Wild animals, Welsh corgi lure foreigners to Seoul cafe
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More tourists are visiting Seoul’s Blind Alley cafe, in Yongsan-gu, where wild animals such as raccoons and capybaras greet visitors. / Courtesy of Blind Alley
By Eom Da-sol
In a buzzing scene near Sookmyung Women’s University in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, tourists flock to a small cafe. They do not come to study, but to enjoy drinks while watching animals that usually belong in the wild or a zoo.
Blind Alley cafe lures tourists with its unique animal residents, including raccoons and capybaras. About 60 to 80 percent of daily customers are out-of-towners.
The venue has been bustling with foreign customers since a raccoon was introduced 18 months ago. Now, a Welsh corgi, three raccoons and two capybaras greet customers.
“I brought my raccoon to the cafe because I did not want to leave him alone at home,” shop owner Han Seong-hee told The Korea Times Thursday. “The customers loved him so much, so I brought other animals to the cafe.”
The cafe caught tourists’ eyes through foreign community websites and travel books, according to one overseas customer.
The cafe was well known to school students for its desserts and drinks before the raccoon arrived. As it became more popular with tourists, student numbers have fallen.
Han welcomed the increase in foreign customers but said there is a dark side to the customer change.
“Maybe this is time to change our marketing strategy,” Han said.
For more information, visit www.cafeblindalley.com.