*Buckle up your seat belts because this post is super long*
Hongdae feels very much like PJ but all of the exciting places to be concentrated into one single area. When you walk around, you get to see a lot of interesting things, such as the iconic father-son couple on the outer wall of a building. We also passed by this interesting cafe while we were on our way to a Harry Potter Cafe.
King's Cross Platform 9 3/4
This is probably the biggest Harry Potter-themed cafe in Korea and they tend to be a little out of social media so it's hard to get official information or the actual social media accounts. Majority of the information that I could get off-site are from other bloggers. I've listed down things you can do, eat, drink or see here. They consist of 5 public levels [B1 - 4] and 2 off-limit levels [5-6].
More photos of what they sell available in this blog post:
ÅLAND
ÅLAND (Awh-land) is similar to our Isetan or Robinson but they focus a lot on introducing new designers by "unearthing emerging designers and subcultures to make their value stand out, delivering them in the most compelling ways, and always keeping it fresh." It was established in 2005 and now they've accumulated hundreds of brands, even opening stores in Hong Kong.
Their items range from clothes, shoes, accessories, bags, wallets, lifestyle items and beauty products. When we walked into this particular store, we were greeted by leather bags, wallets and a lot of clothes.
There are so many tee shirts and socks here too, which really wasn't what I was expecting because I thought they would have a layout like Isetan or something similar. Everything here ranges from really casual to formal clothing.
Even the hanger wardrobe section looks pretty cool whilst a little hipster.
I saw a door near the hanging wardrobe section and walked out to see that there is more than one level of clothing for sale.
There is this corridor between the store I just walked out of and then a door to another similar-sized store which I'll show you right after this corridor. It leads you to the streets but they laid out so many clothes that are either last-chance or on sale.
Through another door, we are greeted by an overwhelming wave of beauty products.
They have so many brands that I've never heard of and I was excited to try it out but, before I even saw the price tag, I wasn't really impressed by most of the makeup products here... or perhaps it was because they were oxidized.
However, I do recognize two brands: COSRX and Heimish.
Their prices are the same as the official ones but they had sales going on so 👀
Their prices are the same as the official ones but they had sales going on so 👀
They also had a Buy 4 for A Discount event for this All Clean Balm. I highly recommend this and it works wonder while also cheaper than Banila Co. Of course, if you want to try it out, you can buy one set of 4 and share the promotion with your friends.
After ÅLAND, we walked into the main streets and passed by this really interesting looking restaurant. It's called Manman Kokoro (만먼 코코로) if you're curious about their menu, you can see it from here too.
It's very, very close by to the King Cross cafe so you can navigate from there if it's convenient for you. We didn't walk in and we walked into the streets to get into the centre of this part of the Hongdae district.
There are many interesting stalls already but one thing that I really noticed is that there are so many Tang Hu Lu stalls. These are very popular among Mainlanders and it's kind of a Chinese traditional dessert where a stick of strawberries will be covered in sugar. The sugar layer will also turn crispy (or sticky) as it cools down. You can find them here in Malaysia but I'd totally understand why there are so many of these stalls.
It's mainly because S.Korea has high supplies for strawberries and there are many Mainlander tourists coming to Korea all year around.
As we kept walking, we found the store that my travelling partner wanted to visit.
ShiGongGan 시공간 (時空間) : No 2 Store
It's an accessory store that has an interesting concept where you'd feel like you're lost in another time-space and surrounded by tons of accessories. I wrote a blog about this store and also put up lots of photos of what they sell or what sort of price range that they're selling so that you can have an idea before coming to this place to shop.
More photos of what they sell available in this blog post:
There are two branches in Hongdae and you can find this one on the same row as Lush. So, you can navigate from Lush if you are able to locate it. If not, you can try locating Lush from Banila Co. or this other building that I'm not sure what store it is.
The Lush here isn't as big as the one in Myongdong but they should have every classic product here. I didn't walk in because we didn't have this in our schedule and I'm pretty sure I'll stay inside for at least 30-60mins.
There are plenty more shops here and honestly, with what I've shown you so far, I wouldn't even call this half of Hongdae? Perhaps it didn't felt like that for me because I've also ventured into another Hongdae area which felt bigger and I think I've only explored a small part of that area.
By the way, this place is filled with lots of psychic mediums who do tarot reading.
They are everywhere and the pricings are around KRW10000 per session.
If you're not interested in that, maybe you would be interested in Korean BBQ?
Meat-ing Buffet
미팅 고기뷔페
Store info, location and directions: here
Ample seats and as usual, don't come during peak hours because this place is considered to be one of the most affordable places for BBQ. Everything is self-serviced and you have to take your own utensils, plates, cups, meats and everything else from the back.
Oh, they also have a second floor which is most probably for dinner time.
Their pricing is KRW 12500 for lunchtime between 10:30am to 4pm and then dinner time would be KRW 13900 between 4pm to 12am. For kids, the price should be KRW 8500.
