come back from a Gangneung trip, I always wonder what to buy as gifts for family and friends.. Handmade sand cookies are already hugely famous as one of Gangneung’s signature specialties, but did you know there’s a true original among the originals? There is another place inside Jungang Market carrying the “main branch” title, but this is the real original main branch. I properly tracked down this must-visit Gangneung souvenir snack shop to stop by during a Gangneung trip and bring some home.

Several places come up when you search for Gangneung Sand, so be sure to check the address before you go!!!

A crisp exterior and spacious parking lot

The first thing that caught my eye as soon as I plugged the address into navigation and arrived was the impressive look of the entire building! The whole building is operated as the shop, so it was easy to spot even from a distance.. The white-and-blue exterior feels so fresh that I instantly felt as though I’d arrived at a pretty Mediterranean resort, haha. Best of all, the dedicated parking lot—so important for travelers—is nicely spacious, so I was really pleased that I could park comfortably without any worries.

A welcome interior scented with gourmet butter

The moment I stepped inside, the rich, irresistible scent of gourmet butter filled the air...💖 From the entrance itself, my heart was floating, and I was just so happy,,,^^

Pass through the first floor and take the elevator up to the second floor, where there is a counter and kiosk for ordering sand cookies.

The second floor is not only for buying sand cookies; it also has clean, spacious seating where you can relax with coffee and sand cookies, decorated with cute little plants. The space itself is so pleasant that it’s perfect for taking a break!✨

Six sand cookie flavors and purchase rules

• They say they use top-quality gourmet butter.
• They say the butter content is higher than in similar products.
• They say everything is made in-house, from start to finish.
• There are six flavors in total: coffee (Best), dried persimmon, Chodang corn, black sesame, strawberry, and purple sweet potato.

After agonizing over all the flavors, haha, I picked the best-selling and famous coffee flavor plus the nutty black sesame flavor!!! Each pack contains 10 neatly individually wrapped sand cookies.

One thing to note: individual sales are not available, and you also cannot buy mixed flavors in one box. Each box can only be purchased in a single flavor, so keep that in mind!

Sand cookies eaten right away with an iced Americano

While packing up the sand cookies, I also ordered a cool iced Americano and sat down in the shop to try them right away. How could I possibly wait until I got home....😅 The coffee comes in a clean signature canned-coffee format. It wasn’t too intense—just easygoing and smooth—and it paired nicely with the sweet, nutty sand cookies!!

How were the coffee and black sesame flavors?

I sat down and eagerly tore open the sand cookie wrapper right away. The moment it hit my mouth, the cookie’s deep, rich buttery aroma spread all through my mouth~~💖

☕️ The coffee sand cookie has a crisp cookie texture that crumbles softly, with plenty of bittersweet cream in between. The deep flavor from the premium gourmet butter blends with an elegant, subtle coffee aroma, making it an addictive taste that never gets tiring. I could see why it’s the bestseller.

🌾 With one bite of the black sesame sand cookie, the characteristic nutty, intense flavor of black sesame comes through in a full-bodied way. Black sesame bits in the cream deepen the nuttiness without being overpowering, making this an elegant snack that anyone with a grandma-style palate will absolutely fall for. Both flavors had a crazy-good balance between the crisp outer cookie and soft cream inside.👍🏻

It can be stored for 14 days at room temperature, 30 days refrigerated, and up to 90 days frozen—and it tastes even better eaten frozen^^

Freezing them to enjoy with an Americano

As soon as I got home, I neatly placed half the sand cookies from the box into a zip-top bag, sealed it, and put it straight into the freezer. Whenever I felt peckish or hungry during everyday life, taking one out of the freezer and having it chilled with an Americano made for an excellent dessert...💗 When you eat it slightly frozen, the cream inside becomes chewy like ice cream, which has a different charm from eating it right at the shop, haha.

If you’re planning a trip to Gangneung, I recommend stopping by the true original main branch to try these delicious sand cookies and pack up plenty for gifts, too!