Quiet Gwanghwamun café for three lattes: Center Coffee

When you want a quiet coffee, study spot, or date near Jonggak Station or City Hall Station, it can be hard to think of just the right place, right? Today I’m introducing a café that nails all three: studying + dating + delicious coffee~~ It’s Center Coffee Gwanghwamun!

It’s in the basement of SFC Mall (Seoul Finance Center), so it’s great to visit on a rainy day. More than anything, this place is seriously devoted to coffee beans and is known for great coffee! Let’s see what Center Coffee, a Blue Ribbon Survey pick, was like!

Finding Center Coffee on B1 of SFC Mall

Center Coffee Gwanghwamun is on B1 of SFC Mall. Since it’s underground, it’s nice when it rains or gets hot. I went on a brilliantly sunny day, and the photos came out sooo well haha.

There’s a chocolate café and all kinds of restaurants on the same floor, so it looks great for a café or restaurant crawl. And above all, the access is good! It’s within walking distance from Gwanghwamun, City Hall, or Jonggak Station—that’s a lovely little bonus, hehe.

Center Coffee was marked on the underground signboard too, so finding the way wasn’t particularly difficult.

The SFC building itself is so big that finding the entrance can be a tiny bit confusing! But follow the signs and you’ll come across Center Coffee :)

What caught my eye from the entrance was the Blue Ribbon Survey sticker! It had been displayed every single year from 2018 through 2026.. I couldn’t even imagine how good it would be..

Center Coffee also offers catering for orders of 20 or more drinks or desserts!

I think nearby office workers will want to keep that in mind haha.

An interior for solo study and dates alike

The white and wood tones made the interior feel calm and minimal! It’s personally one of my very favorite interior styles :)

There are bar-style seats as well as tables, so it seems great for studying alone, a quick meeting, or a date.

On one side of the café, beans and drip bags were displayed for smelling. Little details like this let me feel the owner’s pride in their beans.

They also sell lots of desserts, including cakes and baked goods, so keep that in mind if you’re interested~~!

Kiosk ordering and three lattes

Orders are placed at the kiosk. Please refer to the photos and video for the menu~~!

There were sooo many menu items, which is always the hardest part of ordering ㅠ.ㅠ haha. Today we ordered Orange Bianco, vanilla latte, and oat latte! Actually, I came alone with my girlfriend, but we wanted to try all three so badly that we just ordered three drinks hahaha (an adult splurge).

Orange Bianco, oat latte, and vanilla latte

After ordering and sitting down, all the drinks came out together. First, the long-awaited Orange Bianco! With an orange slice sitting on top of the cup, anyone could tell it was Orange Bianco, right? haha

One sip in, the fresh orange aroma blended subtly with the coffee base. It might sound like an unusual flavor, but I absolutely love coffee with orange in it, so I loved this one too :) Next was the oat latte ^0^ The oat latte was super nutty! It was less sweet, with the nutty flavor coming through more clearly.

The vanilla latte was much sweeter than the oat latte! Still, it wasn’t overly sweet like vanilla lattes from Paik’s Coffee or Compose Coffee; it brought out the vanilla aroma and coffee aroma more.

Aren’t the colors so pretty when they’re all together? haha. And the coffee aroma was rich, so I think coffee lovers will 100 percent enjoy it.

What “Bianco” means in Orange Bianco

Bianco is Italian! It means white. Apparently, it’s usually used for drinks topped with milk or cream. Add orange to that, and the freshness and creaminess are doubled!

More about bean flavor and aroma than sweetness

My thoughts after trying all three?! I’m not hugely knowledgeable about coffee, but I could definitely taste the coffee flavor more clearly haha.

Bean-aroma corner tip and final thoughts

If you buy beans at Center Coffee, I recommend smelling them first at the aroma corner! haha. I had such a healing time with my girlfriend after a while haha. If you’re looking for a quiet café or a café to study near Gwanghwamun, do visit Center Coffee!