The Coffee Prince Cafe & what’s up with Korean Cafes?

Poster sign of the popular 2007 K-drama, The Coffee Prince

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I was in Seoul for my birthday weekend with my friend, Chance, when the urge for Sunday morning brunch struck.  We were starving and in the mood for a lazy meal at cafe. Our cafe requirements?

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Funky, trendy, Seoul-ish

(we were being girlie)

But then the same conundrum that always arises around food, did. What to eat? No. Where. There’s something about being a veggie traveler in Korea that’s always a bit daunting when it comes to meal time, and you’re in search of a good restaurant with food menus in English. You’re  find yourself reliant upon picture menus and finding those kind of menus take time. Until now, it’s never occurred to me that even in a cosmopolitan city, such as Seoul, finding a cafe to have brunch at requires effort!

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Koreans and brunch?

Brunch at a cafe– you’re thinking… coffee and a lightly toasted bagel with cream cheese; better yet, a bagel sandwich! Maybe yogurt, a fruit cup, a salad, a veggie pita, hummus wrap,… or some split pea soup! Yum! If you’re into meat, maybe it’s scrambled eggs and toast. Hold on– this is Korea and scrambled eggs and sandwiches (in any form) are not a common food  dish.

It’s typical of western lifestyle to slide on breakfast or even skip it all together. But for Koreans, not having breakfast is a big No-no; it’s supposed to be the biggest meal of your day. When I first arrived at my Korean school, each morning my co-teachers started their greeting to me by asking “How was your breakfast?” Strange right?

“Good Morning, Christine! How was your breakfast?”

It was the routine greeting to me to the point, I’d chose to lie than tell them the truth about me and breakfast– that half the time I didn’t have it!

Chance & I find an interesting crepe cafe with a wide assortment  (waffles desserts are very similar to these)

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What’s the #1 most popular dish served at Seoul cafes ?

Coffee and WAFFLE desserts!  …at least in central and collegiate Hongdae it seemed to be the case.  For some, that may qualify as some form of a breakfast, but Chance and I were being health freaks on top of girlie. Waffle after waffle, after waffle,… a request for “a slice of healthy” seemed like a tall order. In the end, we were willing to just settle for healthy in Seoul-ish. Half an hour into our search, it seemed the ax would fall and that Quiznos, Dos Tacos and a Subway (all within the nearby radius) were gearing up to  Ki-Bi-Bo! (a popular Rock, Paper, Scissors game in Korea) it.

But then an all too familiar sign drew my attention and pulled me into a side alley.

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The Coffee Prince Cafe (or Tiramisu Cafe)

This is for you Mom:

If you’re into K-drama, you’ll recognize the faces of this once popular show– The Coffee Prince! The show takes place in a cafe and is about the characters which work there.  Licensed by the MBC network and neighbor to the Hello Kitty Cafe ( visible from the street), this Hongdae cafe was once one of the set background for the show.  Was this cafe our godsend… our prince? Unfortunately not. The menu ranged from coffees to desserts and everything felt a bit overpriced. Still, it was so cool to have visited!

Trivia sidenote: It first aired on July 2nd ( my birthday!)

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G & B (Goulash Soup & Bread)

Luckily, just 4 blocks from Subway restaurant, heaven rescued us by sending us our prince! Goulash Soup and Bread (click here for my review).