They also have a side menu in case you want extra stuff for your meal. At the same time, they want you to use the same plate for the refills. A little bit upsetting when I read this because it's almost like they wanted to save cost or just doesn't want to wash extra plates but then I decided to see it the other way. Which is to see it as saving the environment from water pollution and overconsumption by not washing extra plates.
They have plenty of meat available for you to choose from, mainly pork and beef.
You can grab as many as you want but make sure you can finish them.
Side dishes and rice are available too but I didn't have a great experience with the side dish as the staffs do take a very long while to restock them.
I was also very disappointed by the vinegar onion because they didn't pickle it earlier. They just dumped the cut onions into the previously used vinegar solution and called it a day. That also kinda ruined my appetite so I didn't get to eat a lot that day.
Moving on! I also went out to find this store that I've been eyeing on for a really long time. It's called Stonebrick and they make makeup products while incorporating toy brick concept into them.
Stonebrick
Stonebrick makes playful makeup products that do not just focus on everyday colours. They also come out with experimental colours and exquisite packaging that can also be functional if you know how to use it in ways that aren't just displaying on a flat surface.
More photos of what they sell available in this blog post:
After that, we walked across the street because that's where the other half of Hongdae would be. It can get a little confusing but I'm sure you'll feel familiarized with this area after walking between these two sizes for 2-3 times.
In this part of Hongdae, you will see more street performances. They usually get really hyped up at night but there were also performances during the day. I have a feeling that all of these for students and they do this for side money or further their exposure to the public.
Dancing is one of the most popular performances here.
That, and so is singing. It ranges from solo acoustic, rapping to a band.
You can even find young performers debuting here at a very young age.
Take this girl for an instant, she's very good at dancing but during this round, she accidentally flipped her shoe off her left foot. One of the dudes helped her to pick it up and just passed it to her as though s
More restaurants can be found here but we walked passed it because there's a cafe that we planned to visit right after this.
Quick selfie before we look at the cafe.
Mint Heim
Mint Heim, like its name, serves food that has mint in them. I personally like the beverage but I think that non-sweet toothers will not like their cake. I liked it though, it was pretty decent and tasted better than I expected but I am personally not a choco-mint fan.
3CE Flagship Store - Hongdae
Stylenanda Pink Pool Café Flagship Store in Hongdae.
This is a really hugeeeee store. The first thing we noticed was a queue on our right when we walked in. Turns out, there was a photo booth machine. We lined up and got our photos taken immediately. One thing though, the photo booth is really small and I honestly suggest you coordinate with whoever you're taking photos on the inside because things can get a little messy.
I personally didn't like the outcome because the quality is really blurry and space, my god. It's either I block her or she blocks me. (Technically, we can share half/half of the frame but ... 🙄)
Moving on, the shopping area!
(Btw, I don't see any no-photo rules so I went ahead to snap photos)
I thought the Maison Kitsune season was over but apparently, they still have it around.
They have plenty of their items on shelves. I'm pretty sure they are displaying every single beauty products that they're selling in this store since it's a flagship.
I'm just gonna let the pictures do the talking because I technically didn't bother to do research on their product. This brand is like a see-see-and-go for me. It didn't attract me a lot but I do like the way they designed the building and have their products displayed. Besides, I can show you what's in store too.
They also have their clothing line here, second floor and third floor as well.
That's all for the first floor. Let's go to the second floor.
Third floor here we go!
Okay so these are the fliers found on their wall. They looked really interesting to me, especially the strawberry desserts.
They also have fliers about delivery services and tax rebate.
You can get their tax refunding through a kiosk on the third floor. The cafe is at the fourth floor but we couldn't find the entrance and I was lazy so we went to the opposite store and had fun instead.
When I first walked in, I was like, did we walked into the wrong store?? Everything was so different from the outside and it was pretty overwhelming to see this sight so I was a little confused but yes, we were in the right store. This should be the Basement level where they focused on their '-5kg' range.
Walking down the staircase might require some precautions.
Look at all these genes. I didn't have the mood to try them but I kinda regret now. I'll do it the next time maybe.
By the way, this place has an elevator! Great news for a tired walker like me >w<
Level 1: CHUU Clothes
This floor focuses on a lot of cute clothing that caters to people who likes to look younger and more active. I like these clothes but I'm pretty sure they don't fit me >m<
Definitely can find some accessories, hats and shoes here.
There's also PEKO merchandises!
I actually grabbed one of the mirrors for video purposes >w<
These are pretty much what's available in the first floor.
Level 2: Clothes and Lingerie
In this floor, they mostly cater to young adult women, serving them adult necessities like undergarments and everyday clothes to fit their sophisticated genre.
They can also find other things that may be helpful to boost their confidence such as makeup products, skincare products and even slimming cream.
Level 3: Fanfanchuu Airport
Fanfanchuu is that cute little duck that you're seeing in all these pictures now. They called this an airport but you will see why in a bit. In this floor, you can find many cute accessories that mainly focuses on fanfanchuu.
