In the hills of Haebangcheon, either taking the bus or braving it on foot, you will encounter a small market. This once derelict market, has been repurposed into a new space for independent shops, restaurants and cafes. One of these spaces is a small cafe called Tajagi.
Tajagi means typewriter in Korean, and you can find the cafe by a little typewriter on a glass door. From this door you can’t see much inside the cafe, only a set of concrete stairs and walls covered in old movie posters.
Once you scale the stairs you are greeted with a view of Seoul’s cityscape. There is one wall with two large windows looking out onto the city. Since my friend and I went at night, we were able to see the night view of Seoul. The view of Seoul from this area is one of my personal favourites, since it is so residential and reminds me Seoul's people. However, while it was beautiful the night we went, sunset is definitely the best time to visit the café.
After taking in the view, you'll notice that although the floor space of the café is small, it doesn’t feel like that. The space had a high ceiling, which alongside the large windows, opened up the space a lot.
There were concrete walls that were painted either blue or white, with patches of burgundy here and there. There were places where the paint had purposely been chipped and old newspaper clippings pasted onto the walls, which gave the space a worn vibe.
It was an intimate space that had a nostalgic style decoration, but it wasn’t clique. There was a mixture of memorabilia and furniture from all eras; ranging from the 40s till now. There were posters, lamps, typewriters (of course) clocks and books scattered throughout the space. There was even little corner that had a variety of retro gadgets and artifacts from recent eras.
Rather than feeling deliberate and museum like, the cafe felt like everything had been slowly accumulating over time, much like real life. There was also a wall covered in covered movie posters, which reminded me of my childhood bedroom. This all fostered a comforting and homely atmosphere. Moreover, since it was night time, and the lights were low, there was an intimate vibe to the space.
Turning my attention to the drinks, my friend got an americano and I got an adlay tea. My friend said that the coffee was ok, but nothing special. As for the tea, adlay tea is a traditional Korean tea made from ground nuts like walnuts and almonds, as well as adlay, a type of barley. My friend said that he used to spend his youth drinking this tea and I wanted to try it.
The tea came hot and was slightly thicker than normal tea. It had a lovely nutty and milky flavour. While the liquid was thick, it was blended well and didn’t have a gluggy feeling. There were also nut pieces that we nice to chew on in between sips.
There’s nothing flashy or new about Tajagi, but that's it’s greatest strength. In dead beat terms, this is a comforting space with a reminiscent atmosphere. The café’s view itself wasn’t so homely, but view of the cityscape helped you think about all the stories and homes in a big city. And though the drinks were nothing special, they had a homestyle feel to them, which represented the feeling of the cafe perfectly.
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