For as long as I can remember I have been saying that Seoul needs some good donut shops. The only place to find them in the city is Old Ferry Donut, and the big chains. Well finally my dessert prayers have been answered and several have recently opened up. One place that is gaining a lot of popularity is Butter Book, which is located up on the residential hills of HBC not too far from the ogeori. We decided to walk up there from the main strip, and we soon worked up quite the appetite as it’s up quite a steep hill. If you are feeling lazy you are probably better off catching the little green bus up the hill.
The shop itself is cute as a button, painted in a lovely lemon colour. When we arrived at 12:30pm and were informed that the shop doesn’t technically open until 1pm however we could buy some goodies to go. We were quite happy with this arrangement as it meant we beat the weekend crowd. There are four flavours of donuts available, Vanilla (4,000), Lemon (4,000), Chocolate (4,000) and Strawberry (4,300). They also have a selection of scones and some milk teas, making it quite British in style.
The thing that I was most keen to try were the donuts. In the UK we cover our donuts in real sugar rather than that horrible powdered sugar so this was a real plus for me. However the donuts here are filled with flavoured creams rather than jams which is what we tend to prefer. In the end I decided to try the Lemon Donut (4,000). The donut itself was spot on, just like home, but the lemon cream didn’t pack enough citrus punch. I prefer my lemon donuts to be filled with a super sweet and sour lemon curd. We also got a Strawberry Donut (4,300) but again loved the donut but didn’t care for the filling. However they do sell homemade jam separate, so you could always take out the cream and refill it with the jam. Messy but possibly worth it.
Overall I’m glad we visited this place, and I think it is great news that donuts are becoming more popular. Hopefully someone might start making them with the same fillings we get back home. If you like the Korean style cake frostings then you will probably enjoy this spot, however if you like your desserts super sweet you might be left wanting something a bit more.
Butter Book is located at 20, Sinheung-ro 15-gil, Yongsan-gu, Seoul. To get there a train to Noksapyeong Station and come out of exit 2. Cross the street and take the local number 2 green bus up the hill to the top of the Ogari (5 way intersection). You can follow the instructions on the map from there. For more information you can message them on Instagram.