There are many streets in Seoul, one of which is "cafes", and you can see large and small cafes in almost a few steps, and "coffee" has almost become an important existence in the blood, and it is a national drink that cannot be ignored in Korean food culture.
Compared to other countries, South Korea has not introduced coffee too early. After 1890, Emperor Gojong fled to the Russian Legation due to the "Ulwei Incident", and the wife of the Russian ambassador invited Emperor Gojong to drink the first cup of coffee, and he was also the first Korean to taste coffee. Emperor Gojong became fascinated by the taste of coffee, and after returning to the palace, he built a Western-style "Jing Guan Xuan" in Deoksugung Palace, where he could enjoy coffee.
In 1902, the Sontag Hotel, the first café in Korea and the first European-style hotel in Seoul, was given a piece of land belonging to the royal family (located on the site of Ewha Nugao in Jeongdong, Seoul), where he built the Sontag Hotel (손탁 호텔) in 1902 as the first café in Korea and the first European-style hotel in Seoul.
After 1910, when the Japanese invaded Korea, the Japanese opened their "chi" (tea shop) in the Myeongdong district of Seoul and began selling coffee, but it was not popular at the time because it was a new culture and the price was high. It was not until the 1950s, when the U.S. military intervened in the Korean Peninsula War, that it brought instant coffee and other Western goods, and for the entertainment needs of the U.S. military, more coffee houses sprung up near the U.S. military barracks, and the coffee culture of the Koreans was developed.
In 1988, during the Seoul Olympics, the nationwide Westernization movement led to the development of the Korean coffee industry, and a large number of coffee shops and coffee chains appeared at this time, making coffee shops the main meeting place for young people, and it still is today.
After opening its first Starbucks in 1999 at the main entrance of Ewha University, it quickly expanded its footprint in South Korea, and Seoul is the world's largest store with 284 stores. In addition to Starbucks, there are more than 16,000 cafes in Seoul alone, including chain cafes, private cafes, etc., which is quite a staggering number.
What's even more surprising is that cafes are not the only place where Koreans consume coffee products, according to statistics, 60%-70% of the population who drink coffee in South Korea mainly drink "instant coffee", instant coffee is a very common drink at home, school, and office, and because of its convenience and deliciousness, some Koreans drink 3-4 cups a day, and the annual sales reach 63 million tons (about 25 million cups of coffee), which is very impressive.