Oh my goodness. Where do I start? Before my friend and I walked into this cafe it seemed so promising. At first the old fashioned decor seemed kitsch and cool but the longer we stayed there the more we agreed that actually it was like my grandmothers house,well... not my grandmother as she has taste but you get the gist. I digress...
My friend mentioned that they served food at this cafe (which is near her home and mine) so I suggested we meet there for dinner and see what coffees,teas and desserts they had on offer. BIG MISTAKE. We both ordered the Aglio e ollio. It wasn't so bad to say that it was inedible but it was nowhere near good either. First of all, the portion size was so small it was like it was meant for a child. Even my Korean friend who doesn't have a ravenous appetite like me agreed. Secondly, Aglio e ollio normally doesn't have peppers in it. Certainly not huge roughly cut slices of Korean red and green peppers which didn't seem fully cooked, almost as if they were tossed in with the spaghetti as an after thought. Thirdly,there only seemed to a small amount of oil on the spaghetti. Need I go on? I think I have said enough about the spaghetti.
The waitress came to clear our plates and asked us "kenchan at se yo?" the Korean equivalent to "Was everything ok?" My Korean friend smiled awkwardly, as was I if I'm honest. I really wanted to say "Ani. Mad obsoyo" in English "No. The food wasn't good." but of course I did no such thing.
After the disappointment of the spaghetti we discussed whether we should even bother staying for coffee or dessert. My friend then said "I don't think I can trust them to make coffee. I don't think it'll be very good." I countered with "Do you really think they can mess up making coffee or tea?" I looked at the menu once more whilst we were trying to decide whether to stay or leave. It was their waffle menu that did it. We decided to give them one last chance and order a waffle. I guess we thought we were trying to be kind but maybe we are just gluttons for punishment. I said to my friend if the waffle is as bad as the spaghetti this cafe has no chance in hell of receiving a good review from me. We laughed nervously anticipating what disaster was going to come out next. Surprisingly, the waffle looked quite good and it tasted ok. But this is a problem in itself. It was just ok. If I had to sum up this cafe in one word it would be mediocre. Avoid it like the plague.
I normally write the directions to the cafe along with the address and telephone number but I'm not going to do that for this post as I'm sure no one wants to go here.
Showing posts with label Dongjak-gu. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dongjak-gu. Show all posts
Monday, 2 May 2011
Thursday, 28 April 2011
Cafe Kanana
Cafe Kanana is one of the many cafes surrounding Sangdo station. I happen to go to a lot of cafes in this area because it is near where I live and work. I found myself going into Cafe Kanana on my day off to sample some of their food and drinks. Their food menu is quite limited. The cafe only have 7 or 8 different pizzas and pastas available on their menu. I ordered a cheese pizza which had olives and onions on when it arrived at my table. Personally I didn't really mind as I love olives and veggies but some may be a bit surprised to get this when they supposedly ordered a plain cheese pizza.
On the day that I visited the cafe, which was a thursday I tried to order a Cafe Gelato or
카페젤라또 in Korean. The lady told me that they couldn't make that. I'm assuming that they didn't have any gelato as it's probably not something that a lot of customers order. I was a little bit disappointed by this as most customers don't like to be told what they want to order is not available. As a second choice I ordered the Cafe Kanana 카페카나나. I didn't ask what kind of coffee this was, I just thought I'd see what I got when it came out.
What I got was this:
The best way I can describe this drink is a mix between a cappucino (frothy milk on the top) and a latte with some random sweet syrup on the bottom hence the red swizzle stick in my drink. It wasn't altogether unpleasant but I couldn't really figure out what it was and there are probably better coffees to drink at this cafe and elsewhere.
I wasn't particular bowled over by this cafe although the decor was nice and the proximity to the station is useful. I don't want to give the cafe a bad review as such but I would say it's a fairly average cafe. There was nothing that made the cafe stand out from all the other chain coffee shops in Seoul.
How to get there: Sangdo station, Exit 5, do a 180 so that the stairs and escalators are behind your and walk around the corner, it will be immediately on your right hand side.
