[Report] Dongseo Foods' 'Maxim Plant': Roasting Coffee Beans Underground and Enjoying a Cup in the Forest Cafe

700,000 Visitors in 4 Years Since Opening... Floor-by-Floor Layout Including Cafe and Cultural Spaces
3rd Floor 'Brewing Lounge'... Specialty Coffee Recommendations Tailored to Your Taste

Exterior view of 'Maxim Plant'.

[Asia Economy Reporter Eunmo Koo] “The word ‘Plant’ means both a factory and a plant (living organism).”

On the afternoon of the 31st of last month, the ‘Maxim Plant’ I visited was a coffee factory that roasts coffee with various flavors and, at the same time, a small forest-like space in the city where you can enjoy a moment of relaxation. Opened for the first time in April 2018 on Itaewon-ro, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, Maxim Plant is a brand experience coffee specialty store operated by Dongseo Food, which produces coffee mixes such as ‘Maxim’ and instant coffee beans like ‘Kanu’. It was established to convey the expertise and know-how accumulated over more than 50 years regarding coffee.

Despite being located in the heart of Seoul, Maxim Plant stood out for its comfort that one would usually only feel in suburban cafes. Out of the total eight floors (from basement level 4 to ground level 4), five floors from basement level 2 to ground level 3 are used as cafe spaces, featuring high ceilings, large windows, and large table arrangements, differentiating it from other cramped cafes in Seoul. Each floor is designed with different concepts such as cafe, terrace, library, cultural space, and roasting room, encouraging multiple visits. As a result, the cumulative number of visitors has steadily reached about 700,000 over the four years since its opening.

3rd Floor 'Brewing Lounge' Where You Can Enjoy 'Synesthetic Coffee'

The most impressive space was the 3rd-floor ‘Brewing Lounge,’ where you can enjoy ‘synesthetic coffee.’ Synesthetic coffee is a method designed to allow general consumers to comfortably enjoy specialty coffee, which is often perceived as difficult. Using a tablet device provided at a dedicated seat, customers select their preferred flavor, acidity, and body level, and one of 16 types of coffee is recommended.

On that day, after choosing coffee with floral aroma, high acidity, and medium body, a blend of Ethiopian, Kenyan, and Colombian beans was served along with the song ‘Jasmine Breeze’ by Didihan. Drinking the coffee with the recommended music through headphones provided at the seat made the aroma and taste feel enhanced. The option to choose between hand drip and siphon extraction methods was also an attractive feature.

True to its name as a coffee factory, the roasting room spanning two floors, basement levels 1 and 2, was also notable. Here, the coffee used in the store is roasted directly, and visitors can watch the roasting process as various beans are fed from nine silos into the roaster. In addition to the roasting room on basement level 2, there is also a lecture space where visitors can experience coffee education and extraction. Dongseo Food plans to hold coffee-related classes here in the future.

'Roasting Room' on Basement Level 2 where coffee beans are roasted directly

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.