Zapangi • 자판기
I think every single one of you who has been searching for popular Seoul cafes on the internet recently, especially on Instagram, has probably came across this pink vending machine image that has been popping up a lot lately. This place has been featured on several Seoul and Korean tourism related accounts and that only help boosts its popularity amongst tourists as well as the locals. I gotta hand it to them tho, having a pink vending machine as an entrance to the cafe is pretty ingenious. Not only it's pretty unique (there might be other places which has done this, but for me, this is the first time I've ever seen a vending machine as a door) but it is also a great incentive for people to come to this place just to check out this pink vending machine and take a picture with it. Good job Zapangi (자판기).
I actually came to Zapangi (자판기) on two different occasions. First, during a weekend and the place filled up pretty fast soon after I arrived. I was pretty overwhelmed by the amount of people who were in the space so I decided to try my luck on a weekday, hoping that there would be less people around so it's easier for me to take pictures of the space. So on my second try, I did go on a weekday afternoon and boy, was I wrong about my prediction that this place will be less busy on a weekday. Nope. It was as crowded as my first visit. The place was packed. Anyways, I tried their Jasmine Milk Tea and it was alright. It's not bad but it's also not something that I would come here specifically for either. They have other fancier drink and dessert menu options that are definitely more instagrammable, but I opted out from ordering those cos they all look very very sweet (I might be wrong tho. Anybody who has ordered them, let me know).
The pink vending machine itself is pretty cool I guess. If you come here specially to take picture with the vending machine, I have to warn you that there could be a bit of a waiting line going on since I guess everybody who comes here wants a picture on that spot (watch my video to see what I'm talking about). On both occasions I was there, there was quite a queue going on. Everybody is pretty civil, but you just have to be patient since almost everyone came in groups and try to do creative poses and plandids. So if you get there, and there's no line, I suggest you grab that opportunity to take your picture right there and then. And oh, another interesting observation, some people who came to the cafe and couldn't find an empty seats or people who was just passing by the cafe, they ended up just taking pictures with the vending machine and left. So I guess there's that option too.
Watch the video:
Zapangi • 자판기
Address: 서울특별시 마포구 월드컵로13길 79
Telephone: 02-325-8185
Hours: 10:00 - 23:00
Instagram: @zapangi_official