I’ve been buying waffles from Waffle University (와플대학, Waffle Daehak) since I was a university student. Not every week. Every now and then. Lately it’s been more often, because there’s one near my place in Itaewon.
It started on the street
When I was a kid, there was always a waffle stall at festivals. I don’t know why they looked so good to me. They just did. They looked crisp, and the shape was pretty. In my memory, the people selling them always talked in sign language.
I only found this out while writing this post: Waffle University started on the street too. The founder, Son Jeong-hee, had been scammed and was down to her last 300,000 won. She put it into a street cart in Sinchon (신촌), a neighborhood full of universities, and sold bungeoppang (붕어빵), the fish-shaped pastry. When the season changed, she switched to waffles, and her twelve kinds of cream became a hit.
The name came from the students. Twelve creams, they said, were like a university’s departments. So it became Waffle University, and around Sinchon it got known as the neighborhood’s fourth university, after Yonsei, Ewha and Sogang.
That’s why the sign says waffle university, and why every branch is called a campus. There are more than 350 in Korea now, and there’s even one in Las Vegas. The one near me is the Itaewon Campus. These days I order inside, at a kiosk. But I still eat mine on the street, because somehow it tastes better out there.
What I order
The strawberry Nutella gelato waffle (딸기누텔라젤라또와플), 6,300 won. Nutella, strawberries and a scoop of gelato, folded inside. The kiosk calls it the shop’s “steady seller.”
You pick the gelato. The Itaewon kiosk lists ten flavors, and none of them cost extra. I go with ricotta cheese. Why? It just looked like it would be the best one.
That’s my order, not a rule. There are a lot of ways to put one together, so build it the way you like.
How it tastes
The waffle is crisp on the outside and soft on the inside.
When I eat ice cream, I usually get it in a cone, because I like the two together.
There’s a popular story about where the cone came from. At the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis, an ice cream stand ran out of dishes, and the waffle stand next door rolled up waffles to hold the ice cream. Historians say cones existed before that, but the fair is where they caught on.
In that story, the cone is a rolled-up waffle. This one skips the rolling, and that’s what makes it better: you get the crunch of a cone, and under it a soft layer that soaks up the gelato.
Then the Nutella. It’s hard to make chocolate spread taste bad, and it keeps a pleasant sweetness going right to the last bite. The strawberries bring just enough sourness to balance it out. That’s why I can’t stop.
Split it
It’s a lot of waffle. I usually share one with a friend. There’s no option for this on the kiosk, so when they hand it over, just ask them to cut it in half:
반으로 잘라주세요 (ban-euro jalla-juseyo) — “Please cut it in half.”
Halved, it’s just right for two. Right after a meal, a whole one can be a lot.
Why it’s worth your time
Banana milk (바나나우유) and Viyott (비요뜨) are on a lot of visitors’ convenience-store lists. By local standards, this is a step above both.
Korea has a lot of great cafés and desserts. On a trip, most people go for the best and most expensive ones. You’re here, so why not.
This isn’t that. It’s something I’ve been eating since university. Now that I work and earn my own money, I’ve had the expensive desserts too. Honestly, not many of them beat this. They all have their own charm, of course. But if I may say so, I think this is the peak of Korean dessert.
No decoration, just what needs to be there. And the price is just as honest.
It’s cheap, it’s a chain, and it’s a safe bet.
Before you go
You don’t need to come to Itaewon for it. It’s a chain, so whichever campus is near where you’re staying should be just as good. Search 와플대학 on a map app. Days off differ from campus to campus, so check the one you want before you go.
If you’re in Itaewon anyway, here’s mine.
Waffle University Itaewon Campus (와플대학 이태원캠퍼스)
1F, 12 Itaewon-ro 26-gil, Yongsan-gu, Seoul (서울 용산구 이태원로26길 12 1층)
Itaewon Station (Line 6), Exit 4, about a 3-minute walk
12:00–22:30
The kiosk speaks English. There’s a language tab at the top: English, Chinese and Japanese.
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