Are you are looking for a super photogenic and cozy place where to enjoy your coffee in Seoul? There is no better option than the Line Friends Café & Store at Itaewon. Check my review and learn which of their coffees was the best in my life.
Greetings from Katie
Hello, my dear readers. This time, I am sending you a postcard from the Line Friends Café & Store in Seoul, Korea.
It was already our fourth day in Korea and unfortunately, the weather was too bad to wander around the city. Luckily, similarly to Japan, Korea is also full of themed cafes and restaurants. And because we really enjoyed them in Tokyo, we decided to visit one in Seoul as well. Originally, we were heading to the Blind Alley Racoon Cafe. But on the way, we completely randomly found this amazing looking Line Friends Café and decided we have to give it a try.
The miraculous world of the Line Friends
I was familiar with the Line Friends characters from the stickers in the LINE mobile app, which I used to use in Tokyo, but I never really paid a special attention to them. However, it seems someone has done the branding well. Brown (the big Brown bear), Cony (the white she-rabbit), James (the blonde long-haired narcissist boy) and the others really make you feel they are lively characters living in a colorful world full of adventures (inside your cell phone). Same applies to all the effort put into the design of the store and all the merchandise. Even though I am not a fan, I was overwhelmed by the cuteness of the soft toys and I felt like being back in the childhood.
The photoshoot paradise called Line Friends Café & Store
The Line Friends Café & Store we visited is located at the Itaewon station in Soul and it completely occupies a 3-floored building. As we have learned later, it is not the only one, but it is considered the largest amongst all the Line Friends stores around the World!
The first two floors belong to the store. On the first one, you can buy toys, electronics and stationeries, in the second one themed fashion and accessories. The great asset of the Line Friends Café & Store is that each corner is really cute and extremely photogenic. Most of them basically have no other purpose than serving as a photo spot. I have seen lots of people just wandering around actually not buy anything, just enjoying the design and taking photos. The number one spot is definitely on the first floor, where you often have to queue to take a pic with a more than 3 meters tall Brown by the entrance!
The third floor, where you find the actual Line Friends Café, is no exception. Again, you find a lot of precisely designed photo spots with big cute Line characters in different situations waiting for your camera. But more importantly, you find there a really cozy and quite a spacy cafe, where you can take a rest and enjoy some drinks or snacks.
(Probably) The best coffee of my life
I am a big coffee lover and there was an autumn special coffee edition, so you would not need to ask me twice! I chose a Marple Maroon Latte with whipped cream for 4500 won. The coffee was so delicious! It indeed looked great, but the taste was most likely the best I have ever tried. Also, it perfectly fits into the autumn atmosphere (it was a foggy day). Honestly, drinking coffee in such a cozy, beautiful and warm place and looking out the window and watching the autumn city, I could have hardly imagined a better way to chill during or stay in Seoul.
Of course, you can enjoy the atmosphere with standard coffee (from 3000 to 6000 won) as well. As Christmas is coming (and I still hardly realize it here in Asia), there is also marple apple punch and also other non-coffee drinks and tea for about 5000 won.
And the Line snacks are great too!
If you want to have some bite to accompany your coffee, there is quite a nice variety of them prepared as well. Basically, almost everything sold at the Line Friends Café is related in some way to the Line characters. You get snacks as cupcakes (6500 won), roll cake (4500 w
The highlight of my stay in Seoul
Despite not being originally on my list, I must admit the visit in the Line Friends Café definitely belongs to the highlights of my stay in Korea. Great coffee and snacks, precise design and cozy atmosphere assure you will really enjoy your time there. How do you like the Line Friends Café & Store in Seoul? And would you have any other recommendations for great themed cafes and restaurants? Let me know in the comments section.
How to get there
Take exit 3 from the Itaewon station and walk straight. Within less than 5 minutes, you will find a large building decorated with Line characters on your right.
Budget
There is no entrance fee, so you can easily look around all the 3 floors for free. If you want to stay longer and enjoy some refreshment, depending on your order, it will cost you usually around 3000 – 7000 won.
Summary
Name: Line Friends Store & Café
Address: 200 Itaewon-or, Itaewon-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, South Korea
Admission: Free entrance, you only need to pay what you eat or drink
Access: Take exit 3 from the Itaewon station an walk for about 5 minutes.
Hours: 11:30 AM – 10:00 PM (Sun-Wed), 11:30am- 11:00pm (Thurs – Sat)
Web: www.linefriends.com
Love, Katie
