Why Korean Coffee Culture is Unique and Why you Should Experience it
There are many countries that are famous for their coffee culture, and my country, Italy, is one of these. As an Italian myself. I would have never expected to write an article about coffee culture in Korea. However, this article doesn’t aim to compare different coffee cultures but aims to show you the reason why I think Korea has a very special coffee culture.
It’s definitely not the most famous and discussed aspect of Korean Culture, but I will tell you why I think it’s one of the most interesting and unique one.
If you didn’t know Korean coffee consumption has growth tremendously and, according to the Korean Economic Institute of America, Koreans drink 12.3 cups of coffee per week, with a coffee consumption per capita of 2.3 kg per year.
I like to consider myself a coffee lover. When I was back in Italy, I used to drink at least 3 espressos per day. I know for some of you it could sound unimaginable, but actually, in Italy, it is pretty common to drink this amount every day. However, the reason why I enjoy coffee culture in Korea is completely different. I don’t exaggerate when I say that in Korea everything can be a café. You can find plenty of different types of cafes: animals cafes, flowers cafes, toys cafes, movies cafes and so on.
Why Koreans go to cafes so often?
Well, in Korea cafes are considered mostly a place where to hang out rather than going to only have a warm drink. If in Italy I would stop to a cafe only for the simple pleasure of drinking an expresso in 10 seconds and then leave, in Korea is one of the places I like to hang out the most with my friends.
Seoul is a metropolis and it is structured very differently from any European city you might think of. In Seoul you cannot find a big square where you can have a lovely walk with your beloved one and, moreover, Seoul is always tremendously busy and crowded. Because of that Koreans likes to always find an indoor place where to go, no matter how the weather is, the reason why you can find a cafe at every corner.
Besides going to hang out with their friends, Koreans spend so much time in cafes for studying. Well, Koreans take education very seriously. Around university areas you will not be surprised to find 24h open cafes still full of students studying at 2 am. Why not just going to the library, study rooms or study at home?
Well, overpopulation in Korea doesn’t allow the possibility of building a very big apartment, and if they exist, they are quite expensive. Therefore, most students are living in the school dorm or in very small habitations (goshiwon or one-room apartment). Because of that most people prefer to go out to study or meet friends (and let’s be honest, we all prefer to study with a nice cup of coffee).
For what concerns libraries, well, sometimes the atmosphere is so quiet that it makes me nervous, and I guess a lot of Koreans feel in the same way and even if studying is really important for them, they prefer doing it in a more relaxing way. Because of that cafes in Korea are often equipped for making students studying comfortably with a lot of sockets, big tables, and relaxing music. If cafes may look expensive in Korea, you have to consider that you are paying for the whole service, plus you can spend there the whole afternoon studying and no one will ask you to leave or order something else.
What do you think about coffee culture in Korea? Do you think it is worth trying it if you visit Korea? Let me know in the comment section below!
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Going to cafe is also one of my favourite activities in Seoul! Great post~
Thank you ^^
Nice post! I’m Italian and in a certain way I really like to chill in a coffee shop and study or reading, but for sure the taste will be different, the view as well 😍
Good luck for your blog 🤗
Interesting! When I was in Italy I wasn’t used to studying in coffee shops. Thank you for your comment ^^
I like this article