Cafe Jubilee - Itaewon

For this blog post, let’s zip up to Itaewon in Seoul for a coffee shop/chocolatier. Café Jubilee is located across the street from Hamilton Hotel where the Coffee Bean used to be. I'm not very good at remembering exit numbers after a while, sorry!

It’s a map!

I’ve only been here a couple of times to just kind of pass time while waiting for people to meet up usually. It’s a decently sized place with a nice patio for a smoking area. They also have lots of window seating so it makes a nice place to sit and people watch in Itaewon, too. Both times that I’ve been here, it hasn’t been very busy at all, and they have wi-fi.

As I mentioned earlier, this is a chocolatier shop, so they have lots of different yummy desserts and chocolates available. I haven’t ever tried any, unfortunately, because I’ve usually just eaten a huge lunch and I’m not hungry enough to have dessert.

Macaroons (top left), chocolates, and truffles (bottom shelf).

Nuts (top left), cake pops (top right), and truffles (bottom).

Muffins (top), tortes (middle), scones (middle right), and cakes (bottom).

I believe they also have some popsicles and such available in a cooler. I think next time I go in, I’ll try a cake pop or a muffin – those both look really yummy right now. You can also get iced and hot coffees and teas here for the usual Korean coffee shop prices (around 3000 – 5000 won).

Iced caramel macchiato.

Overall, I think a nice little dessert place to stop in and relax and try something new.

Updated So, I came up this morning to Cafe Jubilee to try a cake pop for breakfast since I'm always too full after lunch to get dessert here :). So, this is a cake pop.

Took me 5 minutes to open the damn thing The texture is like a cake, but denser. This one is the chocolate one (I told the guy to surprise me when he asked me what kind I wanted). I think they have strawberry, vanilla, chocolate, and something else: they aren't labeled. The flakes on the outside of this one are chocolate flakes. It was really quite good and very chocolatey. I'll have to try a strawberry or something next time.

Updated: 08/08/2012

Before I jump in to my update, Cafe Jubilee has updated their business hours to the following:
Monday - Thursday: 7am - 2am
Friday and Saturday: Open 24 hours
Sunday and Holidays: Closed

So I went back to Cafe Jubilee to pass time until meeting some friends for lunch and tried something new for breakfast: a coffee fondant.

It was really very good and warm since they heated it up in the microwave before serving it to me. The middle has a sort of coffee flavored cream and also what tasted to me like peanut butter. The texture is light and fluffy so it doesn't sit heavily on your stomach. I wouldn't say it's extremely filling or anything, but it tastes really good and is good for a light breakfast or snack.

I also looked a little closer at their drink cooler/rack and noticed that you can get mini bottles of wine to go with your chocolate (bottom shelf).

So yeah, I still recommend this place for some good chocolates and desserts and to just chill for a bit out of the sticky heat of Korean summer.

Droptop Cafe

Alrighty, I've been meaning to check this place out since it opened a few months, and I'm finally getting around to it: Cafe Droptop. Cafe Droptop is a new coffee shop in Yeongtong - it opened up a few months ago between Cafe Pascucci and ABC Mart, and right behind the Yeongtong Park bus stop (by the foot bridge by Homeplus). It's hours of operation are the same as Cafe Pascucci's: M-F: 7am - 2am; Sa, Su, Holidays: 8am - 2am (ooohhhh, competition, girlfriend!!). I'm off work today for the elections, so I might as well do something semi-productive with my day :)

And here's another of my lovely maps:

outside view of the shop from inside the building

One of the very first things I noticed about this cafe when it opened was the door handles:

I just thought the 'D' forming the handles was unique and liked it.

Every time I've been by this place, they haven't been busy at all. I don't know if I just walk by during non-peak times or what - it might pick up in the evenings. Despite it being empty in here right now, just me and one other girl, I can't hear myself think even with my iPod on. The music in here is up too loud, like in most coffee shops in Korea, which is completely un-necessary in my opinion. Why do people go to coffee shops? To visit with a friend or to study are the most common reasons, yet they feel the need to have the music soooo freaking loud that you have to shout to talk to your companion or put in ear plugs to do any work. *sigh* I digress.

They offer free Wi-Fi (after you enter the password posted by the register) and also have power outlets under the booth seats. The young man working today was very friendly and started to bring my tray out to me in the lobby, but I was already standing near the pick-up area, so he just handed it off to me. He's also the only employee here as far as I can tell, so this must be their slow time of day (I got here about 10:30 am).

I like the interior design, and they have a separate smoking room for their smoking customers. The counter says "modern" on it near the Droptop logo, so I think they're striving for a clean, modern look in the interior design. The white ceiling and back wall give a clean, open look while the pipes kind of add a unique industrial feel to the place. This used to be a hair salon, so I'm not sure if having the piping exposed is purposeful or not - this is the only Cafe Droptop I've ever seen in Korea.

the back wall

view of the interior from my seat in the corner

interior from another angle

As far as drink offerings and prices, they're pretty typical of Korean coffee shops. Prices range from 3000 won for an Americano to 5600 won for a cafe mocha. They also offer a selection of teas and hot chocolate drinks. For food, they have sandwiches, breads, "cheese balls," and some desserts. Prices on these are between 3500 won and 6000 won mostly. I'm hesitant to try any of the breads since they tend to be sweet in Korea, even if they're a cheese bread or garlic bread of some sort.

display case

They also offer sets for desserts w/ coffees and sandwiches with coffees.

sandwich specials

They also seem to have a daily special during the week. Today's Wednesday, so the special is a macaroon brownie and 2 cups of Americano coffee for 9000 won.

