The South Korean Coffee Culture Wave Hits LA

Los Angeles’s South Korean-style cafe scene has gained a significant following, with long lines forming at places like Damo Teahouse, Camel Coffee, Harucake, and Series A Coffee. These cafes embrace the essence of South Korean cafe culture, where casual communal enjoyment of the drinks and space is emphasized on social media. The micro-attention to detail reflected in the cafes’ decor and drinks, visible in the queue pouring outside of stores like Damo Tea House, which opened at the end of 2022 and quickly developed a cult following for its Einspänner drinks.

Founder Ted Nam worked intentionally to capture the trendiness of cafes in Korea, aiming to bring something new and exciting, different from the mainstream boba and milk tea in Los Angeles. At Damo, the matcha Einspänner and hojicha Einspänner have been hits among visitors, many of whom venture to Koreatown just to try the velvety, cream-topped drinks. The cafe also prepares a classic Korean tea service, complete with porcelain teapots, teacups, a tea bowl, and an hourglass to measure the steep time. An assorted platter of traditional Korean snacks complements the tea, plus a chewy rice cake waffle made with mugwort, an herbaceous, slightly bitter plant sometimes incorporated into Korean desserts, and served with a side of cream.

Harucake, another Koreatown cafe, has seen its popularity and lines grow rapidly in the last year. The cake and coffee shop took social media by storm with distinctly Korean desserts and soosoo (pronounced sue-sue) latte, a coffee drink topped with sweet, fresh corn cream. Owner Ellie You is especially proud of her minimalist cakes that come in flavors like mugwort injeolmi, sweet potato, lotus mocha, and Mont Blanc chestnut. She wants her connection to her heritage to be the driving force, and her efforts are evident in Harucake’s pastel yellow walls, minimalist-chic merchandise like white mugs and bags with only a small, black smiley face logo; and quirky cake toppers like teddy bear figurines and cloud-shaped candles, all of which has helped the store stand out among the slew of Seoul-inspired cafes in Koreatown.

In 2024, Korean cafes have expanded beyond Koreatown’s borders, with the opening of Camel Coffee in Los Angeles at the former Cafe Caravan space. The Los Feliz space, decorated with vintage furniture and art, serves Camel’s signature drinks from Korea, including the Camel Coffee, an 8-ounce drink with two shots of espresso, milk, and a cream top, as well as the MSGR, a multigrain shake known as misugaru. Le Tigre is a small, dense, and buttery financier-like pastry served at the shop that derives its recipe from Korea.

Joshua Park and Alice Kim, the husband-and-wife duo behind Los Angeles’s Camel Coffee, performed extensive research on the cafe scene in Korea and felt that Camel excelled in branding, coffee, and hospitality. They hoped that Camel would translate well in Los Angeles, as they believe it excelled in branding, coffee, and hospitality. To ensure authenticity, a team from Korea came overseas to help curate the Los Feliz shop’s design, exuding a relaxed, rustic cool.

With lines sometimes exceeding two hours on weekends, it’s clear that Camel has found a home in Los Angeles, though its locations in Korea are less hyped and viewed by locals more as staple neighborhood coffee shops. While most of what is offered in Los Angeles’s Camel Coffee mirrors that of the chain’s menu in Korea, there are a few unique offerings, like the Camel Matcha — a matcha version of their signature drink — and a plant-based rendition of the beloved cream top that incorporates coconut oil and a vegan sweetener.

Furthermore west, Series A Coffee takes trendy drinks to the next level, often with a visual flair and unexpected toppings. The shop continues to test new, potential menu items, like a coffee drink with the Korean soft drink Milkis as the base, and even an iteration of the green onion latte that has gone viral in Asia. Series A also provides plenty of board games and a large television screen connected to a Nintendo Switch, where patrons are encouraged to play games against one another.

In their quest to bring a taste of Korean coffee culture to Los Angeles, cafes like Series A, Damo, Harucake, and Camel Coffee have become community hot spots, offering opportunities to partake in ceremonial tea traditions, more whimsical gameplay, and the social media ritual of sharing viral coffee experiences.

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