It is true that there is a Korean soup that uses dog meat, but this isn't what a dog cafe is for. A Korean dog cafe is a place where dog owners and dog lovers can bring their dogs, play with dogs, and enjoy dogs while sipping on over-priced coffee drinks and shakes.
I have a beautiful chocolate lab back home, and I've missed her terribly while I've been over here. Going to Caffé Pawz in Gangnam helps to alleviate that once in a while. For the long-time residents of Seoul, this is a place where they can go with their dogs and not have to worry about stares from people on the subway. I imagine the dogs get antsy inside the city apartments, so an open space like this (even though there isn't grass) must be a welcome change.
As the Bridge Paperzine mentions in their article on pet places around Seoul, the cafe doesn't smell like dog. There is plenty of space and seating, a concrete floor for easy mess clean up, and plenty of pooches to watch. Both times I've been, the majority of the dogs were the small toys you see girls toting on the posh streets of Apgujeong, but there are always a couple big fellas which soothe my craving for "real dogs."
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| There's always a few dogs who want to play with every other dog in the area. Sometimes they'll just amuse themselves which each other and stay clear from the people. |
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| I stopped in my tracks and gasped when I saw this creature. (No joke.) What. The heck. Is it? Ewok + bear + puppy + mouse? |
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| Photo bomber |
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| Just so you know, the dogs will wrangle themselves inside the kitchen area sometimes. But, if you've been in Korea for a while, you probably don't mind as you've seen worse. (Urinals in the kitchen, anyone? Bathroom sink next to the burners?) |
If you check it out, let me know how it goes! And, for you who are in the States, do you think this idea would take off back home?
Caffé Pawz is located at Gangnam-gu Yeoksam-dong 834-8.
It's actually kind of amazing how many places are dog friendly these days. But I'm not convinced that little dog that looks like it has a teddy-bear's head should actually be allowed in there... So weird!
ReplyDeleteIn Canada, there are a lot of dog-friendly places? Is it commmon in restaurants?
ReplyDeleteAnd, that dog so Does look like a teddy bear! I can't believe I didn't see it before!
It is good to take dogs to cafe but should they be allowed on the table? The floor seems slippery....anyway thanks for the info
ReplyDeleteThe floor didn't feel too slick to me. No one was sliding around. The concrete makes it easier to clean up the messes that the dogs make.
ReplyDeleteAnd, even though I've been twice, it's still strange to me to see the dogs on the tables. I guess, when customers come, they're expected to understand that the dogs rule there. :)