Oh Wow. Many thanks for this post @teriyaki. Coffee Prince is the first K-drama I saw and while it wasn't my gateway to K-drama addiction, it was definitely a step in that direction. ^^

What I loved about this show was the sensitivity with which it treated Han Gyul's growing attraction to another 'man'. This is perfectly encapsulated by his reaction to the revelation that Eun Chan is not, in fact, male. Han Gyul feels hurt, anger and betrayal - because he suffered so much and fought so hard to understand and accept what he was feeling and how he could feel this way towards a man - before coming to (happy) terms with the realisation.

Coffee Prince is a timeless classic for this alone.

FINALLY, THE BEST K-DRAMA IN THE HISTORY OF K-DRAMA.

Thanks for this post @teriyaki. Coffee Prince has been my all time favorite drama, so much so that I rewatched it over and over again! I loved and still love this pair - Han Gyul and Eun Chan. The cast and characters were great, the camaraderie between the princes was great the coffee shop. The supporting cast and characters were great, especially the ajhussi and ajhummas. Only character I disliked was Yoo Jo for her pendulum mind, switching boyfriends and displaying zero loyalty and then expecting 200 times more loyalty from others.

The actors did a great job and there were explosive reactions, disagreements and more. I rarely download dramas, but this was the first drama I loved so much that I ended up downloading as I went back to watch it again and again!

Aww Coffee Prince. Definitely in my top favorites of all time. A true classic (and it's recently been released on Blu-ray in Korea after 10 years!) I am currently re-watching (for the nth time) this with my sister who is watching it for the first time despite her love for Gong Yoo (shocking! but better late than never). And she is going gaga over it. Haha!

I watched this when it came out and I was young then. I did not fully understand the complicated relationships and had little appreciation for the themes bravely tackled by the show considering it was in an era when those themes were controversial or taboo. After having watched it now that I am older, it felt both familiar and new. It felt new because I was able to have deeper understanding of the characters and their choices. The themes surrounding gender and sex were handled with sensitivity without glossing over them. The drama and the character just truly feel real to me.

I remember enjoying this drama but I didn't know what to make of it. When I just rewatched Coffee Prince a few weeks ago, I definitely appreciate it more the second time around. This drama does not feel dated and the story is just as relatable today as it was in 2007.

Coffee Prince, hmm.... many things were way annoying and I didn´t understand what was likable about this or that. I mostly liked the old coffee house master and granny. Favorite scene: smelly socks in that back room and Eun Chan chatting with Granny (was it having ice cream? can´t remember). Han Gyul´s relationship with granny was the best part, but in general he seemed a bit stupid. all the other guys, excluding Master, didn´t like them. well, ok Kim Jae Wook´s pancake guy was ok, a no-nonsense type.

how does Gong Yoo look EXACTLY the same as he does in Goblin? :o

I can never get over my love for coffee prince. I've re-watched it numerous times and it still pulls at my heart. I love the very down-to-earth directing the show has throughout despite the high emotions towards the middle/end. There is always a sense that this story is grounded and that makes it so much easier to immerse yourself in it.

There were lots of different relationships explored in this drama - both platonic and romantic. While I didn't love them all like I did with the main couple, they were still interesting and/or sweet.

Is it a shame I didn't watch CP yet?
But I scared will miss YEH too much considered nothing can feed me with her MIA for decades :(

Had to watch this because of Yoon Eun-hye (fresh from Goong fever) and discovering Gong Yoo was such a delight! Can't believe it's been 10 years though.

The drama's soundtrack will also remain as one of my favorites of all time :)

I loved Coffee Prince:
The story, the romance, the companionship, the relationships in Han Gyul's family, and the list keeps going on. One of the best k-dramas ever and it stands out because it manages to be different while being mainstream.

I don't know how this is so timely because even though Coffee Prince reminds me of my old kdrama watching days, it also reminds me of Lee Eon's lost. He played the gruff but good-natured Min-Yeop who has a crush on Eun-Chan's little sis. He was like the Kwangsoo of the older days. Model-turned-comedic-actor. All I actually know what that he passed away because of a motorcycle incident, not so long after Coffee Prince aired. I googled when he died and it was actually August 21, 2008. Darn, that coincidence made me a sad. :(

One of the bestest korean dramas of all time, and the 3rd drama korean drama i watched and i absolutely loved it. It feels funny to say, i wasnt much attracted to Gong Yoo in coffee prince, though he was manly in it, but after watching train to busan and goblin, i want to see more and more of him.. I just cant get enough.

