Technically speaking, Sungsimdang is located in Eunhaeng-dong, not Daeheung-dong.  Nevertheless, we could not miss out on a chance to visit one of Korea’s best-known bakeries right in the vicinity of where we were headed. Sungsimdang’s main store is just a block away from the Daeheung-dong border. To many people, the name of the bakery is almost synonymous with Daejeon as it is the leading brand of the city. Begun as a street vendor in front of Daejeon Station in 1956, the bakery has four company-operated stores in Daejeon alone. Start your morning with some dark-roast drip coffee and Sungsimdang’s flagship ‘fried soboro.’ The best-seller stuffs sweet red bean paste inside the bread before frying it in the oil. It was first made to see how diverse flavors of a sweet red bean bun, a savory soboro, and a crispy donut would blend together. The result was eye-opening. Newly released fried chocolate soboros celebrating the 40th anniversary of the birth of fried soboro also sell well. (A fried soboro is coated with chocolate syrup.) At the main store, even the employees seem like they have aged together with the bakery, giving a warm, cozy vibe. One soboro bun is 1,000 won, which is relatively affordable. It’s a bakery that you would wish to have in your own neighborhood.  You can take the purchased bread upstairs to sit at a table. Next-door dessert shop ‘Sungsimdang Cake Boutique’ offers a variety of sliced cakes.
Address 15 Daejong-ro 480beon-gil, Jung-gu, Daejeon
Phone 1588-8069
Hours Mon-Thu 08:00-22:00, Fri-Sun 08:00-23:00
Homepage www.sungsimdang.co.kr

Daeheung-dong still has modern architecture that contributes to its cultural and artistic atmosphere. The former Chungcheongnam-do Office, where Daejeon Modern History Exhibition Hall is today, was built in 1932, and is frequently used as a filming site for movies and TV series, including < The Attorney >, < Anarchist from Colony >, < The Classified File >, and < Queen of Mystery >, because of its western architectural style and classic exterior and interior. The building may not leave that big an impression on screen, but if you see it in person, it will surely strike you as stunning. Large windows let in plenty of sunlight for even more dramatic scenes.
At noon, a bell tolls somewhere. Twice a day, Daeheungdong Cathedral rings the bell. Established in 1962, the cathedral reinterpreted gothic style architecture in a contemporary way. There is no pointed spire you see in other ordinary cathedral structures. Upon completion, it was the tallest building in Daeheung-dong and could be seen from a distance, so it served as a great meeting venue.
 

Anybody who seeks out delicacies probably knows that one of the signature foods of Daejeon is dubu(tofu) duruchigi. Duruchigi is grilled bean curd with some kind of meat, vegetables, and sauce. Dubu duruchigi usually entails stir-frying tofu, pork, and vegetables, but in Daejeon you can enjoy duruchigi cooked with tofu as the main ingredient. Jinrojip is a diner famous for dubu duruchigi with over half a century in history. Turn into a narrow alley following the ‘Jinrojip’ sign, and you’ll find the entrance to the diner on cul de sac. As with many other famous restaurants, one wall is covered with rows of restaurant photographs captured off ‘matjip’ programs on TV. When you order dubu duruchigi, a red sauce dish with tofu, onions, and large green onions is served. You can choose to make it super-spicy, medium-spicy, or mild. To enjoy the original flavor of duruchigi, you should select medium-spicy. The less sweet, spicy flavor will arouse your appetite. Scoop up a spoonful of tofu and sauce, mix them with the rice, and you’ll find yourself asking for a second helping. You can also put in an extra order of noodles to add to the dish.
Address 45-5, Junggyo-ro, Jung-gu, Daejeon
Phone +82-42-226-0914
Hours 11:00-22:00, Breaktime 15:00-16:30

