Onion Cafè: a guide to Seoul's most famous coffee shops

Written by @bbanana_j

If you have ever watched a “cafè hopping vlog in Korea” or a 30 seconds Instagram reel about Koreans' adoration for an iced americano in pretty places, you have probably already heard what Onion Cafè is about: amazing pastries and even more amazing coffee in a curated and carefully designed space. However, in those kinds of online content, you probably had a glimpse of only one of the Onion Cafès which we will also cover in today’s article, Cafè Anguk. To know more about it, grab a drink of choice, and maybe a sweet treat, and come with us to visit (virtually) Onion’s popular coffee shops.

1. Cafè Onion Anguk

   

   STORE ADDRESS
   5, Gyedong-gil, Jongno-gu, Seoul
   STORE HOURS
   Monday - Friday : 07:00am - 10:00pm
   Weekends & Holidays : 09:00am - 10:00pm
   (Last Order : 09:30pm)

   STORE LOCATION
   It takes about 3 minutes to walk through Exit 3
   of Anguk station. (Line 3)

Onion Anguk might be the most visited coffee shop by Onion if not one of the most popular coffee shops in Seoul. Located in a very touristy area, near Gyeongbokgung palace and the Bukchon Hanok Village, Onion Anguk is built inside a hanok, a traditional Korean house from the Joseon Period, like many other trendy spots in this neighborhood. And like any other trendy spots in Seoul: be prepared for the crowd. Is the long queue at the entrance worth it? For sure. Once past the restored ancient doors, you find yourself in a very-instagrammable inner courtyard where hundreds of people enjoy coffee every day, finding a bit of peace, sitting on the wooden floors with comfy pillows, and resting in the shade even during the busiest hours. The coffee menu space from the most-beloved-by-Koreans iced Americano to a vegan Chai Latte. In fact, Onion is one of the coffee shops in Seoul where you are sure to find plant-based options for your lattes. A gigantic wooden table is reserved for a ton of different pastries and bread. From scones to croissants, from savory baguettes to the more Korean red bean paste and butter ppang. Funnily enough, though, the signature sweet treat here is a small version of Pandoro, an Italian soft and sweet cake-like bread made typically during the Christmas season, you can find it both covered with powdered sugar or Injeolmi (Korean rice cake) powder to resemble a snow-dusted mountain.

Despite being packed with tourists and locals any time of the day, this coffee shop is the clear epitome of what Korea seems to do very well in its popularity wave: mix the past and the present, traditions and trends, warm wood and scraped walls for an authentic, unique and picture-worthy experience.

2. Cafè Onion Seongsu

STORE ADDRESS
8, Achasan-ro 9-gil, Seongdong-gu, Seoul
STORE HOURS
Monday - Friday : 08:00am - 10:00pm
Weekends & Holidays : 10:00am - 10:00pm
(Last Order : 09:30pm)
STORE LOCATION
It takes about 5 minutes to walk through Exit 2
of Seoungsu station. (Line 2)

Talking about scraped walls (often covered in street art), one of the most fashionable and hip neighborhoods in Seoul: Seongsu-dong cannot skip from our minds. Not so many years ago, “The Brooklyn of Seoul” - starting from Seoul Forest to the Han River and covering the area around Ttukseom, Seongsu, and Konkuk University Subway Station- was an industrial area filled with old warehouses. These days, it has become a unique and youngster-filled blend of superior cafès, designer brands, art galleries, cultural spaces, and vintage boutiques, all of them taking up the space of the old factories, creating again a rare balance between the old and vintage and the new and trendy.

Cafè Onion Seongsu is no exception. First built in the 1970s and then transformed into supermarkets, restaurants, homes, maintenance shops, and factories for nearly 60 years, this coffee shop shows the customers, its charm with marks on the floors, unfinished and broken parts, brick walls, and large windows. Plants and modern furniture are the finishing touches. In this place, the past is still very much alive, with its raw materials and architectural structure, and the modern swipe in through with trays of delicious coffee and again a massive table of pastries and bread.

If Onion Anguk mixes traditional Korea with the present one, Onion Seongsu gives post-war Korea a second glamours chance.

3. Cafè Onion Gwangjang

   

STORE ADDRESS
215, Cheonggyecheon-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul
STORE HOURS
Everyday : 11:00am - 07:00pm
(Last Order : 06:30pm)
STORE LOCATION
It takes about 1 minutes to walk through Exit 7
of Jongno 5(o)-ga station. (Line 1)

Onion Gwangjang is the last branch opened by Onion in August 2022. The coffee shop is located in a corner of the world-famous Korean historic market in the heart of Seoul, Gwangjang market, near a hotteok stall, and again, it has a peculiar charm worth the visit. The cafè blends perfectly with the market street food and traditional vibes, using low plastic stools covered in white and red lettering tape and an open view metallic coffee counter, with coffee machines and a small kitchen, all stuck up in a tiny space. Neon lights dangle from the ceilings, the menu is written by hand on cardboard and the coffee is served in sealed plastic or paper cups. “Nostalgia” is the main theme for this branch and you can really bask in this feeling while sitting on a small plastic seat, enjoying the signature Hazelnut Latte (maybe, in its vegan version) or a typically Italian espresso (in a colorful legit ceramic espresso cup), while people fill up the space next to you. Just forget the spread of pastries and bread usually displayed in an Onion Cafè. Here, to match the street food vibes of the market, you can only find an item to satisfy your sweet tooth: the “crazy pizza pie”. A delicious layer of fluffy and flaky pastry pie that resembles a croissant in a pizza form with a generous amount of strawberry jam on top. If you order the whole pie, it is served in a common pizza box with a statement written on it: “Pizza is dead”. Onion Gwangjang also offers a guide to the market's most famous dishes to pair with their coffee, a nice way to introduce visitors to different Korean foods, and a smart way to promote their drinks.

Hundreds of people, both locals, and tourists crowd the famous Gwangjang market every day, but Onion’s purpose is for its customers to find, hidden from the “ppalli ppalli” (quick quick) Korean society, a little moment of peace and relaxation. A small corner of the world to sit back and enjoy.

In the multifaceted and competitive Seoul coffee scene, Onion cafè is for sure one of the most popular spots. Its coffee shops are special, aesthetic, and relaxing despite being always crowded. The pastries are really good and the coffee is amazing too. In every shop, you can even buy their coffee beans or coffee tea bags that have their signature blend, to enjoy at home. And in each branch, you can enjoy a piece of Old and New Korea along with your Iced Americano. You just have to choose which one of these unique cafès is more to your liking and hop in. You won’t regret it, for sure.

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