So what did I try on my first venture to Cafe Droptop? Well, I saw the Oreo brownie and it was all over (I hadn't eaten yet today, so it looked especially delicious).

Oreo brownie or sin on a plate

It looks like it would be super sweet or rich, but it's not. It's really no sweeter than a regular brownie. And it has crumbled up bits of real Oreo on top - not the Korean Oreo-wannabes.
And for my drink I got a cafe mocha with no whip cream.

cafe mocha w/ "no whipping"

Overall, I think this coffee shop is pretty nice. I'll have to check out their oven chicken breast sometime and post it along with some other drinks.

Update June 2nd
I recently decided to stop in for a pretzel for a snack at Droptop, and I will not be doing that ever again.

That orange....stuff on the left is the cheese. It was pretty gross. The pretzel on the right was a pepperoni pretzel. The pretzel was barely lukewarm. So yeah, I don't really recommend the pretzels here, but the desserts are decent.

A Twosome Place

Now open 24 hours!!

A Twosome Place is quickly becoming one of my favorite coffee shops in the area (granted, as long as a place has coffee, I'll love it).

Located across from Yeongtong Kinex and KFC, it's a short walk from my place and not off the beaten path.

Mappity map map
The prices are higher than most (around 3500 - 6500 won for coffees) and they're more known for desserts than anything else.

They do, however, also offer a selection of sandwiches, pastries, coffee, and tea. During the holiday, they offer two Christmas latte flavors: Dark Cherry Latte and Toffee Nut Latte. The Dark Cherry Latte (top) is a black cherry flavor and offers a unique flavor. The Toffee Nut Latte (bottom) has toffee chips on top of the whip cream and offers a sweet, rich toffee flavor.

They are now open 24 hours a day, so you can stop in for a coffee anytime. The breakfast selection of pastries is pretty good. I've only tried the scones, but they're quite good when heated up; however, they can be dry if eaten cold. The sandwiches are a nice size and not priced too terribly bad considering how expensive some ingredients can be in Korea.

This is the Porcini Mushroom & Bacon sandwich. I'm not a big bacon fan, but they got the bacon done enough for me. I'm not sure what kind of sauce is on it, but it has carmelized onions and lettuce on what appears to be ciabatta.

The interior is deceptively spacious if you judge by the front of the store. They also offer a patio outside where you can sit when the weather is nice. They also offer Wi-Fi and multiple power outlets throughout the shop.

April, 2011
Thought I'd update this with a few more pics since I go here so often (almost every day). Also, I don't have a picture of it, but the Herb Chicken Salad is really quite good. They also have a new tomato & mozzarella sandwich that I was really looking forward to...it wasn't bad, but I picked off the ham, blegh.
So, here are some new cheesecake pics!

I think this is the Oreo cheesecake, but I can't remember

I think this is the New York cheesecake

And we'll throw in a chocolate chip muffin while we're at it

Update: 12/19/2012
So, A Twosome Place started selling hot chicken quesadillas and beef bulgogi quesadillas recently as part of a "Mecsican" menu *facepalm*. I want to tell them that "Mexican" is misspelled on the sign, but then what would I laugh at?

So, I'm off work today and was hungry when I came in for a coffee and blogging, so I thought I'd try the chicken quesadilla.

Not bad, surprisingly
The quesadillas are a bit expensive at around 7000 won, but I've come to expect it in Korea. The chicken quesadilla has pieces of chicken, cheese, peppers, and black beans inside what seems to be maybe a wheat tortilla. It could just be a flour tortilla, bt the coloring and texture seemed more like a wheat tortilla. They also sprinkle some paprika on top. It wasn't bad - I was pleasantly surprised. So, if you have a hankering for something even remotely Tex-Mex and can't get to Seoul, stop in and stave off the Mexican food cravings with a quesadilla at A Twosome Place.

Oh! Before I forget, they've also started offering recently a "Max Size" for iced drinks. This is basically the same size (and price) and a venti from Starbucks. It's nice to have another option, though.

Cafe Pascucci

I suppose it's only fitting that the first coffee shop I mention is Cafe Pascucci. I frequent this place at least a couple of times a week typically, which is attested to by my current mayorship on Four Square (when I remember to check in), lol.

One of the great things about Cafe Pascucci is that it opens at 7a.m. - practically unheard of for coffee shops in Korea. The location by the Yeongtong Park bus stop is also quite convenient since it's the most prominent bus stop in Yeongtong.

Oooh, a shiny new map!
The employees are friendly, helpful, and several of them speak English. Prices on coffee aren't too bad and are comparable to most franchised coffee shops in Korea and range from about 3000 won to 5500 won. They also have a special in the early morning on Americanos (half price, maybe?). They also have a small selection of sandwiches and pastries. They aren't bad, but the sandwiches are kind of small and are really more of a snack. The scones are dry unless freshly heated, but not bad. One of my favorites, though, is It's My Brownie - a walnut brownie. There is also a selection of bottled water and juices available.

The atmosphere is cozy (complete with Wi-Fi), but they tend to rearrange frequently. The chairs aren't too uncomfortable, and there's a small Book Cafe section with chairs that are more comfortable.

A Hazelnut Latte with It's My Brownie - breakfast of champions. Champions of what, though, I'm not so sure...