Coffee Shops in Korea

Korea has become a coffee-loving country; you can find coffee shops in every street. There are even coffee shops at the entrances to National Parks. This means you can find Koreans hiking, while enjoying their Americano.

Americano is the most popular coffee for Koreans. It is made by adding water to an espresso shot (the ratio is somewhere around 5:1 water:coffee). The Americano is served hot or cold. During the summer Ice Americano is the best choice.

Coffee shops offer a variety of drinks and snacks. Next to coffee you can order tea (black tea, green tea), iced tea (blueberry, peach,...), different types of lattes (café latte, green tea latte, sweet potato latte, ...), milk shakes (mint choco, white choco,...), frappes, bubble tea and many more.

Cappuccino and a strawberry waffle

Sweet potato latte (고구마 라떼)

Coffee Affogato (아포가토)

Green Tea Latte

Frappuccino, Iced Green Tea Latte and Yuja-Frappé (Lemon)

Ice Café Latte

Coffee to go

Some coffee shops offer sweet buns for eating or waffles; of course you can always have a piece of cake or a cookie. In the summer, Patbingsu (팥빙수) is a popular dish among Koreans and best shared in groups. Most of the time these groups consists only of girls or a couple shares it. I heard from my Korean friends that you rarely see guys eating Patbingsu together.
The basic ingredient in Patbingsu is shaved ice. The toppings can differ; normally one coffee shops offers a variety of Patbingsu. Typical toppings are ice cream, frozen yogurt, sweet red beans, sweetened condensed milk, fruits, cereal flakes and tteok (rice cake). If you have to opportunity to try Patbingsu, please don't miss it. It's totally refreshing in the hot and humid summer months (´ ▽｀).。ｏ♡

Strawberry Coconut Patbingsu (three people ate this)

In Korea you are not obliged to order something in a coffee shop. Nobody will look at you in a disapproving way, if you just sit there and drink your own bottle of lemonade and take a rest. This makes it convenient for travellers, who just want to use the shop's WIFI (⌒.−)＝★

Once Koreans enter a coffee shop they usually first search for a free table to sit at. They will put their bags on a chair and leave to order some coffee at the counter. They leave their bags totally unattended! You can also see this in the cafeterias on campus or at restaurants with self service. The crime rate in Korea is one of the lowest world wide; nothing happens with your stuff here. I heard from my friends and read on the Internet, that Koreans also behave like this in other countries... I also started to adapt this habit. I have to get rid of it again once I am back in Germany. Otherwise my bag will be gone very quickly ^^;;;

One thing that annoys me sometime is the time the staff needs to prepare your order. In German coffee shops you have your coffee within one or two minutes and can leave. In Korea it can take up to five or more minutes; when ordering food it's even more.
Five minutes isn't a lot? It is if you are standing in a small waiting space, waiting for your coffee, while Koreans push you around, because they want to get to the counter...