Cafe A (cake buffet), Hongdae

Because I am a dwaeji, and also a cheapo, there are few things in life more pleasing to my ears than the words "buffet" and "all you can eat". So needless to say, when I heard about an unlimited cake buffet in Hongdae, my inner heffer was immediately titillated.

The deal is that you buy one drink per person and pay an extra 6,900 won for unlimited access to sugar + carbohydrate utopia. As drinks start from as low as 3,900 won, this makes it entirely possible to have all-you-can-eat dessert for as little as just over a manwon.

DROOL.

Of course, this price isn't going to get you anything like high tea at The Ritz in London, but the value is definitely there and (most of) the cakes do taste pretty decent.

Fancy coffee devices and sweet, sweeeeet cakes.

Antigua Guatemala drip coffee (5,500 won), frappe (5,900 won)

The cafe has 13 different types of cake and, being the dwaeji I am, I resolved to try every single one of them. My first slice was the green tea mousse cake:

I hate to say it, but this was a mistake. It didn't really seem to be "mousse", but rather 2 layers of sponge cake coated in something green that tasted like the kind of faux cream they use to ice the cakes at Paris Baguette. Sadly, my stomach doesn't have a high tolerance for that stuff and I also found it didn't have a strong enough green tea flavour for my liking, so that was a disappointment.

For the next few rounds, I decided to revise my strategy and not give up any more precious stomach space to the fake mousse, going straight for the cheesecakes instead:

Chocolate cheesecake

(Not really "chocolate" though, as the only cocoa content seemed to be in the base and the decorative stripes in the glazing)

Layered cheesecake

(Can't really say there are many layers going on here... u__u)

Questionable names aside, I'd say the cheesecakes were pretty decent, as far as cheesecakes in Korea go. I'm sure most foreigners are all too familiar with the awful experience of biting into a "cheesecake", anticipating that rich, smooth deliciousness, only to find that what they're ingesting is nothing but a misleading mass of cheese-coloured material that tastes like a sponge (*cough* Paris Baguette *cough*). Fortunately, that didn't happen at at Cafe A. Their cheesecakes were smooth and creamy with a bit of tang, just with a lighter texture and not as rich as their western counterparts. I really liked the layered one with its crunchy chunks of chocolate biscuit.

Some of the other cakes on the menu included:

Tiramisu

Plain cheesecake

Chocolate ganache cake

Cassis cake

Mountain strawberry mousse cake

At the end of the day, I wound up having only four pieces, which was a far cry from the thirteen I'd been so gungho about devouring.. A sad story coming from the fatty who could once down half a pizza and a litre of chocolate ice cream in one sitting. Age must be catching up to me, hah. :(

Regardless though, I still think the cafe is worth visiting if you have a sweet tooth, a ravenous appetite, and an innate desire to penny-pinch whenever possible. (Like me!) My only recommendation is to start with the cheesecakes first before you move on to trying the mousse ones. XD



Cafe A (Cafe Amazing Grace), Hongdae
Hours: 11am - 12am (midnight)
Address: 서울시 마포구 서교동 364-21 (364-21 Seogyo-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul)
Website: http://cafea.co.kr/
Directions: From Hongdae Station exit 9, go straight and take the second left. Here, you'll want to cross over the road to the side with Forever 21 and Taco Bell. Take the third right, onto the "parking street" where you'll find lots of parked cars in the middle. Follow this street for a couple of minutes and you'll reach a 4-way junction. Keep going straight and Cafe A will be on your left, just a few metres down from the junction, next to Ho Bar Ten.

Dreamy Camera Cafe, Yangpyeong

Alright, so this is cheating a bit as this cafe isn't technically in Seoul... but it was so amazing that I simply had to write about it!

Sometime last week, I was doing my usual night owl thing -- mooching on the interwebs at 2am -- when suddenly I came across a picture of a building shaped like a giant red vintage camera. It looked incredible, and when I realised that it was actually a cafe located somewhere in Korea, it instantly became my new goal in life to get myself there.

Well sons, mission accomplished! >:D

Dreamy Camera Cafe (or 꿈꾸는 사진기 in Korean, which translates to 'dreaming camera' or 'camera that dreams') is located in Yangpyeong, about 1.5 hours from Seoul. It's kind of in the middle of nowhere, and though this makes journeying there a little harder, especially if you don't have a car, it also works to its advantage. The cafe is surrounded by picturesque mountains, beautiful, rolling scenery, and of course fresh, clean air -- a very welcome change if you're coming from the concrete jungle that is Seoul city.

The cafe is run by a husband and wife duo who dreamed of owning a place where other people could come and seek inspiration for their own dreams. As the husband is a helicopter pilot in the Korean army, the cafe is run solely by his wife on weekdays, and they manage it together on weekends. (As an interesting piece of trivia, his wife was also a helicopter pilot in the army, but has since retired. How awesome is that?)

As I rolled up to the location in my taxi, I felt like my breath was being taken away. But not only was the outside of the cafe simply stunning, the inside was also incredible as well. There were shelves lined with an extensive collection of vintage cameras (still in working condition!) and a plethora of more modern, digital cameras too. Couple that with plenty of camera-shaped figurines, trinkets, and toys scattered across the window sills, and you have yourself a photography-lover's dream.

