Gyeongju Silladang, a charming hanok cafe

Hello, I’m CULT.
Today I’m sharing about a lovely cafe on Hwangridan-gil, Silladang in Gyeongju. I often do outdoor shoots in Gyeongju, so I’ve already visited this cafe several times. Since I’ll probably keep visiting more often, I’ll gradually add more menu items and share them with you.
These days Hwangridan-gil is very popular and crowded, so if you’re not sure where to go, I recommend stopping by Silladang in Gyeongju for a cup of tea. I think it’s one of the best places to feel the true Gyeongju vibe.

Location and Summary

The nearest parking lot is a short walk away, so it’s best to park and walk over. For foreign visitors, it’s also not far from a bus stop, so access is convenient. In the morning you can stroll around Hwangridan-gil, enjoy a meal or a cup of tea, and then take the No. 11 bus to visit Bulguksa. Most accommodations in Gyeongju are near Hwangridan-gil, so this is a nice way to enjoy your trip. [Naver Map]
You can check waiting information here.

Gyeongju Silla-dang

When you arrive at the cafe, it looks like this. There’s a small man-made pond in the center and a hanok-style interior. A few cats also wander around. Gyeongju is generally like this, but Silladang felt a bit more thoughtfully put together.

This is what the interior looks like. At the end of last April and the beginning of May I was coming to Gyeongju to shoot almost every day, and there was never a seat available here; after that it hasn’t been particularly busy. This was taken at about 2 PM on a Sunday.

Korean-style souvenirs

The reason I keep an eye on Gyeongju Silladang is that their confections make really nice souvenir gifts. Since I used to live in Japan, I’m familiar with omiyage culture—these would be fairly pricey as omiyage to hand out to acquaintances in Japan, but I think people would buy them to bring when visiting clients. They have a distinctly Korean feel, and when opened they look like a folding screen.
Also, I’ve given Korean yakgwa as omiyage to Japanese friends before, and the response was quite good.

This is a Juak set souvenir — it’s marked as 26,000 won, but the wooden box is much prettier, so I think it’s worth paying an extra 5,000 won to get it. I still have ties with my Japanese clients, so if I need to go there on business, I figured I’d buy a few here to take with me.

Cashew nut gangjeong, walnut gangjeong, omija yakgwa — these are sold individually and also in the folding-screen box we saw earlier. If the price feels high, these are great to give out among several people. I haven’t tried them yet, but when I’m packing souvenirs I’ll buy a few more, taste them, and add my impressions to this post.

Online ordering is available, so if my schedule doesn’t work out I’ll consider ordering online. I’m keeping an eye on Gyeongju Silladang’s juak and yakgwa for my business, and I hope you’ll consider them as souvenirs.

Liquor & Drinks

The juak you want is self-served—just help yourself and pay at the counter. I’ve been here several times with clients I was shooting, and everyone kept forgetting to bring scissors, so they ended up having a hard time eating the juak. Make sure to grab scissors at the counter beforehand.

I was part of a shoot that day with 22 people, and because we were shouting the whole time and it was so hot, I could barely manage to eat even one juak—please understand. I was really overheated… eating was difficult. That’s the most basic juak, but Gyeongju Silladang’s juak are all delicious, so order several and share. They’re definitely tasty, but a bit sweet… eating up to three was somewhat hard for me.

This is the Sinradang cherry soda from Gyeongju. There’s nothing particularly special about it; it’s a refreshing cherry soda.

This is juak cut into six pieces with scissors. Of the snacks I’ve tried since coming back to Korea, this feels like the fanciest. For context, I lived abroad for 13 years and it’s been about four months since I returned to Korea. It’s a chewy, sweet snack. There’s a chocolate flavor and an omija flavor as well.

Return

Just return your dishes to the store’s return tray and head out. European cafés, aside from Starbucks, don’t really have this kind of practice, right? If you’re traveling in Korea, try to get used to it.

And if there really aren’t any seats… sometimes people sit on the shop’s raised wooden step like this and eat. As I mentioned at the beginning… during the peak tourist season, there are no seats, so you’ll often see people doing that.
Anyway, if you’re visiting Gyeongju and want to try a slightly unusual café, I recommend stopping by Gyeongju Silladang.