TL;DR: Coffee Hanyakbang opened a Gyeongdong Market branch in a renovated former inn in Cheongnyangni in August 2026. I visited during its soft opening, when the third floor was closed and final hours had not been announced. This article records that early visit; confirm today’s opening hours, floor access, and menu with Coffee Hanyakbang before making a special trip.
There’s a cafe in Euljiro I make a point of visiting whenever I’m in the area: Coffee Hanyakbang. Sit inside and it’s genuinely disorienting in a good way — the building used to be a working herbal medicine shop, and they kept enough of that identity intact that you half expect someone to hand you a prescription instead of a latte. It’s not just the interior carrying the place, either; the coffee itself is good enough that I’ll go out of my way for it.
So when I heard Coffee Hanyakbang had soft-opened a second location in Gyeongdong Market in Cheongnyangni, I paid attention for a specific reason: that market happens to be my own neighborhood. A cafe that used to require a special trip to Euljiro is now a short walk from home, and that was reason enough to go check it out right away.
The Basics at the Gyeongdong Market Branch
Address: 38 Wangsan-ro 35-gil, Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul (inside Gyeongdong Market)
Status as of this visit: Soft opening — official hours not yet announced
Reservations: None needed; no waitlist system in use during the soft-opening period
Parking: Not available — use a nearby public lot (Gyeongdong Market’s Yangnyeongsi public parking lot is closest)
Visit note (August 2026): this branch was in soft opening during my visit. The hours, floor access, and menu may have changed since then. Check Coffee Hanyakbang’s current notice before traveling.
A Building With Its Own Story
The building itself is most of the draw here. It used to be a yeoinsuk — a modest, old-style Korean inn — inside Gyeongdong Market, and rather than tearing it down, Coffee Hanyakbang renovated the whole thing while keeping its bones intact: the red brick, the mint-green trim, the iron railing running around the rooftop, white curtains in every window. The shape of the old inn is all still there; only the mood has changed.
Walk in and you’ll immediately recognize the same design language as the Euljiro original — a bar counter built from repurposed medicine cabinets, pendant lights shaped like folded herbal medicine packets. It’s a direct visual continuation of the brand, just transplanted into a different building with a different backstory.
The first floor handles both ordering and seating. The second floor, reserved entirely for seated guests, is where the building’s inn-era character comes through even more strongly — each room has its own furniture, art, and mood, so working your way through the second floor feels like wandering a small maze of distinct little rooms rather than one uniform cafe space.
A room with a mother-of-pearl lacquer folding screen, another with an antique pump organ and a carp painting on the wall, a window seat framed by orange curtains — every room reads differently. A third floor is reportedly being prepared as additional seating, but it wasn’t open yet during this soft-opening visit.
What to Order
Given how much the Euljiro location’s coffee quality is already talked about, there wasn’t much deliberation involved here. The signature drink I tried was Sujeonggwa-in-gabe, priced at ₩7,000 on my August 2026 visit — its name is a direct mashup of sujeonggwa (a traditional Korean cinnamon-and-persimmon punch) and gabe (coffee). There’s also a small dessert case near the first-floor entrance stocked with pastries from Hyeminsang Patisserie, if you want something to go with your drink.
Tasting the Signature Drink
Sujeonggwa-in-gabe is exactly what the name promises: sujeonggwa and coffee in the same glass. A cinnamon-scented sujeonggwa base sits underneath a layered shot of espresso, with a whole cinnamon stick served standing up in the glass. I went in expecting something closer to “coffee with a hint of cinnamon syrup” — what I got was considerably more precise than that. Sujeonggwa’s characteristic sweetness and cinnamon punch land right where the coffee’s bitterness and acidity are, so each sip alternates between reading as an East Asian dessert drink and a straightforward espresso, almost note for note.
This is the detail that convinced me it’s not a signature drink in name only. If the two components hadn’t actually been balanced, you’d get a coffee that just smells vaguely like cinnamon and nothing more — instead, both flavors show up distinctly, which is a harder thing to pull off than it sounds and isn’t something you’ll find replicated at a typical Seoul cafe.
Why a Traditional Market, Specifically
Being in soft-opening mode came with some real limitations: the third floor wasn’t accessible yet, so I didn’t get the full building experience, and the lack of on-site parking is a genuine inconvenience if you’re driving. On the plus side, there was no wait at all during this visit — a rare thing for a buzzy new opening.
From a business standpoint, this location choice is worth noting on its own. Placing a design-forward cafe brand inside a traditional market is a real bet on revitalizing that market’s foot traffic — younger visitors who come for a coffee often end up wandering the rest of the market too, which is exactly the kind of spillover traditional markets need. In a March 2026 Seoul city plan, the proposed hanok cultural spaces are in neighboring Jegi-dong Hanok Village, linked with Gyeongdong Market. The city schedules its first public investment from 2027. That plan is for the neighboring village, not an announced redevelopment of this market building.
Is It Worth the Trip to Gyeongdong?
Why I stopped here: I like the Euljiro original’s aesthetic, and this branch made an appealing stop while exploring Gyeongdong Market. There was no wait during my early visit; check current reviews or the café’s updates for today’s queue and hours.
Before you go: My August 2026 visit was during the soft opening, when only the first two floors were accessible. Check Coffee Hanyakbang’s current updates for floor access, hours, and parking before making a special trip.
FAQ
Q: Is this the same brand as the famous Coffee Hanyakbang in Euljiro?
A: Yes — same brand, same design approach (repurposed medicine-shop and now inn architecture), same signature drink concept. This is a second location, not a different business using a similar name.
Q: Is the Gyeongdong Market branch fully open?
A: As of this visit it was in soft opening — the first and second floors were operating, but the third floor was not yet accessible and official hours hadn’t been announced. Check the brand’s Instagram for current status before visiting.
Q: How do I get there?
A: It’s inside Gyeongdong Market in Cheongnyangni, Dongdaemun-gu — walkable from Cheongnyangni Station. There’s no on-site parking; the nearest option is the Gyeongdong Market Yangnyeongsi public parking lot.
Q: What should I order if I only try one thing?
A: I liked the Sujeonggwa-in-gabe, which was ₩7,000 on my August 2026 visit. Check the current menu and price before ordering.
Our Take
If Gyeongdong Market or Cheongnyangni is already on your itinerary, this branch is a worthwhile coffee stop for its renovated inn setting and signature drink. My visit was during the August 2026 soft opening; confirm today’s floor access, hours, menu, and queue with the café before traveling.