This place is hidden very well in a back alley of the old part of Gangneung. Not easy to get to and park, but we managed to get there and were in for a huge treat.

Naver maps link: Bong Bong Bangatgan

Google maps:

The place is a two story house turned hipster and selfie paradise. A lot of very cute details make this a great place to hang out and enjoy some hand dripped goodness.

There are no machines and the focus is entirely on manually prepared coffee (Even lattes are made with the help of an aeropress rather than machine born espresso). Beans are roasted in house and even sorted by the staff in quiet moments.

The beans selection is very extensive:

I went for the Ethiopian Hambela. Totally unexpected in an otherwise unpretentious store, the preparation was one of the most precise and caring I have ever seen. Every bit was weighed and measured, never more than 2 cups at a time were prepared. The pouring was very slow-mo and nothing like the Niagara style flushing that we had seen at bigger shops in town.

We didn’t feel the rush of other stores. Dedication and experience, enabled by sufficient time make all the difference. The cup that was produced was one of the best we had in a long time: very full body, hints of chocolate and a light acidity.

In short, I wish there were places like this in our neighborhood or maybe we should just move closer.