I met up with a friend for brunch near a part of Hongdae I’d never been. Usually when I think of Hongdae I think of the insanely crowded exit 9, the crowded streets nearby and just how exhausting it is. But the area we met was peaceful, with a little strip of trees running through the street with green paths for walking. I saw so many dogs it was wonderful, and there were places to sit, which was needed because my friend was running late.
Due to her busy schedule I picked Travel Maker because it was in the area and I haven’t truly been to a lot of places in Hongdae. I was pretty pumped because the entire area was very cute and relaxing. Travel Maker is known for its American brunch/breakfast fare (and because it opens before 11/10am) so I was ready to dig into some home-style breakfast. I ordered their blueberry waffle (8,000 won) wanting a bit of healthy fruit with my breakfast and an earl grey latte (4,500 won).
What I got was drenched in blueberry…something. I’m not sure what but it wasn’t what I’d expected based off the picture which had a much more palatable amount of whipped cream and only a handful of blueberries on top. The blueberries were cold and the whipped cream tasted like it was full of granulated sugar which I found off-putting. The blueberry sauce? syrup? juice? was also sweeter than I had hoped and I found myself unable to finish the waffles. My friend on the other hand ordered their french toast combo and was very happy. The combo included hash browns (the shredded kind), bacon (american style), sausage and scrambled eggs.
Blueberries aren’t in season at the moment in South Korea so I can understand how my dreams of a non-frozen blueberries got dashed. I would suggest sticking to one of the combos or getting the pancakes/waffles without fruit on top. They offer four combo’s ranging from 11,500 to 14,500 which include a french toast set, pancake set, waffle set and then the “Obama breakfast” which is the cheapest because it comes with toast rather than something sweet. They also offer a breakfast burrito and grilled cheese with or without tomato soup.
There isn’t a ton of seating but we came a bit later than normal breakfast/brunch/lunch hours and managed to get a nice booth. I was a bit disappointed in my soggy waffle, but I did enjoy my latte and my friend enjoyed her combo.
Travel Maker is open from 8am-12am(midnight) Monday through Friday and 8am until 11pm Saturday and Sunday.