Cafe Able / Gangnam / Seoul


Café Able – Ugly but Sweet!

YouTube video

Saturday in Gangnam is always a great idea – there is so much to see, and do, Gangnam Style! A friend recently celebrated her birthday with brunch at Cafe Able, which boasts a fresh feel and great food. The café or, more suitably called, bistro, is situated in Sinsa-dong, Gangnam. The steak salad and creamy mushroom risotto I shared with the birthday girl was sublime. I luv luv their GINORMOUS coffee cups – think of all that brown gold in one cup! Yet, on the day, I opted for something without caffeine, (SHOCK horror!) but those who ordered a coffee said it was delicious.

The two storeyed building boasts minimal, but fresh, décor with exposed brick and pretty, floral, accents. I could so get used to lounging like les bourgeouise on the massive, plush bottle green seating while munching on the array of menu options, such as risottos, pizzas, omelettes, eggs benedict, etc.

If you value fresh, wholesome food then you will find dining at Cafe Able hugely satisfying. Their approach is one of focusing on the food, not the frills. Their signage even says, “Ugly but sweet.” Although this is a far cry from the truth, it is a testament to their unpretentious approach to quality and tasty ingredients. You do, however, pay a premium for the fresh and natural choices, with prices a little heavier than I expected (constantly converting Korean won into South African rands (in my mind) only makes matters a whole lot worse).

The harsh winter and lack of sunshine make the roof top garden at Café Able a little dreary and downcast (like me in winter – gimme some Vitamin D3 love). Apparently, it’s a lot sprightlier in other seasons (me too!). I’m planning to visit again in spring, and can already visualize myself al fresco, slowly sipping a massive latte.

Yummy looking crunchies and cookies can be bought as a take home treat, even though they are more likely to become ‘padkos’ (road food) on the journey home.

You can find Cafe Able at 12 Apgujeong-ro,14gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul.
How to get there: Take a train to Apgujeong station and come out at exit 5. Walk straight and turn left into the fifth road from the station (the one before Garosugil). Walk down this road for just over one block, and on your right you will find Cafe Able on the second floor of the building. Visit their Facebook page for more details: https://www.facebook.com/ableablecafeable/

You can watch the blog from my day in Gangnam above.

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