Miss Lee Cafe • 별다방미스리

Miss Lee Cafe (별다방미스리) first gained its popularity because its frequent appearances on Korean TV shows. Its popularity peaked after an episode of the Korean variety show “We Got Married” aired, featuring Yong Hwa (CNBLUE) and Seo Hyun (Girls’ Generation and TTS) having a date at their Insadong branch.

Aside from media appearances, Miss Lee Cafe is also famous for their old school dosirak which consists of rice topped with pink sausage (분홍소세지), egg, seaweed and kimchi served in tinplate lunch box with a side of seaweed soup. This old school dosirak is actually something that is very nostalgic to people who grew up in the 1970s. Back then, classrooms in Korea usually have a large radiator in the middle of the room that served as the central heating unit. The radiator was also used to warmed up lunch boxes (thus the use of tinplate lunch box). Also, before you eat, don’t forget to put the cover lid and shake it until all the ingredients are mixed well together. That’s how you’re suppose to enjoy a proper dosirak.

The menu at Miss Lee Cafe revolves around Korean food, snacks, as well as desserts but with a twist. From tteokbokki (떡볶이), yanggaeng (양갱), to bingsu (빙수), you can find a good selections of Korean traditional food on this nostalgic school-love themed café.

I personally have been here a couple of times during my first couple of visits to Seoul. Now, with the many newer cafes that have popped up in Seoul, this place might not be as popular as it used to (at least amongst tourists) but I think it’s a fun place to go to, especially if you want to try the old school dosirak.

Note: These photos were taken at their Samcheongdong branch, which now has closed. If you want to go for a visit, their Insadong branch is still open (see the address below). The interior concept is pretty much the same, but just with a different layout.

 

Miss Lee Cafe Insadong • 별다방미스리 인사동점

Address: 서울 종로구 인사동길 59 2층 별다방미스리
Telephone: 0507-1403-0939
Hours: Mon-Fri 12:00-19:00 | Sat & Sun 12:00-20:00

Instagram: @missleecafe

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Tartine Coffee Bar at RYSE Hotel • 타르틴 베이커리 RYSE호텔점

Tartine Coffee Bar is located at the lobby of the designer lifestyle hotel, RYSE Hotel in Hongdae. It is one of the six locations that the famous Bay Area bakery opened in Seoul after its expansion to South Korea in 2018. Tartine Coffee Bar offers a more limited menu compared to their other branches in Seoul but still covering the basic for their pastries and coffee selections.

Other than the fact that I’ve known Tartine makes great pastries since I was living in the Bay Area, I personally first came to this location to check out their interior design because it’s quite different than their other branches since it follows more of RYSE Hotel’s design concept. The space is modern, unique and definitely stylish. If you’re looking for a cafe with good coffee and pastries selections and nice interior in Hongdae, this place is definitely worth checking out.

Note: Photos were taken before the pandemic.

 

Tartine Coffee Bar at Ryse Hotel • 타르틴 베이커리 RYSE호텔점

Address: 서울 마포구 양화로 130 Ryse 호텔 1층
Telephone: 02-324-9400
Hours: Everyday 08:00 - 20:00

Instagram: @tartinebakeryseoul

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Milou Farm House

Milou Farm House is a newly opened cafe/restaurant in South Jakarta that had its soft opening just last week. Adopting the concept of a farmhouse, the building of the place resembles one which certainly makes it stands out from its neighboring buildings.

First thing you’ll notice is the barn style structure with a big revolving door (that I’m pretty sure will be one of the main thing people share on social media) that leads to the inside of the restaurant. The first floor of the restaurant is where the salad bar, buffet stations (which will be coming soon in the upcoming weeks), and gelato bar are located. This is also where you’ll place and pay for your order before proceeding to the second floor where the seating areas are.

The second floor is divided into semi-outdoor and indoor seating area. If you want to take pictures of yourself or the food, the semi-outdoor area is definitely the better choice because of the natural lighting. But if you want to avoid the sun and prefer to be in a cooler space, definitely go for the air-conned indoor seating area.

The Food & Drinks

The whole concept of this restaurant is actually farm to table buffet where you can pick what you want to eat from a selection of dishes they’ll put on display on different stations. They also offer a wide range of a la carte menu that you can choose from. Since I came just a week after their soft opening, the buffet stations are not available just yet. So the food and drinks that I tried were from their a la carte menu.

Sunset Carnival at Malibu Beach (39,5K) | 7.5/10

For the drinks, I ordered based on the server’s (and bartender’s) recommendations after I told her that I prefer non sour drinks. The first one is the Sunset Carnival at Malibu Beach. The red color on the bottom worried me at first because I thought it’ll be sour (I usually associated red with berries flavor, which for me is sour), but it actually wasn’t. The drink was refreshing and not too sweet.

Tea Sorbet (39,5k) | 8/10

One of their signature drinks is the tea sorbet. I tried the Temple of Rose / La Vie En Rose + Black Tea + Strawberry Basil (I couldn’t remember which Rose I chose honestly but it looks like the pictures above). Again, when it arrived on the table, I was worried that it was going to be sour just because of the color. But once again I was pleasantly surprised by how light and refreshing the drink is. Nothing is overwhelmingly sour or sweet and it’s definitely a unique combination that’s perfect for a hot day.

Buffalo Chicken Wings (59,5K) | 7/10

For appetizer, I tried the Buffalo Chicken Wings that come with the sides of vegetable sticks and ranch dressing. The sauce is really bold and flavorful and covered the five pieces wings thoroughly. This is a good option if you want to order a light appetizer to share.

