Starbucks Opens Cafe with a View: Sip Coffee While Staring at North Korea
Coffee lovers with a keen interest in getting a glimpse of life in the world’s most reclusive nation are in luck. Starbucks has opened a new outpost in South Korea, located on an observation tower at the border with North Korea. The 30-seat cafe is situated at the Aegibong Peace Ecopark in Gimpo city, about 20 miles north of Seoul.
From the cafe, on a clear day, customers can see farms and low-rise buildings in Kaepung county just across the border, and with a decent pair of binoculars or a camera with ultra-zoom capabilities, visitors may even be able to spot people walking around. The cafe is located near the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), one of the world’s most heavily armed borders.
The location is unique, representing the “charm of Korean culture” according to Gimpo Mayor Kim Byung-soo, who hopes to boost tourism in the area. The ecopark where the tower is located was originally the site of Hill 154, where fierce fighting took place during the Korean War.
The cafe is one of the few ways for South Koreans and international tourists to get a glimpse of North Korea, even if it’s from afar, without setting foot in the country. It offers an alternative to tours of the DMZ, which attracts numerous tourists each year. According to two tour companies with connections to the isolated country, North Korea is set to reopen limited international tourism by the end of this year, nearly five years after it completely sealed its borders due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The cafe’s opening comes during a time of tension between the two sides, with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un recently stating his country would no longer seek reconciliation and reunification with South Korea, and further threatening to use nuclear weapons to destroy South Korea if attacked.
