커피프린스

After visiting Yonsei, I went searching for the 1st Shop of Coffee Prince in the vicinity of Hongdae (Hongik University). I shall include the map here. The direction given in Tour2Korea was not written in very proper English. Fortunately, my English is also not that good, so I still manage to find my way there. This is probably an example of two negatives giving one positive. Anyway, this is my account of how I found my way there.

I took metro line 2 (green line) to Hongik University (홍대입구-弘大入口) and exited the station via Exit 4. The first building I saw was the Seven Springs Salad and Grill Restaurant.

Seven Springs is also a filming site for the Korean drama "Alone in Love"

I turned right into the road before this restaurant. After a short walk, I reached the first intersection and crossed it. At the next intersection, I turned left and kept to the small road on the right side. As I walked along this small road, there was an open area to my left. After about 100m of walk, there was a 90deg bend to the right. I followed the bend and continued to walk on the right side of the road. The road after the bend was a straight and uphill road that led to a main road at the end. The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince was located almost right at the end of this road. That was about 500m of walk after the bend.

At the 1st Shop of Coffee Prince. The cafe has a big "P" at its front.

Will Coffee Prince become a successful brand like Starbuck one day?

The 1st Shop of Coffee Prince was not as crowded as I have thought. Also, it's customers were largely Koreans and not tourists. If I have not read about this coffee shop, I would not have known that it was a filming site for a Korean drama. Though it looks like many other coffee shops in Seoul, I still like the place for its simplicity and because it was located at a quiet corner near to Hongdae.

An innovative way of using space. A boutique underneath Coffee Prince.

A full view of 1st Shop of Coffee Prince.

Night was falling at about 5pm when I took these pictures.

I was sorry to have peeked inside. After that, I couldn't resist going in.

After enough of photo-taking from outside, I could not resist going into the shop to have a nice cup of Iced Mocha. To be frank, I was thinking for quite a while whether this shop was really serving coffee or everything else that I saw was a mock-up for visitors. But of course, I was quite a "babo" to even think of that. They do sell coffee and drinks like any other cafes. I paid 7,000won for my Iced Mocha. Though it didn't cost me a hand and leg but it was quite expensive as compared to other cafes. I tried to reason that perhaps 3,000won of the 7,000won is meant as an entrance fee to the shop.

A look around Coffee Prince. A small and comfortable place to meet up.

My Iced Mocha which cost me 7,000won. I like the chocolate swirl.

A last look at Coffee Prince radiating its charm after nightfall.