Look at this cute luggageeeeeeeeeeee!
You can also find dog's clothing here like wuuut
They also have beauty products with fanfanchu on ittttttt >w<
That hooded dress looked too long for me so I'm just gonna move away and look into the phone case section. They mainly cater to iPhone 6/7 users.
Now here's the airport part! You can find a balloon fanfanchuu here at the 'exit' from the third floor. It's very near where the escalator is.
Then, you can also pose by the plane cut-out decor that has fanfanchuu on it.
So cute lah!
Compulsory mirror seflie since I didn't take a photo by the plane cut-out.
To my surprise, I've actually grabbed something from this store and did not leave empty-handed as I thought I would. Since every floor has a cashier, there was no need for me to go back to Level 1 or basement to check out.
So, I've bought two brooches, one passport holder and a mirror. It's not a lot of stuff but they can be a little pricey so I restricted myself to just within KRW 30000. I forgot if the tax refund is immediate or not but they do have that service. I just really don't remember if it's on the spot or through airport kiosk.
Okay, okay. So, we thought we're just gonna leave this area and go somewhere else right? Then I saw the dog cafe!!!!!!!!!!!! A FREAKIN DOG CAFEEEEEEEEEEE. This is also the one that Aurelia Atelier founder went to. I just- I immediately went in and didn't bother how much I have to pay. (Well, actually I do. Like, anything above KRW 10000 is out of my list.)
Cloud with Sky Dog Cafe
There are so many fluffy dogs!!!!!! Samoyeds, malamutes, corgis and other amazingly cute and fluffy dogs! The entrance fee is basically purchasing a beverage and you can sit there for as long as you like. Just simply enjoy your drinks while you play with the dogs >w< What a heaven. However, do not expect great customer services and toilet cleanliness 💬 I get that they are very tensed since they need to take care of multiple dogs but it really doesn't kill to smile more. Also the toilet was... ew. That's all I can say.
More photos of what they sell available in this blog post:
Hongik Univ. Station Ex:t Mall
3F. Yanghwa-ro 161. Mapo-gu.
+82 02 2250 7788 | 11am - 10:30pm
I thought it was a bigger store but when I look at the price tags and designs, I kinda have this surprise where I would've thought that the store should be smaller, like the size of Wanderlust + Co stall in 1Utama. I was pretty amazed by their number of designs too.
Excuse the orangeness but that's what the lighting did to my camera hahah. Look at themmmm, so prettyyyyy. I also bought something here due to a 30% discount.
It's a pair of their dangling star earrings called Star Drop Earrings at the price of KRW19600 after 30% discount. The original price was KRW28000.
Like, if you want to see my full haul, you can check it out here.
We also went downstairs to look around.
Didn't see much because I was superbly tired from all the walking.
Then, we saw a photo printing machine!!!!!
Luckily I posted by photos on IG already.
Basically just select your desired photos and other options, insert cash and get your photos printed. It's as easy as that. The photo quality is not bad too!
I'm pretty happy with how it came out, albeit it didn't capture my full 'article' 😂
Last stop before we end this post:
BUTTER
It's like Kaison and IKEA had a baby... but not really.
They sell all sorts of things here and because there are too many things and too many pictures, I had to make a separate post about it. Click the button below to feel amused by what's available in BUTTER.
More photos of what they sell available in this blog post:
Phew. That is pretty much my experience in Hongdae. I know in my previous postings, I mentioned that I only went to Ewha as a university district. I know Hongdae is another uni district but it really didn't feel like that to me since the majority of the things here are as pricy as Myeongdong. However, the things here are definitely more exciting than the other shopping districts that I've been to.
So, yeah!
That's all for this post!
Do check out my other posts!
You may find them helpful :D
Korea 2019 Directory
Hapjeong - (Read)
- Mapo Mandu (Read)
- The Recorder Store (Read)
Hongdae - (26.7)
- Sigonggan Accessory (Read)
- Stonebrick (Read)
- Butter (Read)
- King's Cross (Read)
Ewha - (Read)
- Eros Fortune Telling Cafe (Read)
- Woono Accessory (Read)
Itaewon - (Read)
- Line Friends (Read)
Gyeongbokgung - (Read)
Dongdaemun - (29.7)
- Shake Shack (Read)
COEX Mall - (Read)
Myeongdong - (27.7)
Airbnb - (30.7)
Others
Others
![Korea 2019| Hongdae [3CE PinkPoolCafe, CHUU, King's Cross Cafe, Sigongan, ÅLAND, Dog Cafe, Noo-noo Fingers, BUTTER, MEAT-IN]](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbMnV-xEyVUaOH_sUL6s62ALaReYWeZvQ_wIbGd3A6Dd8JMh_3fYFoSuMcNaN_YX6gmbPN3T_ZvliWRTtHU_eXwUgakuWd393_GV5DsJ7Lzda_rbLhaKWNBBwiwPThuuTt6JB623DthSQ/s72-c/koreahongdae.jpg)
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