Emperor Gojong is often called the first Korean coffee drinker, with the taste said to come from his stay at the Russian legation in 1896 to 1897. Historian Robert Neff notes that coffee had reached the palace earlier. In 1898 a plot to poison the king's coffee made him spit out his first sip.
The first dabang, or tearoom, opened in Seoul's Sontag Hotel, built in 1902 for diplomats. In 1927 filmmaker Lee Kyung-son opened Kakadu, the first dabang run by a Korean. Writers such as the poet Yi Sang used tearooms as meeting places under Japanese rule.
In 1976 Dongsuh Foods began selling coffee mix: instant coffee, creamer and sugar in one packet. The number of dabangs peaked at about 45,000 in 1992, then declined as cafés and chains took over.
Coffee mix
How it's made. A stick of instant coffee, powdered creamer and sugar stirred into hot water.1
How it's served. Standard in office pantries; it spread into offices in the late 1990s as hot-water dispensers became common.
What time is taking away
The dabang
Tearooms that served as artists' salons in the 1930s and music rooms with DJs in the 1970s. They peaked at about 45,000 in 1992 and have since been largely replaced by cafés.3,4
Yi Sang's Swallow Teahouse
Jebi Dabang, run by the poet Yi Sang, was a meeting place for writers during the Japanese occupation. It was recreated in his former home in 2012.5
What the record says
- Gojong is often said to have acquired a taste for coffee at the Russian legation in 1896 to 1897, but historian Robert Neff says coffee was already served at the palace in the mid-1880s.2,3
- In 1898 Kim Hong-ryuk allegedly bribed a royal cook to poison Gojong's coffee; Gojong spat out the first sip.3
- The first hotel-style dabang in Seoul was in the Sontag Hotel in Jeong-dong, built in 1902 to serve foreign diplomats.4
- Filmmaker Lee Kyung-son opened Kakadu in 1927, considered the first dabang run by a Korean.4
- Dabang numbers peaked at about 45,000 in 1992.4
- Dongsuh Foods began selling packaged coffee mix in 1976 and introduced stick packets in 1987.1,3
- Coffee vending machines arrived in Korea in 1978.3
- Dongsuh held 87.9 percent of Korea's instant coffee market in 2022.1
Sources disagree on the first dabang: Wikipedia credits the Sontag Hotel in 1902; other sites give 1923. The legation story is partly contested. Wikipedia names Henriette Sontag as builder while other sources say Antoinette; the name is left out. Dongsuh's 'world's first coffee mix' claim is company-sourced and not used.
- Korean's beloved instant coffee mix finds its place on global stage · The Korea Times, 2023 in the bibliography
- September 11, coffee and Russia in 19th century Korea (part 1) · The Korea Times, 2018 in the bibliography
- Korea's daily cup of coffee: an ever-changing brew · Korea JoongAng Daily, 2010 in the bibliography
- Dabang · Wikipedia in the bibliography
- Swallowed by history, teahouse finds new life · Korea JoongAng Daily, 2012 in the bibliography
