[Walking Through Seoul] Seoul, the "City of Coffee": Its History and Hidden Side

Tea Rooms Frequented by Writers and Intellectuals in the Colonial Era:
A Symbol of Emerging Urban Culture
Dabang Coffee Trends During 1960s Urbanization
Cafes Replace Disappearing Tea Rooms in the 1990s
Hot Spots Lead the Way in the 2010s,
Commercializing Newtro Sensibility
A Surge of Real Estate Investors
Cafes Become Pioneers of Gentrification

Not long ago, I was asked what comes to mind when I think of Seoul. After a moment's thought, I answered "coffee." Delicious coffee can be found everywhere, and cafes ranging from neighborhood spots to large corporate chains are popular. While there are differences in taste among cafes, it is hard to find one that tastes bad. Judging by the number of cafes, the quality of coffee, and consumption volume, Seoul has quietly become a global "city of coffee."

There are some questions, though. Seoul neither produces coffee nor traditionally had a coffee-drinking culture, so how and why did it become a "city of coffee"? Coffee entered Korea in the late 19th century along with imperialism. Emperor Gojong liked coffee and often enjoyed it at Jeonggwanheon in Deoksugung Palace. Western food culture was introduced mainly through hotels, but the cafe culture popular in Japan at the time took root on the streets under the name "dabang" (tea room). The famous "Jebi Dabang," run by poet and novelist Yi Sang in the 1930s, gained renown. Around that time, coffee and dabang were places mainly frequented by writers and intellectuals, symbolizing the newly forming urban culture.

Even during the Korean War after liberation, the cultural image of coffee and dabang was maintained. As the economy rapidly grew and urbanization progressed swiftly, coffee began to become popularized. As cities expanded, there was a need for places to meet comfortably, but above all, coffee symbolized the 1960s Korean social catchphrase "Let's live well." Going to a dabang to drink coffee was read as a sign of success. The instant coffee known today as "dabang coffee" also became a popular gift item starting from this period.

As dabangs increased, differentiation occurred. There were places for a quick rest, spots for long conversations, dating venues for couples, and culturally sensitive classical music dabangs, among various types. Some places had female employees sitting next to male customers to entertain them. Rapid urbanization caused severe housing shortages, and many households had more than one family living together. People gradually began to meet outside their homes, and dabangs became beloved social venues within the city. The more the urban population grew, the greater the demand for dabangs.

The surge in dabangs is also related to Korea's economic structure. As the consumer population concentrated in cities, the number of self-employed people increased. Korea's self-employment rate is 23.5%, ranking 8th among 38 OECD countries. Although still high today, it was even higher in the past. The increase in dabangs was influenced by coffee's image and urban lifestyle, but on the other hand, compared to restaurants or bars, dabangs required relatively low investment costs, making them attractive business items for self-employed people at the time.

Seochon Street in Seoul, where cafes are located. Photo by Younghan Heo younghan@

Entering the 1990s, dabangs began to disappear. Urban population peaked, and growth reached its limit. As living standards rose, people's tastes became more sophisticated, and dabangs were considered "old-fashioned." Cafes replaced the disappearing dabangs. The market was limited, and competition grew fiercer. Coffee taste alone could not guarantee success. Success depended on interior design and atmosphere. Before mobile phones became widespread, during the so-called "beeper era," places with telephones at each table were popular. It was hard to find espresso-based cappuccinos or lattes; mild hazelnut coffee was the clear favorite. After the IMF crisis and into the 2000s, coffee chains gained dominance, and competition intensified further. Cafes were no longer a guaranteed thriving business.

In the late 2000s, cafes faced a new turning point. Customers who opened their wallets to enjoy so-called "lifestyle" wanted better and more special coffee. Unlike before, when success could be based mainly on atmosphere rather than taste, taste became increasingly important. From the early 2010s, small cafes skilled in hand drip coffee, cafes with excellent cappuccino foam art, and famous pop-up cafes gained popularity through SNS. At the same time, a "newtro" sensibility emerged, viewing old things with fresh eyes. Cozy hanok (traditional Korean houses), rough warehouses, charming Japanese-style or Western-style houses in old urban areas?spaces rarely encountered in daily life?began to trend. As this trend spread rapidly, cafes had to consider atmosphere again. Investment costs for starting and running cafes also increased steadily.

The so-called "newtro cafes" popular in the 2010s satisfied the public's desire to find unfamiliar spaces through SNS but also became the vanguard of commercial gentrification. This phenomenon, which appeared in London and New York from the late 20th century, began to appear in Seoul as well. Many of the "hot places" famous for cafes in Seoul were originally residential neighborhoods.

To commercially utilize newtro sensibility, there must be areas with old buildings that can be remodeled. Seoul's Gangbuk area was exactly such a place. Although startup costs are not cheap, they are still lower than those for restaurants or bars. For this reason, cafes often open first in old neighborhoods in Gangbuk. Once a few newtro-style cafes establish themselves, the area gains attention through SNS, attracting people and triggering commercial gentrification. What used to happen naturally now often occurs intensively in one area, showing a pattern of "cafe investment." Investors open multiple cafes to make an area a "hot place," then profit from key money or real estate sales after success. Cafes that add value to real estate fulfill their role and then fade away. Investors' attention shifts to the next target area, shortening cafes' lifespans.

Today, Seoul's rise as a global "city of coffee" cannot be explained by entrepreneurs' creativity and love for coffee alone. Real estate is a major investment product influencing the Korean economy, and many cafes are business items for this purpose. Perhaps because of this, visiting cafes considered hot places recently gives a subtle sense of insincerity. Thoughts about those displaced from these places and the feeling that these cafes will not last long are not very pleasant.

Robert Fauzer, Former Professor at Seoul National University