8 Must-Visit Cafés in Seoul That Koreans Actually Go To
- LingoClass
- 4 days ago
- 4 min read
Updated: 3 days ago
Seoul isn’t just about K-pop, shopping, and nightlife, the city is a café lover’s paradise. From retro dabangs (old-style coffee houses) to hanok-inspired bakeries and whimsical themed spaces, Koreans take their café culture seriously. If you want to sip coffee where locals actually go, not just tourist-trap Instagram hotspots, here are 8 cafés worth your time, with the vibes, flavors, and Instagram accounts to match.
1. Hakrim Dabang (학림다방) – Seoul’s Living History
📸 Instagram: @hakrim_coffee
One of the most iconic stops is Hakrim Dabang, a legendary coffee house near Hyehwa Station that has been open since 1956. Stepping through its doors feels like stepping back into a Seoul that no longer exists, with wood-paneled walls, old radios, and a quiet intellectual atmosphere that once attracted artists and students. The cream cheese cake and Vienna coffee are beloved classics, and the café has even been featured in Korean dramas. Visiting Hakrim is like tasting a living piece of heritage.
🍴 Must-try: Vienna Coffee & Cream Cheese Cake
2. Cafe Onion Anguk – Tradition Meets Modern
📍 Address: 5 Gyedong-gil, Jongno District, Seoul
Another essential stop is Cafe Onion Anguk, set inside a beautifully restored hanok in the Bukchon neighborhood. The contrast of sleek espresso machines and rustic wooden beams creates a harmony of old and new that makes this café unforgettable. The Pandoro, dusted with snowy powdered sugar, has become a signature treat and is as photogenic as it is delicious. Locals linger here for hours in the sunlit courtyard, making it feel more like a stylish Korean home than a commercial café.
🍴 Must-try: Pandoro (snow-dusted bread) ＆ Iced Latte
3. Soha Salt Pond (소하염전) – The Salt Bread Craze
📍Address: 21-5 Supyo-ro 28-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
In Ikseon-dong, Soha Salt Pond has made salt bread into an obsession. Designed around the theme of a salt field, the minimalist white interiors are striking, but it’s the bread that keeps locals lining up. Crispy on the outside and impossibly fluffy inside, their salted butter bread is worth the hype. Visiting Soha shows how Seoul can take the simplest foods and turn them into national trends.
🍴 Must-try: Salted Butter Bread
4. Cheongsudang Bakery (청수당) – A Garden in the City
📸 Instagram: @cheongsudang
Just a few minutes away in the same neighborhood, Cheongsudang Bakery offers a complete contrast. This café feels like stepping into a garden sanctuary in the middle of the city, with greenery, water features, and carefully crafted desserts that are works of art. Their soufflé castella and matcha cheesecake are among the most talked-about items in Seoul’s café scene. It’s a popular spot for dates and special occasions, and one where the atmosphere feels almost meditative.
🍴 Must-try: Strawberry Soufflé Castella ＆ Matcha Fromage Cake
5. Dotori Garden (도토리 가든) – Ghibli in Real Life
📸 Instagram: @dotori_garden
Not far from there, Dotori Garden is one of the most whimsical cafés in the city. Inspired by the charm of Studio Ghibli films, it fills its hanok setting with woodland motifs, soft lighting, and adorable acorn decorations. The yoghurt bowls topped with fresh fruit are the signature order, but most people come for the experience of stepping into what feels like a fairytale.
🍴 Must-try: Fruit Yogurt Bowl
6. Coffee Hanyakbang (커피한약방) – Vintage Apothecary Vibes
📸 Instagram: @coffeehanyakbang
📍 Address: 16-6 Euljiro 3-ga, Jung-gu, Seoul
If your tastes run more toward the nostalgic and understated, Coffee Hanyakbang is a must. Hidden in the alleys of Euljiro, it’s styled after a traditional Korean herbal medicine shop, with dark wood cabinets and rows of old jars creating a mysterious apothecary vibe. The menu is simple, just strong, flavorful coffee, but it’s the atmosphere that makes this a local favorite.
🍴 Must-try: Hand-drip Black Coffee
7. London Bagel Museum – Bagel Obsession
📸 Instagram: @londonbagelmuseum
📍 Address: 20 Bukchon-ro 4-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
For something livelier, head to London Bagel Museum, the café that kicked off Seoul’s bagel craze. The quirky, playful interiors and inventive flavors make it a destination in itself. Whether you’re biting into a potato-cheese bagel or a seasonal sweet variation, you’ll feel like part of a cultural moment. It’s no surprise there are usually long lines, especially at the flagship location near Anguk Station, but locals swear it’s worth the wait.
🍴 Must-try: Potato Cheese Bagel ＆ Garlic Cream Cheese Bagel
8. Taegeukdang (태극당) – The Oldest Bakery in Seoul
📸 Instagram: @taegeukdang_official
Last but not least is Taegeukdang, Seoul’s oldest bakery, which opened in 1946 and has been run by the same family ever since. For many Koreans, it’s a place filled with childhood memories, from red bean buns to monaka ice cream sandwiches. The retro counters, white-uniformed staff, and unchanged recipes make it feel like a time machine into post-war Seoul.
🍴 Must-try: Monaka Ice Cream Sandwich ＆ Red Bean Bread
How to Order in Korean (Like a Local)
I’ll eat/drink here.
매장에서 먹고 갈게요. (Mae-jang-e-seo meok-go gal-ge-yo.)
To go, please.
포장할게요.(Pojang hal-ge-yo.)
One of this, please.(pointing at a pastry or menu item)
이거 하나 주세요. (I-geo hana juseyo.)
Thank you!
감사합니다! (Gam-sa-ham-ni-da!)
Tips for Café Hopping in Seoul
Go early in the day to avoid long queues, especially at Ikseon-dong spots.
Try weekdays if possible; weekends get crowded.
Don’t just chase photos, locals really go for the quality of coffee and desserts.
These eight cafés aren’t just pretty backdrops for Instagram photos—they’re living stories of Seoul itself. Each one reflects a different side of the city, from history and nostalgia to playfulness and innovation. Whether you’re sipping coffee in a 1950s dabang, sharing pastries in a hanok courtyard, or lining up for Seoul’s most famous salt bread, you’ll experience café culture the way locals do: as a delicious, meaningful part of daily life.
