OWL Magazine Korea

Seoul Guro, Affordable Coffee, Baik’s Coffee Guro Rosarium Branch

Baik’s Coffee is a subsidiary brand of Dabong Korea, represented by celebrity chef Baek Jong-won. There are over 1,200 stores nationwide in South Korea, and one in China.

Baik’s Coffee began in 2006 as a coffee shop named “Original Starbucks,” which parodied the Starbucks located in front of Baek Jong-won’s original ssambap (lettuce wraps) restaurant in Nonhyeon-dong. It was created to offer coffee as a service to the customers of the original ssambap restaurant.

However, they later faced a trademark infringement lawsuit from Starbucks. In 2007, they changed their name to “Original Coffee,” and in 2008, they adopted the current name, “Baik’s Coffee.”

“Baik’s Coffee offers affordable coffee.”

Baik’s Coffee is a café that offers affordable coffee. Currently in South Korea, the high-priced coffee market is largely dominated by Starbucks, while the low-priced coffee market sees continuous competition with various brands emerging.

Baik’s Coffee is one of these low-priced coffee brands, where you can taste coffee and beverages at a very reasonable price. The most affordable coffee starts at 1,500 won with an “Ah! Americano.”

They offer a variety of menu items including drinks, ice cream, and unique items not found in other cafes such as “misugaru” (mixed grain powder), “sweet pumpkin sikhye” (sweet rice drink), and “rice cake ice cream.”

“Baik’s Coffee Guro Rosarium Branch”

Guro Rosarium is a building near Guro District Office. It serves various purposes, including as an officetel. On the first floor, you can find restaurants and cafes, and Baik’s Coffee can be found on the first floor of this building.

Like most Baik’s Coffee locations, it primarily focuses on takeout sales, so the store itself is not particularly spacious. You can see about four tables available.

However, most visitors to Baik’s Coffee tend to opt for takeout rather than staying, so the seats are often empty. I noticed that there were usually empty seats whenever I visited.

It’s a place where you can taste low-priced coffee in a simple and economically feasible way.

“Seoul Guro, Affordable Coffee, Baik’s Coffee Guro Rosarium Branch”

  • Address: 104, Rosarium 2nd, 5, Gamasan-ro 26-gil, Guro-gu, Seoul
  • Phone: 02-856-0375
  • Operating Hours: (Mon-Fri) 8:00 – 22:30, (Sat) 9:00 – 23:00, (Sun) 9:00 – 22:00
  • Closed on: Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving) Day, Lunar New Year’s Day
  • Website: https://paikdabang.com