Spicy Chicken Burger (79,5k) | 7.5/10

Served with homemade brioche buns, glazed with spicy buffalo wings sauce and homemade coleslaw, the portion of the spicy chicken burger is definitely big. I had to eat it open faced so it could fit into my mouth. The buns were nice and soft. The chicken was cooked nicely. The breading on the chicken is crispy and definitely well seasoned. The sauce is the same sauce as the buffalo chicken wings, so maybe order a different appetizer if you’re planning to order this as your main course. The fries is well-seasoned and crispy. Overall a good chicken burger.

BBQ Beef Brisket Steak with Fusion Jimbaran Sauce (159K) | 8/10

36-hours sous vide tenderized smoky beef brisket with homemade BBQ sauce infused with rosemary and thyme, served with garlic parmesan mashed potatoes (or the option of truffle fries). This is probably my favorite menu out of all the dishes I tried. The steak is well cooked, tender and cut in a good bite size portion. The sauce is tasty and definitely unique since they made a fusion of BBQ and jimbaran sauce. The sides were also well cooked and seasoned.

Belgian Waffle (49,5K) | 7/10

Served with mix fruits, honey maple syrup, and brown sugar coconut glaze jam. The portion of the waffle is pretty generous. The waffle is not too thick and I personally think the texture of the waffle is a little bit on the softer side (I usually prefer my waffle to be a little crispy on the outside but soft on the inside).

Lastly, I also got to try some of their gelato. Milou Farm House makes their gelato in-house and they offer 24 different flavors for you to choose from. After tasting a couple of different flavors, one thing I noticed about their gelato is all of them are not too sweet, which is always a plus in my book. They taste light and fresh with the right amount of sweetness to end your meal.

Flavors that I tasted were Peanut Butter, Hokkaido Japanese Milk, Cookie Monster, and Black Charcoal. I give 7.5/10 for the Peanut Butter and Hokkaido Japanese Milk (this one is actually pretty different than any other Hokkaido Japanese Milk flavors I’ve tasted before). A 7/10 for the Cookie Monster (the blue one on the picture below) because the chunks of cookies mixed in with the gelato were a little big for my preference and so it felt a little disconnected from the flavor (almost like an ice cream with a cookie crumble topping instead of a cookie flavored ice cream if you know what I mean).

Black Charcoal (35k) | 8/10

Black charcoal was the best one out of all the flavors I tried, maybe because I like black sesame which is one of the main ingredients of the flavor. The black sesame flavor definitely came through on this one. If you like black sesame, definitely try this flavor out.

The Service

The service was good. The servers were very polite, friendly and they definitely know the menu because when asked for recommendations, they were quick to give answers. The food came out in a timely manner. They also brought out new individual plates out when they noticed our plates were already full of sauces from previous courses which was nice.

All and all, had a good time during my visit to this place. If you want to visit the place and check out their buffet, I suggest you check with the restaurant first on when they’ll have that available. But if you’re okay with just their a la carte menu, then you should be good to go anytime since they’re already open for public.

 

Milou Farm House

Address: Jl Ciranjang No 30, Kebayoran Baru, Jakart Selatan 12180, Indonesia
Telephone: +622127099488
Hours: Mon-Fri 9AM-6PM | Sat-Sun : 8AM-8PM

Instagram: @miloufarmhouse

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Simple Tokyo • 심플도쿄

Simple Tokyo (심플도쿄) was a small homestyle Japanese-fusion restaurant in Ikseon-dong (익선동) that I visited a couple of years ago for a dinner with a friend. The restaurant occupied a small space that was decorated beautifully with white light panels, wooden hanok inspired structure, green bamboo plants, and marble tables and white chairs that were placed on a Japanese zen garden inspired flooring. If you pass by this place during night time, the lights from inside definitely will catch you eyes and that's exactly why me and my friend decided to eat here.

We both ordered their Beef Brisket Nabe Udon (차돌 나베 우동) and it was really good. It came with shiitake and oyster mushroom, cabbage, and plenty of leeks on top. The broth was super rich and flavorful, the meat was tender and the portion was pretty fulfilling. It was a perfect meal for a cold night.

Unfortunately, the restaurant has closed a year or so after its opening because the last time I passed by this location, the space has been emptied out. Even so, thought I share the pictures from this place because the interior was pretty.

Simple Tokyo • 심플도쿄 (CLOSED)

Instagram: @simpletokyo_official

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Kontemporary1 • 컨템포러리1

Kontemporary1 (컨템포러리1) also known as Kontemporary Koffee is a small gallery cafe located in the hip neighborhood of Hannam-dong (한남동). The unique space serves as a coffee shop as well as a space for art exhibition that changes from time to time. Opened in September 2018, I remember the cafe went viral on social media for its famous big painting-like revolving glass door as well as its unique interior. If you’re looking for a cafe with unique furnitures, you definitely want to check this place out because they have furnitures made out of wooden panels that are cut in various different shapes that are assembled together to create shelves and furnitures that look like art pieces from a museum (which is very fitting for the concept of the space).

Kontemporary1 also has one of the best milk tea I’ve ever had in the city. It has the perfect sweetness and hints of orange peel, floral, and pineapple (they gave me a card with the flavor notes which was a very nice touch). I thoroughly enjoyed it and it’s definitely one of the more memorable great milk tea I’ve had in Seoul.

Note: Pictures were taken before the pandemic.

 

Kontemporary1 • 컨템포러리1

Address: 서울 용산구 이태원로54길 48
Telephone: 010-2606-0139
Hours: Everyday 12:30 pm - 09:00 pm

Instagram: @kontemporary_koffee

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