Retro-feeling cafe where you can meet cats — ZAMSI
ilmicio05
2 days ago
My trips to Korea don’t really have a big goal like seeing my fave idol or anything, I just shop, look for cute cafes, and spend time normally.
Once I started thinking, “I want to go to places locals go,” and “I want to ride the bus,” I gradually learned to read Korean, and after watching so many Korean dramas I could understand conversations too, and Korea became even more fun for me.
Lately I’ve been going about once a month, and I’m MICHIYO, with 70+ trips to Korea under my belt.
I love cats, and cafe hopping is one of my hobbies, so this was a place I’d seen on social media and wanted to visit for a long time.
But it’s rare that my travel companions are cat lovers, and since it seems hard to find someone to go with unless they come to Seoul often, I decided to try going by myself.
ZAMSI (잠시)
📍 1F, 330-32 Cheongpa-ro, Yongsan-gu, Seoul
10-minute walk from Exit 15 of Seoul Station
11-minute walk from Exit 10 of Line 4 Sookmyung Women’s Univ. Station
It’s located about halfway between Exit 15 of Seoul Station and Exit 10 of Sookmyung Women’s Univ. Station.
If you take the bus, get off at Garwol-dong on the main road side.
If you’re coming from Seoul Station Exit 15, get off at Cheongpa-dong.
I took a bus that drops you off on the main road side where there are lots of routes, so you’ll pass through a tunnel under an overpass, it’s so long that at night it might feel a little scary.
Once you’re through the tunnel, the cafe you’re headed to is right there.
The whole place has a retro vibe and feels nostalgically old-school.
It kind of reminded me of the vintage clothing shops I used to go to in Japan…
It’s the kind of place you’d want to visit even if it didn’t have cats.
I went right around opening on a weekday, so there were only a few people inside and it was quiet.
Maybe it was a time slot with a higher percentage of solo foreign visitors, including me?
I’d seen on social media that there are two cats at the cafe, so I was excited and nervous, hoping I’d get to meet them.
The “shop cats” are a black-and-white cat, Gumi, and an orange tabby, Daeun.
There’s a dog in the illustration too, but I didn’t get to see them this time…
In the back of the cafe there’s a food corner for the cats, and Gumi was eating right then.
After the meal, they came over to this room, so I got to enjoy some quality one-on-one time.
I have a cat at home too, and I leave them to house-sit when I travel, so I always end up missing them, cat spots like this in Korea are honestly so soothing for me.
Daeun, who had been out playing, came back too, and I was lucky to see both cats at the same time.
This cafe has lots of stylish, carefully crafted menu items, but I had an eyelash perm appointment after this and didn’t have much time, so it was a shame I only had time for a simple latte…
On my first visit, maybe thanks to going right after opening, I happened to meet both cats and the atmosphere was so nice, but since I couldn’t stay long, I went back again another day.
But that time it was around tea time, so there was a wait long enough that I had to put my name on the waiting list via CHATCH TABLE.
Whether it was quiet on my first visit or crowded on my second, the staff inside handled everything solo, taking orders, serving the elaborate sweets and drinks, and cleaning up, so I guess it couldn’t be helped.
Also, it was our departure day, and we stopped by on the way to Seoul Station for the Airport Railroad, so once again it wasn’t a day where we had much time…
But all the other customers seemed to be relaxed, maybe because they were there for the cats, or maybe just because they were taking it easy, I’m not sure, but it created such a great atmosphere, so I’d love to go again and take a proper break when I have more time.
If you’re not a cat lover, it felt more like a place for solo visitors or couples.
It’s a bit away from the main busy areas, but if you love cats, vintage shops, or retro things, I think you’ll really be into this place.
