If you ask us, coffee culture in South Korea is the most interesting on the planet given its size, but also, the diversity of settings and offerings. We’ve covered a slew of design-led coffee parlours nationwide, but it’s the first time we’re shedding light on a coffee kiosk, the Left Coffee Kiosk to be precise. The newest outpost of coffee parlour chain Left Coffee, is a hole in the wall, albeit a very stylish one. Situated in the Hyewha neighbourhood in the north of Seoul‘s sprawling urban expanse, the kiosk occupies just 2 sqm. (approx. 22 sq.ft.) on the ground floor of a bustling street with a lot of foot traffic. Mind you, the EWHA university, the country’s first all-women higher education facility, is nearby. The recessed nook sees a touch screen on the left where customers can punch in their coffee concoction of choice, and then staff start preparing it right away. Right next to the opening from where customers fetch their order, two cylinders hold straws and other utensils. Right below, a display grid presents select Left Coffee products. Below the touch screen, a trash can is situated, while attached on the outer brick wall, a cup holder can be found. Interestingly, the Left Coffee Kiosk is inspired by altered post-pandemic consumer behaviour, and as such, the kiosk design has been developed to easily adapt to almost any location. The menu at Left Coffee Kiosk lists classic coffee options, but also modern variations, such as Salty Caramel Latte and Strawberry Latte, in addition to bites such as waffles.
Left Coffee Kiosk
136 Daehak-ro (Hyewha)
03084 Seoul
Mon-Fri 8am-8pm
Sat-Sun 10m-8pm
Publishers Note
Just to be clear – superfuture® is a design blog and not a political commentator. No surprise there. The scope of our content has always been global and borderless, however that can often mean covering projects in countries where we will not agree with the politics or actions of those countries. In a world that’s as screwed up as ever right now, the focus of our support is to those designers, architects and other creatives who aim to make the world a more liveable one – as opposed to people that try their hardest to destroy it. So if a project hits our desk and we like it based on its design credentials, we may choose to publish regardless of its location or creators nationality. superfuture® has always been inclusive and hopes for all current wars, aggression, violence, hate and extremism to end.
