The Buoy is a Korean cafe and dessert shop in Hayes Valley, San Francisco that specializes in rice flour pastries. It all started with the owner’s curiosity on why there aren’t many rice flour desserts in the US, something like the Korean rice cake that she grew up eating a lot. Her curiosity eventually led her to go to Korea and learned all about rice flour pastries and baking techniques. She then started her baking journey in her own kitchen, creating and making desserts for friends and family who then encouraged her to sell them because they were so good.

And so in the summer of 2024, The Buoy was born. Their dessert and drinks menu revolve around rice flour and Korean flavors (black sesame, mugwort, and injeolmi flavors to be exact) which certainly pretty unique and unusual in San Francisco’s cafe scene. Their moist, chewy and fluffy roll cakes become one of their best sellers and they also offer a variety of baked goods in their dessert lineup. In one interview, Esther Kim—the owner of Buoy—talked about the health benefits of rice flour desserts such as how easy they are to digest and they are naturally gluten-free. On top of making a lot of their ingredients in house—including the syrup, toasted coconuts and toasted black sesame—they also created their own unique recipes that are followed down to a T. Not only striving to serve delicious desserts, they also wish that everybody who comes to The Buoy feels happy, uplifted and welcomed.

Greysuitcase San Francisco Cafe Series: The Buoy, Hayes Valley, San Francisco, California.

The cafe itself is pretty spacious, with three different seating areas to choose from—the regular tables, the tables with couches by the window and the bar seatings. There are more or less 40 seatings around the space, ranging from 2-person tables to 4-person tables.

Greysuitcase San Francisco Cafe Series: The Buoy - Menu, Hayes Valley, San Francisco, California.

Greysuitcase San Francisco Cafe Series: The Buoy - Black Sesame Brownie, Hayes Valley, San Francisco, California.

I visited this place with my sister during one of our outings in San Francisco. She was actually the one who told me about the place and asked if I want to try it. I said the place looks interesting (and I saw the Black Sesame Latte and Ssuk Latte on the menu which I'm immediately sold on) so we went. We got there around 2:30 pm on a Saturday and the place was pretty full. But lucky for us, there was people leaving right when we got there so we immediately got a table and head to the counter to place our order.

Later I found out, the person who took our order was the owner herself, Esther. We got to talking a little bit and she was super nice and friendly. She also gave us recommendations on which menu to order and we took her word for it and tried them. Here are what we ordered:

☕ Black Sesame Latte ($6) | 9/10

A very well-made Black Sesame Latte (and I’m a sucker for all things black sesame so super happy with this find). Not too sweet and comforting. Will definitely order again next time.

Greysuitcase San Francisco Cafe Series: The Buoy - Black Sesame Latte, Hayes Valley, San Francisco, California.

🍹 Raspberry Omija Soda ($6) | 9/10

Raspberry Cream, Omija

Very refreshing drink. The cream on top was delicious—not too thick and sweet—and complimented the raspberry soda really well. Could probably have that cream with any other drinks if I’m being honest

Greysuitcase San Francisco Cafe Series: The Buoy - Raspberry Cream Soda, Hayes Valley, San Francisco, California.

🥪 Umami Kimchi Panini ($16.5) | 9.5/10

Spicy Kimchi, Sweet Potato Mousse, Bacon, Corn Cheese, Herb Aioli, Salad/Chips

This is the panini that Esther recommended and I can see why she’s proud of this menu. This was our first time having a Kimchi Panini and we both agreed it was really good. Bursts of Korean flavors in every bite and super flavorful. It was very well executed, delicious and the portion was pretty generous too. Although maybe worth mentioning, it was a tad spicy for me who can’t really eat spicy food (that kimchi really had a pretty spicy kick for me) but it was fine for my sister who can.

Greysuitcase San Francisco Cafe Series: The Buoy - Kimchi Panini, Hayes Valley, San Francisco, California.

By the time we finished our Kimchi Panini, we were fully stuffed which was a shame because honestly, I really wanted to try their Black Sesame Brownie. But maybe that’s just a sign for me to go back again next time. If you’re looking for a dessert cafe in San Francisco/Hayes Valley area with unique Korean flavors, this place is definitely worth trying.