If you’ve found an interesting place on the Internet while searching for ‘Daejeon Daeheung-dong cafes,’ chances are that it is ‘Samusil.’ When you enter the old building where the cafe is located, you’ll inevitably wonder if there really is a cafe in such a worn-down structure. But the moment you open the door on the second floor, you will be amazed at the unexpected view of ‘Samusil’ which means office. There are platanus trees outside the large windows that, combined with people picking up their coffees at the bar, create a great pseudo-office scene. The cafe is run by a group of four friends in their 20s, and it’s their first project carried out under the banner ‘Gyemyun.’ According to the young CEOs, the banner expression means ‘interface’ as they think that there is a need for a cultural communication window in society. The quaint cafe would serve as a cultural complex by offering not just drinks but cultural content as well. So the CEOs use the space as their hangout and office, which is how they got the name ‘Samusil.’
The blue carpeted floor that draws your attention right when you go in makes the space look like an ordinary office. Recently, however, they tried changing the atmosphere by removing the carpet and introducing brown, earth-tone props. “It is our hangout spot so we make changes whenever we feel it’s necessary. I think we will likely shake things up a bit each year.” With a different look, it is still a photo-worthy space. For your menu selection, we recommend Tomato Basil Ade and Vanilla Bean Cheese Mousse Cake. The ade comes with peeled cherry tomatoes in the beverage. The sweet tomato flavor blends well with fragrant basil. The cake is decorated with sugar art garnish, which is a perfect match for a cup of coffee.
Address 2F, 3 Daejong-ro 452beon-gil, Jung-gu, Daejeon
Phone +82-507-1322-6138
Hours 11:00~23:00
Instagram www.instagram.com/samusil_coffee

Before becoming a cultural complex, Temiorae used to be an official residence offered to a high-ranking official or the governor of Chungcheongnam-do. In 1932, with the relocation of Chungcheongnam-do Office from Gongju to Daejeon, a village of official residences was formed in Temiorae, which is just 15 minutes away from the provincial office. Each residence, including the Governor’s Residence, has a different construction date. Except for one building that is now gone, there are five that were completed in 1932 and four that were built in the 1970s. It’s the only place in Korea where you can find a whole village of residences dating back to the Japanese colonial era. Until 2012, the governor of Chungcheongnam-do did actually live here. After the provincial office relocated to Hongseong from Daejeon, the residence sat empty till April 2019 when it reopened as a cultural complex for the public after renovation.
Today, Temiorae operates various exhibition programs and artist residency programs in each building. The Governor’s Residence is now an exhibition space for modern history, shedding light on the city’s modern history and its significance, as well as displaying documents regarding its own history. The Governor’s Residence has the characteristics of the colonial Japan, Western, and Korean architectural trends. It is a pleasant experience to observe details such as Western red brick walls and art deco-style vertical windows, and Korean hanok’s toenmaru(wooden porch) and ondol system. There are also a number of spots suitable for Instagram shots that could potentially get you a lot of ‘likes.’ In the meantime, Residence No. 1 holds events related to local literature and theatersd, while Residence No. 5 offers a travelers’ lounge complete with travel books. Overall, two hours will be enough to take a look around the entire Temiorae. Residences are connected via well-kept trails. Try imagining you are walking in the 1930s’ Daejeon while looking around the gardens in Temiorae. Cherry blossoms are quite a sight on nearby Temisan Mountain come spring, which is another good time to visit Temiorae. 
Address 27 Bomun-ro 205beon-gil, Jung-gu, Daejeon
Phone +82-42-335-5701
Hours 10:00-16:00(Winter season), Closed on Monday
Homepage temiorae.com

