Coffee culture in Korea has embraced espresso bars – the country’s new favourite drink is Instagram-friendly and cheaper than an Americano

Espresso shots – shorter and cheaper than the Americano Koreans love – have become trendy in South Korea in recent years, helped by social media

At least 100 espresso bars have opened in Korea over the past year, and there have been hundreds of thousands of Instagram posts tagged “espresso bar” in Korean

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An espresso and rice cake served at Draw Espresso Bar in Seoul. A new coffee trend has emerged in South Korea – espresso coffee bars, where people can order the small, strong coffee shots and variations on them. Photo: Draw Espresso Bar

Published: 7:15am, 24 Aug 2023

Koreans drink around 353 cups of coffee every year, according to the latest report by the Hyundai Research Institute. The figure is a sharp rise from 291 cups in 2015 and 2.7 times more than the world’s yearly average of some 132 cups.

People in the caffeine-loving nation have primarily consumed instant coffee packaged in stick-type pouches – known as “mix coffee” – or as iced or hot Americanos.

However, that trend is changing quickly, as seen in a surge in the number of espresso bars selling small, strong shots of coffee.

At least 100 espresso bars have opened in the country over the past year, according to industry data. Social media also reflects such a phenomenon with over 142,000 Instagram posts – as of mid-August – showing pictures of small empty cups piled on top of each other with the hashtag “espresso bar” in Korean.

Major food and drink conglomerates have also started capitalising on the trend.