On the day that I visited the cafe, which was a thursday I tried to order a Cafe Gelato or
카페젤라또 in Korean. The lady told me that they couldn't make that. I'm assuming that they didn't have any gelato as it's probably not something that a lot of customers order. I was a little bit disappointed by this as most customers don't like to be told what they want to order is not available. As a second choice I ordered the Cafe Kanana 카페카나나. I didn't ask what kind of coffee this was, I just thought I'd see what I got when it came out.
What I got was this:
The best way I can describe this drink is a mix between a cappucino (frothy milk on the top) and a latte with some random sweet syrup on the bottom hence the red swizzle stick in my drink. It wasn't altogether unpleasant but I couldn't really figure out what it was and there are probably better coffees to drink at this cafe and elsewhere.
I wasn't particular bowled over by this cafe although the decor was nice and the proximity to the station is useful. I don't want to give the cafe a bad review as such but I would say it's a fairly average cafe. There was nothing that made the cafe stand out from all the other chain coffee shops in Seoul.
How to get there: Sangdo station, Exit 5, do a 180 so that the stairs and escalators are behind your and walk around the corner, it will be immediately on your right hand side.
Sunday, 24 April 2011
Dunami's
I visited this cafe on a saturday afternoon and not surprisingly it was quite busy. This cafe can seat about 40 people and has a cosy feel to it due to it being a basement cafe. One of the interesting features of this cafe is that they have a seminar room which can seat about 9 people. It has a wall separating it from the rest of the cafe allowing for privacy. At the same time, the seminar room has one side open so it doesn't feel claustrophobic and so that the staff can get in easily to serve drinks and food.
Although I didn't have an opportunity to use it when I visited the cafe, the cafe has a printer and 2 laptops which belong to the cafe which customers can use. Sangdo-dong is a somewhat student area due to Soongsil University being located in Sangdo-dong so the printer and laptops could be of use to students who prefer to study in cafes rather than in the library.
Dunami's is a book cafe but I cannot really comment on what kinds of books they have as the majority of them are in Korean although they had a few Japanese and English books.
On the day that I visited, I was suffering from a sore throat so I ordered a honey lemon tea which I found to be a little bit TOO sweet but that's just my opinion. I stayed in the cafe for several hours and I also ordered an espresso frappuciono which came with some toast and jam which I thought was little bit odd but not at all unwelcome. However, I have a theory about this toast and jam and I have to stress here that this is just a theory. I have a feeling that the staff in the cafe thought I was a reporter of some kind as I got out my HUGE DSLR camera and starting snapping away and in order for the cafe to get a good review I think they put some toast and jam along with my coffee order as I noticed another customer who seemed to order the same thing as me minus the toast.
I don't want to write a bad review about Dunami's because I had an enjoyable afternoon there but I was a little bit disappointed that they didn't offer me a point card at point of purchase, especially as I purchased 2 drinks and I was in there several hours so they had the opportunity to offer me the point card. I don't know if it was because the staff were nervous about speaking to me in English or perhaps thought I wouldn't understand Korean or thought that it was unlikely that I would be visiting again so didn't offer me a card. Either way I wasn't offered one, which is a shame as I live fairly near this cafe and might have considered going regularly had I been offered a point card and if I wasn't on a mission to try as many independent cafes as possible. The only reason I know they even have a point card system is because they were on the counter by the cash register but those cards were alphabetized, meaning that they were the point cards used by regular customers who left their point cards at the cafe but it was not obvious to me where the new, unused cards were for new customers. If so, I would have helped myself.
Most of the drinks prices range from 4,300-5,500 won. They also serve some waffles, salad and sandwiches all at reasonable prices. Dunami's is a cute little cafe that makes you forget about the noisy traffic above you and allows you to relax. Despite the things I wrote above, I would definitely still recommend this cafe.
How to get there: Sangdo Station (Line 7), Come out of Exit 4 and Dunami's is immediately on the left, downstairs in the basement.
Although I didn't have an opportunity to use it when I visited the cafe, the cafe has a printer and 2 laptops which belong to the cafe which customers can use. Sangdo-dong is a somewhat student area due to Soongsil University being located in Sangdo-dong so the printer and laptops could be of use to students who prefer to study in cafes rather than in the library.
