Here’s the problem nobody warns you about. You queue at Sungsimdang, sweep an armful of bread onto your tray, pay — and then you’re standing on the street in Daejeon holding a bag, with nowhere to sit. For years I just carried mine back to Seoul and ate it at home, which is a shame, because warm tuigim soboro straight from the fryer is a completely different pastry than a cold one.
The fix is two minutes away. The Sungsimdang cafe inside the Cultural Center exists precisely so you can sit down and eat what you just bought.
How it works
This is the part visitors miss: you buy your bread at the main store, then bring it here. The Cultural Center’s cafe floors are set up for exactly that — carry in your haul, order a drink, and eat.
A couple of things to know:
- Order a drink. Coffee is inexpensive here and pairs beautifully with the bread, so treat it as part of the experience rather than a fee. Americano is 4,000 KRW, latte 5,000, and most other drinks run 5,000–7,000 (there’s a seasonal mango shake at 6,500).
- Ask the staff for a plate, fork and knife when you order. They’ll hand them over, and it turns a messy bag of pastries into something civilised. Load everything onto one big plate and you’ve essentially built yourself a small bread buffet.
Which floor to sit on
The building runs from basement to second floor, and each has its own feel:
- Basement — soft lighting, cosy, and the big tables are down here. Best for groups, or if you want to sit and talk for a while. It’s also usually the quietest.
- First floor — fewer tables, most cafe-like. Good for a short stop.
- Second floor — has window seats looking out onto the street.
The whole place is noticeably calmer than the main store, which is half the appeal after fighting the crowd for bread. There are bread-themed props and displays dotted around too, so it’s a pleasant space to linger in.
The souvenir shop (the other reason to come)
Walk in and the goods section greets you before the cafe does — and this is the best place in Daejeon to pick up something genuinely Korean and a little bit silly.
The standout: soap shaped like a tuigim soboro bun (4,500 KRW each, 13,500 for a gift set). It looks exactly like the real thing — and there’s a lovely detail behind it: the soap is made from the used frying oil left over from cooking the actual buns, upcycled rather than thrown away. It comes in a tidy box, and makes a great present precisely because nobody expects bread-shaped soap with a story attached.
Also worth a look:
- Sunsu-roll dish sponge — 7,000 KRW
- Gomsiki and Seongsimi plush toys — the bakery’s characters. Pricier, but hard to walk past. Around Christmas they appear in Santa hats.
- Mugs — 8,000 KRW
- Siru cake stickers — 500 KRW, the cheapest souvenir in the building
- Plus plates, keyrings, postcards and stationery
Details
- Location: 11 Junggyo-ro 73beon-gil, Jung-gu, Daejeon — a 2-minute walk from the Sungsimdang main store. Head into the alley on the left and look for the red-brick building (Google Maps)
- Hours: 8:30am–8:30pm weekdays, 8:00am–8:30pm weekends
- Menu: no English labels, so check the cafe’s Naver Map listing beforehand or just ask the staff. Cards accepted.
- Buy your bread first at the main store — see my guide to what’s worth buying — then walk over.
- Planning the whole trip? My Daejeon day trip guide covers the KTX from Seoul.
Verdict
The Sungsimdang cafe turns a bag of bread into an actual experience: a quiet table, a cheap coffee, a plate piled with pastries, and a shop full of bread-shaped souvenirs on the way out. Above all, it’s where you get to eat a tuigim soboro while it’s still warm — which, after the queue and the crowd, is the whole point.
