Sunchang hanok café with seating for kids, no drink minimum

One weekend afternoon, right as Irang woke up from her nap, my husband said, "Let's go get some fresh air." My parents happened to be free too, so we all piled into the car — and only decided where to go after we'd already left.

While searching for spots near Gwangju, I found out there was a hanok café in Sunchang and we changed course right away. It's a well-known Sunchang café called 'Hwayangyeonhwa.'

Right off the Sunchang IC exit, so it was easy to find 🚗

The navigation said we'd arrived, and before I could even think "is this really it?" a big hanok building came into view. It's almost immediately off the Sunchang IC exit — really convenient for a day-drive route from around Gwangju.

We got there around 5pm on a Sunday. There were quite a few cars, but there's a large parking lot right in front of the hanok, so we didn't have trouble finding a spot. That time happened to be when people who'd already been there were starting to leave, so we parked comfortably up front. Not sure what it's like during weekend daytime hours, but at least in the late afternoon there was room.

Walking in, a Jindo dog came out wagging its tail. Yuha got scared and hid behind me, while Irang immediately reached out to pet it because she thought it was cute — sisters, but such different reactions haha.

No one-drink-per-person rule, so we ordered a variety of desserts

Good to know ahead of time: there's no one-drink-per-person rule here. When you go as a group, what you really want is dessert, but if you have to order a drink per person the bill adds up fast. We ordered without that pressure — one bingsu plus mostly desserts.

We ordered one fresh mango bingsu, one bottled drink called 'Ilpyeon Ddalsim' for the kids, and four kinds of chapssaltteok (sticky rice cake) — pineapple, cream cheese, gold kiwi, and tiramisu.

It wasn't strawberry season, so we went with fresh mango bingsu 🥭

On the way in, I saw boxes of apple mangoes stacked up and immediately made up my mind. Honestly, the one letdown was that this place is famous for strawberry mochi, but since we went outside strawberry season, we couldn't try it.

If you're coming for the strawberries, it's best to check the season before you go.

Instead, there were five kinds of bingsu — red bean, fresh mango, matcha, peach, and fig. Some seem to be seasonal, so it's worth asking before you go.

Shoes-off floor seating made it easy with the kids 👶

The interior has high ceilings, so sitting inside doesn't feel cramped at all. And since it's shoes-off floor seating, I felt much more at ease bringing young kids.

We all laughed watching Yuha climb up first and stake out her spot in the most relaxed pose ever.

With Irang, too, there was no worry about her falling off a chair, so I didn't have to keep holding onto her while sitting.

The restrooms were also separated for men and women, and clean.

Fresh mango, not frozen!

When our buzzer went off and we picked it up, the mango turned out to be fresh, not frozen. Biting into it, it wasn't mushy — the juice came right out. It's a milk-based bingsu so the ice wasn't coarse either, and the kids kept reaching for more spoonfuls. Watching how fast Irang was eating, my husband said, "She's going to finish this whole thing" — and sure enough, we hit the bottom of the bowl.

Ilpyeon Ddalsim is strawberry milk — we shook it well and poured it into the kids' cups, and they drank it right up.

Our top pick among the four chapssaltteok was gold kiwi

The chapssaltteok (sticky rice cakes) come with different packaging depending on the filling. The fruit ones are wrapped in something like hanji paper, while the cream cheese ones come in plastic caps.

We'd brought small plates and a knife to split them among everyone, cutting each into four pieces — but the rice cake was so chewy it didn't cut neatly haha. We gave up on looking pretty, but the taste stayed the same.

After trying them, the ones with fresh fruit were much better than the cream cheese one. I thought our family would be split on opinions, but the gold kiwi got a unanimous vote. The tangy juice bursts out, and it's great chewed together with the sticky rice cake.

The packaging is neat enough that it'd make a decent gift to take home.

Does it take the Sunchang Love Gift Certificate?

When we paid, the Sunchang Love Gift Certificate QR payment worked. You can charge it through the 'Chak' app, but since the terms might change, I'd recommend asking before you pay.

As long as you charge it ahead of time, there's nothing extra to do when you check out.

Wrapping up

Parking is generous, and if you go in the late afternoon like we did, there's plenty of room. If you're going specifically for the strawberry mochi, definitely check the season first.

On the way home, Yuha asked, "If we come again, will that dog be there?" — and it made me realize that this afternoon we set out on without much of a plan turned into a genuinely nice day. If you're looking for a good Sunchang café or planning a day trip from around Gwangju or Jeonju, it's worth a stop. There's also a nice walk along the stream right in front of the café.

If anyone's tried the strawberry mochi during strawberry season, let me know in the comments how it was! I'm considering going back in winter 😊