Dunami's is a book cafe but I cannot really comment on what kinds of books they have as the majority of them are in Korean although they had a few Japanese and English books.
On the day that I visited, I was suffering from a sore throat so I ordered a honey lemon tea which I found to be a little bit TOO sweet but that's just my opinion. I stayed in the cafe for several hours and I also ordered an espresso frappuciono which came with some toast and jam which I thought was little bit odd but not at all unwelcome. However, I have a theory about this toast and jam and I have to stress here that this is just a theory. I have a feeling that the staff in the cafe thought I was a reporter of some kind as I got out my HUGE DSLR camera and starting snapping away and in order for the cafe to get a good review I think they put some toast and jam along with my coffee order as I noticed another customer who seemed to order the same thing as me minus the toast.
I don't want to write a bad review about Dunami's because I had an enjoyable afternoon there but I was a little bit disappointed that they didn't offer me a point card at point of purchase, especially as I purchased 2 drinks and I was in there several hours so they had the opportunity to offer me the point card. I don't know if it was because the staff were nervous about speaking to me in English or perhaps thought I wouldn't understand Korean or thought that it was unlikely that I would be visiting again so didn't offer me a card. Either way I wasn't offered one, which is a shame as I live fairly near this cafe and might have considered going regularly had I been offered a point card and if I wasn't on a mission to try as many independent cafes as possible. The only reason I know they even have a point card system is because they were on the counter by the cash register but those cards were alphabetized, meaning that they were the point cards used by regular customers who left their point cards at the cafe but it was not obvious to me where the new, unused cards were for new customers. If so, I would have helped myself.
Most of the drinks prices range from 4,300-5,500 won. They also serve some waffles, salad and sandwiches all at reasonable prices. Dunami's is a cute little cafe that makes you forget about the noisy traffic above you and allows you to relax. Despite the things I wrote above, I would definitely still recommend this cafe.
How to get there: Sangdo Station (Line 7), Come out of Exit 4 and Dunami's is immediately on the left, downstairs in the basement.
Sunday, 17 April 2011
Cafe Karen
The cafe normally has some tables and chairs outside but this photo was taken on a sunday when the cafe is closed. It was the only time that I could get a clear shot of the outside of the cafe as there are normally lots of students walking past.
The thing that attracted me to go inside this cafe was that it was not part of a chain. I could tell even from the outside that it had a really cute, kitsch, individualistic feel to it so I decided to go in and I was not disappointed.
Here are some photos of the inside of the cafe.
The cafe offers coffee, tea, juices, smoothies and snacks all of which are reasonably priced and are cheaper than a great deal of chains in Seoul. Most of the drinks prices are between 3,500 won and 4,500 won. The most expensive drink on their menu is the home made Omija (five flavored) tea for 5,000 won. Their cheapest being an espresso for 3,200 won. The cafe is quite small and can only seat 26 customers but it has a very cosy and intimate feel to it and for me that just adds to the charm of the cafe. Cafe Karen offer a point card system as do a lot of coffee shops and cafes in Seoul. For every coffee purchased in Cafe Karen you get a stamp on your point card and after 12 stamps you get a coffee FREE OF CHARGE. Unfortunately you can only get a stamp when purchasing coffee and not other things on their drinks menu.
The staff are very friendly and at least one of the members of staff who I spoke to can speak English. There is also free wi-fi in the cafe, so you will often see students who prefer to work in cafes rather than in the library hanging out in this cafe. I have been to this cafe several times as its close to my home and I can easily see it becoming one of my local hang outs.
How to get there: Soongsil University station (Line 7) Exit 4, Ediya Coffee and Starbucks are at the bottom of the hill walk approx. 5 minutes up the hill.
Add: Cafe Karen
1st Floor
506-4
Sangdo-dong
Dongjak-gu
Seoul
Tel: 070 7619 7181
Open: Monday-Friday 10am-11pm
Saturday 12pm-10pm
Sunday CLOSED
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