Papa's Happy Pie
Have you ever eaten a pastry so good, you wished it was healthy? Yeah it’s the dream. We all have our vices with certain foods. I like to indulge in several different kinds of chocolates and ice cream. Recently I stumbled upon something that I would have never predicted to happen. I found one of the best pie shops in South Korea.
I was spending one of those lazy Saturday mornings where you know you could get up and start your day, but you’d rather lay in bed and check social media or maybe make a cup of coffee only to return to bed and pretend like you need the caffeine to fully get up. After my girlfriend and I got a craving for something sweet and savory we started googling brunch places nearby.
A restaurant popped up as the first option and it read Papas Happy Pie. I called the number and a man picked up and answered in Korean. I asked him in Korean if he could speak English and he switched to English. We ended up going there and it was great. As the name indicates, each slice of these pies makes you want to try more and more. You don’t even have to feel bad about it, because each slice has no more than 4 grams of sugar because sugar is not the main source of the sweetness. What’s the secret? I had wonderful opportunity to meet the owner, Scott Lee and his family to find out.
I came back for a second time for an interview and his whole family was present, which was a warm welcome. Scott is joined with his wife Yonghwa Yoem and son Juwon Lee, who also manage the store. We spoke about the shop’s timeline, their current menu, and their aspirations for the future. I was able to try most of their dinner menu options first hand. Most customers would not be aware that it exists because it is a secret menu. Many would think a pie shop would not be able to dip into the realm of dinner dishes, but said opinions would be convinced otherwise after visiting Papas Happy Pie. While his culinary prowess is adept, Scott likes to humble himself by explaining that he first developed an interest in baking at the age of nine, but his first pies that he cooked turned out less than satisfactory. The Lee family shared fun and interesting stories about each other and you can really feel the mom and pop atmosphere simply by speaking with them.
Dinner Courses
We dined inside their quaint shop at a table that was able to seat four. The Lee family prepared salad, bread, pasta, and pie for me to eat. It was great. The pasta was prepared well and Scott allowed me to sample some of their artisan olive oil that they carry at the shop with the bread. The garlic was slowly cooked with care to allow it to remain flavorful and soft. Everything was cooked perfectly and even the salad was noteworthy, which emerged with individuality through the quality of their fresh fruits.
Scott explained that initially close friends would meet up for dinner with the family and they had the idea of expanding the menu to include dinner dishes. Now they have started to include a two option, six course dinner. Customers have the choice of a pasta or a steak course at the price of ₩20,000 and ₩50,000 respectively. Each dinner will include a salad, bread, homemade soup, and the main course.
Pies
The additional menu compliments their specialties nicely. Having these plates allow you to get the full dining experience. The pie shop does make for a quaint date or catch up with a few friends. If you want to keep it strictly dessert oriented, then don’t forget that there are blueberry cheese, raspberry, pumpkin yuja, pumpkin, maple pecan and maple walnut. If the regular sets of pies don’t entice you, then consider that they also have six seasonal pies that include apple, halabong, Jeju carrot, mandarin, nectarine, and persimmon. Do you have a gluten issue? Problem solved. Papas Happy Pies features a sixteen piece Pumpkin Petit set that can be made to order for those friends who had been previously held back due to their dietary restrictions. The set is only available as a set and cannot be ordered in single portions, so make sure your friend is game to eat it all. Or you could help them out a bit. It’s the least you can do.
Single slices are ₩3,200 and a whole pie, which consists of ten is ₩32,000. Why ten slices? The Lee family feels that this is a good portion to have with a cup of coffee and its better for the digestive system. Plus the Lee family states that they are the first among Korean pie shops to cut an eight inch or twenty centimeter pie into ten slices. The pie shop makes many delivery orders that are perfect for birthdays, special occasions, or just plain shameless, self indulgence. Ready to made orders are available both for their pies and dinner options. Lee mentioned that the dinners are available from Wednesday-Saturday by reservation only at a one day, one table basis. Keep in mind that these can book up especially during peak season, so there is a possibility that a reservation request can be refused. I hope to make a reservation soon and when I do I’ll let you all know. Scott If you are an expat, native, or just a plain dessert chaser in South Korea, you best stop by at the most scrumptious pie shop this side of the DMZ.
Address
경기도 부천시 원미구 조마루로97번길 33-14 103호
No. 97, No. 33-14, No. 103, Jomaru Road, Wonmi-gu, Bucheon City, Gyeonggi Province
Directions
Check out the map and the written directions so you don’t get lost! It’s just a 10 minute walk from the station.
Get off at Sang-Dong Station Exit 2 and walk down Sang Dong-ro (상동로), which will be walking away from Save Zone. Keep walking for about 300 meters until you get to Songnae Daero 265 Beon Gil (성내대로 265 번길) and turn left. Walk on this road for about 100 meters and you will see a yellow, circular Papas Happy Pie sign and you will have reached your destination.
If you would like to about orders are date reservations please feel free to give Scott a call with the number below. Delivery options are possible as well!
Papas Happy Pie
Tel. 070-7517-7129
Fax. 032-614-7129
Mobile. 010-8382-7129
Email. scotch@paran.com / papas@happypie.kr