Gahwa Coffee Shop

About

Retro basement tearoom near City Hall Station serving house-brewed traditional herbal teas and playing 1980s music, with evening beer offerings.

Tucked into the basement of Donghwa Building in Jung-gu, between exits 7 and 8 of City Hall Station, Gahwa Coffee Shop captures the unapologetic nostalgia of a classic 1980s dabang. A draft beer sign hanging by the stairs hints at the space’s dual life—traditional tea salon by day, retro pub serving evening bar snacks by night. Descending below street level feels like stepping into another era, where warm wood paneling, low-slung lounge seating upholstered in bold pink leopard print, and the resonant folk ballads of Kim Kwang-seok establish a slow, unhurried rhythm. The house specialty is slow-simmered herbal tea, brewed on-site from scratch. While the owner prepares each batch, the aroma of medicinal herbs and toasted nuts drifts through the subterranean room. The signature hanbang ssanghwa-cha arrives in temple-style ceramic mugs, dark and restorative, laden with nutty garnishes. For a gentler, naturally sweet profile, the hanbang daechu-cha (jujube tea) is thick and soothing, served alongside sugar dishes if you prefer extra sweetness. The owner also prepares sijeon daebotang and saenggang-cha (ginger tea), alongside modern fruit-forward refreshers like green grape ade. Before the tea arrives, guests are routinely welcomed with complimentary snacks of savory whole walnuts and sweet seasonal dried jujubes, a touch that mirrors the hospitality of old-school Korean tearooms. Whether you drop in after a meal in Bukchang-dong for an earthy tonic or linger into the evening under soft lamplight while 1980s acoustics hum from vintage speakers, Gahwa Coffee Shop offers an authentic pocket of mid-century Seoul café culture.