Not Complete • 낫컴플리트

Stumbled upon Not Complete (낫컴플리트) by chance when I was exploring Hyehwa-dong (혜화동) during one summer day in June. It was quiet when I walked into the spacious cafe on the second story of a building in one of the alleyways in Hyehwa. The place was brightly lit by the natural lighting that shines through the windows surrounding the space and soft jazz music was playing in the background.

It was the cafe’s third week of soft opening so the place was pretty much brand new. First thing that came to mind after I sat down was this is a perfect place to read a book, do some work or to catch up with friends because, other than the occasional sound of the coffee machine brewing or water running from the kitchen, the noise level in this space is perfect for me who doesn’t really like noisy places. The cafe also have a good selections of coffee and non-coffee options as well as dessert and pastries on the menu. If you’re looking for a quiet cafe around Hyehwa area, this place is definitely worth to check out.

 

Not Complete • 낫컴플리트

Address: 서울 종로구 성균관로 12-5 1층 2층
Hours: Monday to Saturday 12:00-21:00. Closed on Sundays.

Instagram: @notcmplt

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Cafe Aalto by Meal Do • 카페알토 바이 밀도

Cafe Aalto by Meal Do (카페알토 바이 밀도) is the first artist collaborative project by Meal Do (밀도), a popular bakery that is well-known for their cube breads and loaf. The name of the cafe itself is inspired by Hugo Alvar Henrik Aalto, a world-renowned Finnish architect and designer whose works include architecture, furniture, textiles, glassware, as well as sculptures and paintings. The interior of the cafe is designed by Teoyang Studio and heavily inspired by Aalto’s works.

“We wanted to share Alvar Aalto's inspirations and preferences through out the cafe. Birch wood veneer louvered wall which resemble the birch forest and the gold mirrored ceiling which reflects the users like the lakes in Finland. Even the soft tone of the indirect lighting in the space came from the use of sunlight in Alvar Aalto's architecture.” —Teoyang Studio

“Teoyang Studio has installed thinly slatted birch screens that frame a deep-set cut-out ceiling to recall Aalto’s Savoy Vase, whilst diners perch stylishly on the iconic Stool 60 and Chair 66.” —Wallpaper.com

I actually really enjoyed my visit to this place. The interior of the spacious cafe is impressive, the atmosphere is relaxing, plenty of tables and chairs for you to do some work if you opted to do so, and this location feels very different than Meal Do’s other locations that are usually smaller. The cafe is actually located inside Amore Pacific Headquarters Building (아모레퍼시픽본사빌딩) so there are other stores that you can visit while you’re there.

 

Cafe Aalto by Meal Do • 카페알토 바이 밀도

Address: 서울 용산구 한강대로 100 지하 1층
Telephone: 0507-1479-5052
Hours: Weekdays 08:30-20:00 | Weekends 10:00-20:00

Instagram: @cafeaalto.bymealdo

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Humbolt • 훔볼트

Humbolt (훔볼트) is a dessert cafe in Seongsu-dong (성수동) that has been around for quite a while now. My first visit was in 2017 and they’re still operating until today, so it really says something about the place.

Decorated with sleek gold and marble interior, the cafe occupies a three-stories space that has plenty of seatings ranging from working station style seating, casual meetup seating and outdoor seating if you prefer to enjoy the weather outside. They sell a variety of coffee & non-coffee drinks, desserts as well as bread and pastries.

To somebody who doesn’t drink coffee like me, finding a cafe that has a pretty extensive non-coffee options (and by extensive, I mean they have other menus than the generic chocolate or matcha latte) is somewhat hard. So I was pretty happy when I see that Humbolt (훔볼트) offers quite a bit of non-coffee options. I tried their Rose Latte (장미라떼) and it was actually pretty good. The temperature was just right, not too sweet, the forth is light and foamy, and it came with rose petals on top of it. It was perfect for a cold day.

If you’re looking for a dessert cafe with non-coffee options that has plenty of seatings for casual meetups or working session, I’d definitely recommend you to check out this place. And oh, I think they also have live music session as well, but you might want to check out their Instagram or call them up for more info on that.

