Cheong Su Dang Bakery • 청수당 베이커리
Cheong Su Dang Bakery (청수당 베이커리) is one of the many popular aesthetic cafes in Ikseon-dong (익선동) that has gone viral on social media since the first time they opened their door to the public. Their iconic entrance of lush bamboo trees around a small pond with stepping stones leading to the entrance of the cafe is probably one of the most popular photo spot around this neighborhood and it has been shared thousands of times on social media. And even if you’ve never seen the pictures of this place online, the beautiful facade of the bakery will definitely make you stop in your tracks or pique your interest at the very least if you happen to walk by this place.
Since their opening in Summer 2020, the bakery has maintained their popularity among the locals as well as tourists which led to their space renewal and expansion last year in July. The beautifully designed space is the work of Glow Seoul, an architecture and design studio that’s responsible for many other popular cafes in South Korea. The current space is a combination of 6 hanoks surrounded with bamboo trees and ponds with calm flowing water, giving patrons a tranquil escape in the middle of the city.
My first visit to Cheong Su Dang Bakery was last year in spring with my cousins (this was 3 months before their expansion). They came pretty early, before the place was even open and immediately got a table when the cafe opened. Maybe because it’s still early and a weekday because usually you’ll need to line up to get a table at this place, especially on the weekends. The cafe has a couple of different indoor and outdoor seating areas—individuals and community tables and table floor seatings—and we picked a table facing the street that’s a little bit hidden between two walls.
Since the dessert portion is pretty big, we decided to order 2 desserts and 2 drinks to share between the three of us.
Stone Drip Egg Coffee (스톤 드립 계란 커피) ₩7,800
Stone drip coffee with fresh egg yolk cream on top, torched crème brûlée style.
스톤 드립 커피 위에 신선한 계란 노른자로 직접 만든 크림을 올려 토치로 마무리한 크램 브륄레(crème brûlée)식 커피.
My cousin ordered this and since I don’t drink coffee, I can’t really give a review on how it tasted. But she said it was pretty good.
Black Sesame Fromage Cake (흑임자 프로마주 케이크) ₩15,000 | 8.5/10
Sponge cake soaked in black sesame, topped with roasted walnut, mascarpone cheese, milk cream, and black sesame powder.
흑임자 베이스를 흠뻑 적신 시트 위에 구운 호두 마스카포네 치즈와 우유크림을 얹은 후 청수당의 현무암을 표현한 스폰지 케이크와 흑임자 가루로 데코한 청수당만의 특별한 디저트.
My favorite out of the two desserts we tried. As a black sesame flavor enthusiast, I really enjoyed this chilled dessert. Moist sponge cake with earthy, not too sweet black sesame flavor. The roasted walnut in the middle was a nice little surprise to the bite.
Strawberry Compote Souffle Castella (딸기 수플레 카스텔라) ₩18,800 | 7/10
Soft and warm made to order soufflé castella with refreshing strawberry compote and fresh milk cream on top.
부드럽고 따뜻한 수플레 카스텔라 위에 상큼한 딸기 콩포트와 신선한 우유크림이 듬뿍 올려진 디저트로 주문과 동시에 만들어지는 오더 메이드 디저트.
Honestly, this one is a bit underwhelming for me (or maybe I was just expecting too much). Not that it didn’t taste good or anything because flavor wise it was good and it was a well-made dessert. I think anybody who likes strawberry or souffle castella would enjoy this dessert. It’s just for their signature menu and considering the price point, it felt a little bit ordinary. Like I’ve tasted these flavors before. Also worth noting, this is a warm dessert.
Is this place worth the hype it has on social media? If what you’re looking for is an aesthetic cafe to take nice pictures at, I’d probably say yes. But with caveat that you know how to take a good shot and to properly edit your pictures because from a photographer’s perspective, the lighting around this place is a bit challenging, especially on a bright sunny day. My suggestion is to go during sunset time or on a cloudy day for a better lighting (less harsh contrast on the shadows and highlights and you can pull more colors out of your shot).
But if what you’re looking for is a nice relaxing place to hangout at, the short answer is probably no, especially if you have to line up for hours for a table. This place is always pretty packed with locals and tourists (I don’t know how it is nowadays but every time I passed by this place in the past it always looked pretty busy) and it can get a little bit noisy when the place is full. The drinks and desserts that I had were also just alright considering the somewhat high price point (although price wise, it’s probably similar to other cafes in the area since cafes in Ikseon-dong are notorious for being on the more expensive side).
My personal take, if you’re really curious to check out the place and experience dining at the bakery then go for it. They do have nice interesting architecture and interior design and their menu is pretty decent. But if you’re traveling, have limited time and have other cool cafes that you want to check out, you can probably just see the cafe from outside and spend your time somewhere else. Would I go back to this place again? If I have friends who are visiting Seoul and they want me to go check the place out with them, then sure, I wouldn’t mind going for their sake. Other reason that might make me want to go back is to check out their new space after the expansion (and only if the place is not busy). But for now, I think I’m pretty content with just visiting this place once.
Cheong Su Dang Bakery • 청수당 베이커리
Address: 서울 종로구 돈화문로11나길 31-9
Telephone: 0507-1318-8215
Hours: Everyday 10:30 - 21:00 (Last Order 20:30)
Instagram: @cheongsudang_