The cafe also had this wonderful, homely air to it. It wasn't a big place, as there was only one table downstairs and four upstairs, but I think this just added to the cosiness of it all. The walls were a plain, light color, the furniture was simple, and there were pictures everywhere of the owners' family and previous guests who had visited. It really felt like being invited into someone's home. As I was there on a Wednesday, I had the pleasure of meeting the wife owner, and she was so kind and friendly, right from the get-go. :3

First floor

Second floor

The menu was very reasonably priced, with drinks (coffee, tea, ade, and fruit juice) starting from 3,500 won. Fruit juice was the most expensive (6,000 won) as it's made with real fruit and not just poured from a can or bottle.

In terms of food, there were only snacks on offer -- rice cake, honey bread, kaya toast, chocolate cake, and mini muffins. Unfortunately, I'd skipped lunch as I was rushing to make the train straight after work, so I had to make do with a slice of chocolate cake and a pot of tea. It was really delicious though. Soft and moist with a rich, deep chocolaty flavour, but not too sweet. :3

"Be happy", says the gateau au chocolat :3

It came with a cute timer that dinged when the brewing time for the tea was up.

A steamy serving of fruity tea (5,000 won) and chocolate cake (5,000 won)

At one point, the lovely owner approached and explained that she was compiling a guest book of sorts for foreigners who visited. She asked if I would sign it, and also very generously gave me this gorgeous post card, offering to mail it if I wanted to write a message and send it to someone.

Later on, she brewed me another cup of tea and we had a lovely chat as I waited for my taxi to arrive. I found myself wishing that the taxi would somehow take a wrong turn or get stuck in traffic somewhere, just so I could linger around a bit longer. XD

All in all, it was an amazing day out and I came back to Seoul feeling refreshed and uber happy to have experienced such an wonderful place and met such a kind soul. Though it was a bit of trek to get there, it was well worth it and I hope to visit again one day! :3



Dreamy Camera Cafe
Hours: 11am - 6pm, closed on Tuesdays
Address: 양평군 용문면 중원리 341-13 (341-13 Jungwon-ri, Yongmun-myeon, Yangpyeong)
Website: http://blog.naver.com/pilotgirl / http://www.facebook.com/cafedreamy
Directions: Take the subway to Yongmun station, right at the end of the Jungang line. Come out exit 1 and hop in a taxi. If you show the driver the name of the cafe in Korean, chances are they'll already know how to get there, but it might be a good idea to have the address written down too just in case. When I went, the drive to the cafe cost 10,000 won and the drive back was 9,800 won, taking about 10 minutes each way. :)

Get & Show (Lego cafe), Hapjeong/Hongdae

There's this area between Hapjeong, Hongdae, and Sangsu subway stations that I like to call the 'Bermuda Triangle of Cafes', or BTC for short. I say this because this triangular area is filled to the brim with more gorgeous cafes than you could possibly shake a stick at, and you could easily get lost wandering down all the lovely little alleys that are lined with these places. My theory is that even if you were to visit a different one every single day for a year, you probably still wouldn't be able to cover all of them. The Bermuda Triangle of Cafes is just that infinite.

A couple of weekends ago, I was wandering around the BTC with a friend, looking for a nice place to have coffee and dessert after dinner when, lo and behold, we somehow found ourselves staring at a place called Get & Show. There was a giant Lego man above the door with his welcoming arms open wide, and we were instantly sold.

As it turns out, Get & Show has two branches and both are on the same street within a few metres of each other. The one we happened to stumble into was the second branch. It wasn't that big, with only about 15 or so small tables, most seating only two people each. But what it lacked in size, it made up for with its awesome atmosphere, funky wall hangings, and vast collection of Lego merchandise.

The black sign says you can get a 2,000 won discount for take-away drinks >:D

Not sure how The Simpsons are related to Lego, but hey.. I love The Simpsons, so no complaints here. XD

Awesome VW and Mini Cooper Lego sets!

Lego makes even the evil Orcs look super cute. :3

The most expensive Lego set in the store... 756,000 won. o__O

There were a few people who'd bought Lego sets and it looked like they were having lots of fun building things at their tables, perhaps reliving fond childhood memories. Although my friend and I didn't buy any, we settled instead for oohing and aahing over the different collections, and watching other people work while we chatted over our food.

Strawberry yoghurt smoothie (6,000 won), cake and coffee set (7,500 won)

It was all pretty tasty but admittedly my inner cheapo did find the prices a little steep. Much to our delight though, our order came two free pieces of  Lego man chocolate. This definitely helped to assuage my greedy soul.

Almost too cute to eat. Almost.

All in all, I'd say this cafe is definitely worth checking out if you're into Lego and even if not, it makes for a nice place to go on a date or sit and have a chat with company if you don't mind forking out a little more cash.

Don't forget to check out the funky vending machine in front of the store.. for all your Lego needs on the go!

Get & Show Cafe (2nd branch), Hapjeong
Hours: 9:30am - 11:30pm
Address: 서울시 마포구 도막로3길 25 (25 Domak-ro 3gil, Mapo-gu, Seoul)
Website: http://www.getnshow.com/display_user.php?idx=5848
Directions: From exit 5 of Hapjeong Station, take the first right and then the third left. Continue down this road for 3 blocks and Get & Show's 2nd branch will be on your left. To get the first branch, continue walking straight for a few more metres and look out for it on your left.