Hannam Food Diary: What We Loved (and Didn’t)

Explore the neighborhood of Hannam in Seoul with me, as I take my mom and sister around some delicious locations in Seoul! We took a half day exploring in Hannam today to visit the new location of one of my favorite cafes, while discovering new foods along the way. From viral Baskin Robbins 10 Mini Ice Cream to celebrity-favorite Korean Rotisserie Chicken, here’s everything we loved (and didn’t) about the foods we tried in Hannam!

Exploring Hannam-dong Cafes and Foods

I’m back in Seoul, Korea, and this time, I’m taking my mom and my sister around some of my favorite places I got to try last time. From street foods at Gwangjang Market to some deliciously unique must-try restaurants in Gangnam, we are revisiting old spots, and discovering new ones as we go!

Today, we’re exploring one of the most stylish neighborhoods in the city – Hannam. Often described as the Beverly Hill of Seoul, Hannam-dong is Seoul’s quiet, but artistic home for many celebrities. The cafes and shops here are smaller, more modern, and definitely gives off a more chic, quieter vibe compared to Seongsu-dong. The area is super walkable, calm, and packed with all the trendy boutiques and lifestyle stores that you would want to browse. 

Tiramisu – Concure Hannam

We took a little break from exploring the area with a little cake and coffee break at Concure Hannam. This trendy-looking cafe is on a street full of different cafes. But, it has tons of open seating both inside and out, making it a great option to slip in for a quick coffee break.

They’re actually known for their variety of flavors for tiramisu, like strawberry, chestnut, biscotti and more. So we picked up their original tiramisu (8000 won) as well as the pistachio (9000 won). Both were deliciously creamy. The pistachio one is covered with nuts on top, giving it a little more of a crunch. Each dessert also comes with an illustrated card explaining the layers. They also have a range of teas, juices, and coffees to choose from in their drink menu.

They’re open daily from 12 PM to 9:30 PM. Inside the store, there’s also a little booth for their home goods like candles and fragrance. If you’re walking around in Hannam and you’re just looking for a place to sit, relax, and have a little drink or dessert, stop by Concure for a quick tiramisu!

Seoul Exclusive Cold Brew – Birch Coffee

The real reason why we came Hannam is actually for Birch Coffee. This was one of my favorite cafes on my last trip while cafe-hopping in Seoul. They were previously in the Seongsu-dong area, but shortly after I visited, relocated to Hannam. Since the last time I visited, I really want to bring my mom to Birch Coffee!

Unlike many cafes in Seoul, Birch isn’t known for their flashy interior design. Instead, they focus on incredibly good food, coffee, and dessert. If you come here, you have to try their Seoul Exclusive Birch Brew (6000 won). Truly one of the best cold brews that you will ever have in your life. This is a nutty, deep cold brew that’s served with their homemade sweet cream. It’s not as acidic as some cold brew can get, and mixed with the cream is the perfect amount of sweetness.

This cafe easily had one of our favorite drinks and sweets on this entire trip. In fact, it was just as good as the last time we tried, at the old location. So, it was so worth traveling to a brand new neighborhood just to visit. I’m so glad I got to show my mom and sister this cafe that Dom and I both fell in love with!

Korean Roast Chicken – 한남동한방통닭

Next door to Birch Coffee is Hannam Herbal Roast Chicken 한남동한방통닭. This restaurant specializes in Korean-style wood-fired herbal rotisserie chicken. You can literally smell them from blocks away. Walking in, you’ll see rows and rows of chicken grilling on their rotating split. If you’ve been here a while, you can probably tell that I am obsessed with chicken. I seriously wish more people talked about Korean herbal roasted chicken 한방통닭 because wow, this might be one of my newest obsession. 

At 22,000 won each, you get a whole roasted chicken marinated in medicinal herbs, packed with all sorts of goodies, and slow roasted over a wood fire. The moment it arrives at your table, the aromatic hits you all at once. The chicken is incredibly moist with the perfectly crispy golden skin, and the meat literally falls off the bone.

Inside the chicken, you’ll find sticky rice with ginseng, jujubes, garlic, and ginko nuts that’s already soaked up all the chicken juices, making every bite so savory, so rich, and so comforting. It’s the most fragrant, cozy dish with so much depth from their traditional herbs and spices. Paired with a bite of bright kimchi, we couldn’t resist one bite after another.

This chicken was so good, we ordered another one last minute. It’s absolutely a 9/10 meal! I normally hate waiting in line, but this restaurant was definitely worth the 90 minute wait. Pro tip: put your name down on the waiting list here first. Then, head upstairs to grab a coffee at Birch Coffee right next door. They will call you when your table is ready. This way you can stay warm and cozy and don’t have to stand outside in the cold at all. 

10 Mini – Baskin Robbins

You might ask “Tiffy, Baskin Robbin’s is literally all over Canada and the US, why are you coming to Korea for Baskin Robbin’s?” If you didn’t know, Baskin Robbins Korea is actually super viral in Asia. Whether it’s their unique ice cream cake designs, like the 27 cube ice cream cake, or their 100-flavor stores, or their wide variety of creative Korea-only flavors, Baskin Robbins Korea has a ton to explore.

Today, we’re trying the viral 10 mini, a bowl of 10 flavors of mini-scoops. It’s honestly the best way to experience some of their vast arrays of flavors at once. We really wanted to try some of the new flavors we’ve never seen before. We had a few of their super viral flavors, as well as classic ones, including:

• Shooting Star: Blueberry Vanilla with popping candy
• Chocolate Forest: Green Tea and Chocolate with chocolate balls
• My Mom is An Alien AKA Puss in Boots: Milk and Dark Chocolate with White Mousse and chocolate balls
• Rainbow Sherbet: Swirl of Pineapple, Raspberry, and Orange Sherbet
• Ice Hotteok: Hotteok with mixed nuts

Honestly, I was not a fan. Perhaps the flavors were a little too wild for me, or maybe it was the fact that they get a little mixed together with all 10. But, if you’re curious about all these fun Korea-only flavors, it’s worth a taste test for yourself when you visit Seoul!

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