 

Humbolt • 훔볼트

Address: 서울 성동구 성수이로 58 1층
Telephone: 02-462-5122
Hours: Everyday 10:00-22:00

Instagram: @humbolt.cafe

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Cafe Onhwa Seongsu • 카페온화 성수점

With the souffle pancake craze that was happening in Seoul in 2019, Cafe Onhwa (카페온화) is one of the places that’s well-known for their amazing souffle pancake. I first came to know Cafe Onhwa when I passed by their Ikseon-dong (이선점) location. Didn’t get to try it then, but instead, ended up visiting their Seoung-su location (성수점) months later with my friend.

Cafe Onhwa Seongsu (카페온화 성수점) occupies a spacious first floor of a building located right in the middle of Ttukseom Station (뚝섬역) and Seongsu Station (성수점역) of subway Line 2. The open-concept cafe is decorated with marble surfaces, wooden chairs and tables, off-white single sofas, and its signature gold countertops and accents spread all over the cafe. The place feels modern and sleek but nostalgic at the same time.

The entrance will lead you straight to the coffee bar/open kitchen where you can place your order and watch the barista making hand-drip coffee or making your souffle pancakes.

There are plenty of seatings available in the three sections they have in the cafe. One is the coffee bar area where you can sit right in front of the hand-drip coffee station. You can watch the barista in action or see the roasting room behind you.

The second area is the one right to the entrance, next to the roasting room. This area accommodates more people than the counter seating.

Lastly is the area left to the entrance, which is the biggest seating area in the cafe. On a side note, the single sofas and tables are pretty low, so they don’t really make a very comfortable setup for eating (or working/studying). It’s okay for drinking coffee but it was a little awkward for me and my friend when we were eating our pancakes. But overall, the interior is really nice and I also like the high-ceiling that they have, making the cafe feels more open and spacious.

Since my friend and I came to try the pancake, we ordered their popular menu, the Plain Souffle Pancake (플레인수플레) to share. We also ordered On Hand Drip (핸드드립 온) for my friend and Matcha Latte (말차라떼) for me.

The souffle pancake came with caramelized bananas, whip cream and syrup on the side. And oh my gosh, it was gooood. The texture of the souffle was super fluffy and soft. It’s almost like you’re eating clouds (well, maybe a slightly firmer clouds). It wasn’t too sweet (we didn’t pour all the syrup though) or too white-eggy (if you know what I mean) and the whipped cream was also so soft. The caramelized banana has more of a crunchy texture, giving it a nice contrast to the pancake. Overall, I liked it and I get why it’s so popular. Definitely recommend trying their souffle pancake if you’re visiting their cafe.

 

Cafe Onhwa Seongsu • 카페온화 성수점

Address: 서울 성동구 아차산로 78 1층
Telephone: 02-461-0031
Hours: Everyday 11:00-22:00

Instagram: @onhwa_cafe

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Bamvoo Bakery & Brewing • 밤부 베이커리 & 브루잉

Passed by Bamvoo Bakery & Brewing (밤부 베이커리 & 브루잉) one day at the end of one of my exploration session around Hapjeong (합정동) and decided to check the place out. The cafe is housed in a retro looking two-story house with a pretty spacious front yard that has a long communal table and smaller outdoor tables spread around the area.

The first floor of the cafe is decorated with marble countertops, rock stone coffee bar and bamboos lining up the wall, a nod to its name I assume. The seating area isn’t too big. It fits about 16 people or so and they have a section where you can sit in front of the window facing the front yard which is pretty nice.

On the second floor, there’s this interesting room that’s decorated with vintage teal wallpaper, furnitures, lamps and chandelier where they display their bakery items.

I just left a cafe before I stopped by this place so I didn’t dine in, but I did buy some of their croissants to go and ate them later that evening. And they were really good. Wouldn’t mind going back to this place to get some more of their croissant and maybe try their other pastries as well next time.

Note: Photos were taken before the pandemic.

 

Bamvoo Bakery & Brewing • 밤부 베이커리 & 브루잉

Address: 서울 마포구 월드컵로5길 33-23
Telephone: 02-3144-0446
Hours: Everyday 11:00-22:30

Instagram: @bam_voo

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