Romana and I walked around the Ihwa and Daehakno area of Seoul one evening. We walked along the City Fortress Wall from Dongdaemun and into Ihwa. There we saw a few galleries, art boutiques and drinking places.

We didn’t stop there though; we walked into the Daehakno area famous for playhouses and theatres and a place that students gather. She spotted a coffee shop called Hakrim Dabang (학림다방) which has apparently been around since 1956 so we went up.

It seems to have a lot of cultural history associated with it. A ‘dabang’ is a Korean word for coffee shop or tea house, and has the image of being quite old-timey; a modern coffee shop wouldn’t refer to themselves a dabang. It has a more nuanced meaning to do with a gathering, meeting, and tea place. Wikipedia can explain better!

The vibe is wood, old records and sound systems, books on art and culture and large central booths, and little private area in loft spaces. Very nice place to chill out. The menu has coffee, tea, wine and other kinds of booze.