If you are looking for a good cup of coffee in a cozy atmosphere in Daeheung-dong, look for Golmok Coffee Roasters. The place offers a warm, comfortable atmosphere and a variety of hand drip coffee using hand roasted beans. A cat named Cherry always welcomes customers. Opened in early 2018, Golmok Coffee Roasters sits a step away from the bustling streets of Daeheung-dong. “We had long dreamed of making our own coffee.” Owners Choi Seong-hwan and Choi Kyung-mi explained they started the cafe business to make coffee themselves. When they saw the store lot nestled on a quiet street, they instantly fell in love with the location. So they named the cafe ‘Golmok’(alley) and decorated the space with plants and hardwood pieces that they liked.
Golmok specializes in hand drip specialty coffee, and its signature menu is also a hand drip. So order a cup of ‘Today’s Hand Drip’ to be served fresh coffee using seasonal or trendy beans that the cafe recommends. The owners bring in a new batch of coffee beans every week to introduce diverse coffee flavors to local customers. Other than coffee, they also sell ginseng tea brewed from the matured, six-year-old ginseng. They recently added snacks to the menu for those who would like some food with their drinks. Simple salads, bagels, and sandwiches are on the menu. The most popular choice is ‘Egg Bun’ which is made with brown bread, also known as ‘Bushman Bread.’ At 4 o’clock in the afternoon, after the busy morning and lunch hours have passed, the atmosphere changes in the cafe with the sunlight creeping through the space. Enjoy your break as you sit in a cafe, listening to the gentle background music.
Address 22 Daeheung-ro 71beon-gil, Jung-gu, Daejeon
Phone +82-42-222-8440
Hours Mon-Fri 08:00-21:00, Sat 12:00-21:00, Closed on Sunday
Instagram www.instagram.com/golmok_coffeeroasters

Choosing bookshop < Dadareuda > as the last stop of your Daeheung-dong trip is a right decision. If you get to chat with Kim Jun-tae who owns the bookstore, you will surely want to return to Daeheung-dong again. He is an expert guide of the neighborhood with enough knowledge to operate his own neighborhood tours that are three or six hours long. He also creates cultural content in regards to the old downtown of Daeheung-dong. “‘Yo La Tengo’ is a music pub where the vocalist of Daejeon-based independent band ‘Wantae’ is in charge of the kitchen. The keywords there are ‘people, location, and warm welcome.’ It’s such a warm place. Adonis is a 24-year-old traditional bar. If you tell the bartender how you feel that day, they’ll make you a whiskey that matches the situation. Make sure you go there.” The list of Daeheung-dong places he strongly recommends went on and on like the red shoes in the storybook that never stops dancing.
Dadareuda is an independent bookshop run by City Traveller. Kim had run a traveler’s cafe and bookstore for eight years but redesigned his business amid intensifying gentrification. He kept the company name ‘City Traveller’ but opened a new bookstore named ‘Dadareuda.’ “Daejeon has a young population that’s quite large. Over 35 percent of the citizens are young and there are 19 universities in and around the city. I thought I could inspire them through ‘travel’ to lead a more self-motivated life. That’s how City Traveller was launched. I am currently involved in various culture projects under the motto, ‘Break down the barrier between everyday and travel.’” Dadareuda connects people through the medium of books and encourages them to read.  Reading clubs and book talks are regularly held, and if you visit the bookstore by yourself, you can get 1:1 curation service for free. Name three keywords in your mind, and Kim will pick three books for you. We recommend that you buy at least one souvenir from Dadareuda, whether it is a book, coffee from the first floor, airpod case with a Kkumdoli character on it, or some other goods. His bookshop journal and sentences from a book of his recommendation will be printed on the receipt. It’s a perfect souvenir to remember the day trip in Daeheung-dong by.
Address 6 Junggyo-ro 73beon-gil, Jung-gu, Daejeon
Phone +82-10-9430-2715
Hours 12:00-20:00, Closed on Tuesday
Instagram www.instagram.com/differeach

LOTTE City Hotel Daejeon is located about 10 minute drive away from Daejeon Station. The 18-story hotel has a total of 306 rooms and suites. Buffet restaurant C’café offers diverse cuisine along with a breathtaking view of the city from the top floor. At night, guests can relax in a cozy room and watch the famous night view of Expo Bridge.
Address 33 Expo-ro 123beon-gil, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon
Phone +82-42-333-1000
Homepage www.lottehotel.com/daejeon-city