I am terribly missing yoon eun hye in dramaland. She needs to come back with a good project , and i consider her one of the best actress in korea.

Triple shots espresso!!!
Gonna re-binge-watch this over the weekend!

Coffee Prince remains to be the only hyped show that lived up to it's hype. I was warry by that point because I cringed through all of the other older "classics" so I went into this fully expecting it to be the same. But I found they storytelling so fresh and different! I love the OST! Some soundtracks of Tearliner are still on my playlist. And I don't know how many time I've rewatched that beach scene. ❤️

If I made a romance story I would have written one like the relationship of Han Sung and Yoo Joo. Their relationship is complicated and shattering in some ways, but it feels very human. There were so many strong and conflicted emotions in this drama despite the light and breezy tone.
One thing that I actually like best was the cinematography and directing. It felt like an indie tv show and the places of the setting reveals itself so naturally.

yasss, i will always love Coffee Prince and all the characters/cast members....

Coffee Prince!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My second kdrama love of all times after Goong
Gosh I miss Yoon Eun Hye soo much :-( :-(

Finally!! Thank you @Teriyaki. Coffee Prince definitely has special place in my heart as one of first Kdrama along with Goong and Endless Love aka Autumn Tale. Is there anyone interested to post Goong? Pleaseeee…..

I watched this drama because of Yoon Eunhye and she did not disappoint. She immersed herself in her role making her believable as a boy. Even when they were already a couple, I liked how she did not suddenly change.

Aside from Yoon Eunhye, through this drama I discovered Gong Yoo. I became a fan since then. I really want to see these two reunite in a drama.

Thank you for revisiting one of my most beloved K-drama.
This is a breakthrough in terms of the storyline which was best portrayed in Han Gyul's character who was ready to love a 'man'.
Gong Yoo 10 years ago is just as hot as the present Gong Yoo. How can that possibly happen? This is the best work of YEH, imo.

Coffee Prince was my second ever kdrama after Jewell in the Palace, and it was the drama that got me hocked to Korean dramas. Since CP no drama has made me feel the same way until Healer came along, and I wonder if I would have to wait another 9 years to feel the same.

Thanks for this post. Coffee Prince is one of the dramas I have watched a number of times. I, however, do not really like the last episode that much. I do not know why the show had to introduce the (in this case) needless theme of separation, or going away for a couple of years to be more specific.

I am still hoping for a Gong Yoo and Yoon Eun-hye drama reunion. Also, it's so sad that two cast members from that show are dead. Lee Eon died in 2008, and Kim Ja-ok died in 2014.

My very first K-drama and one of the few dramas I have re-watched.

Considering it came out in 2007, I found it a drama that was and is still ahead of its time.

I loved how they handled Han Gyul's attraction to the "male" Eun Chan. How it did not matter that she was a "guy" nor what anyone else would say, what mattered was love.

I also loved how passionate Han Gyul's and Eun Chan's love was. No deer-caught-in-the lights kiss scenes, they even slept together! How many dramas since then have failed in that department?

I thoroughly enjoyed most of the supporting characters and their storylines. Though to be honest I did not quite enjoy the second leads ?, nor did I like the extra episode.

This is one drama I recommend to anyone who wants to start on K-dramas and will bea favorite for many years to come still. ?

i was so waiting for this post.. and was surprised how no one bothered to watch , rewatch CF... i mean it has to be THE LAUNCH drama for international fans.. and the other i am waiting for someone to watch and recap boys over flowers :P

This show did so many things well and no show has been able to duplicate it since. Having friends that went through questioning their own sexuality, Gong Yoo was a master in portraying the dichotomy of your mind telling you what you're heart is feeling is utterly reprehensible. The scene by the beach will forever be seared in my memory as the most touching, but most heartbreaking scene of any kdrama I've watched. I can go on about how impressed I was with this drama, how it explored love in a way that kdramas had not prior and not since. I'm ready for a drama that pushes the envelope even further and have a homosexual relationship outright. Because with the right actors, it would be phenomenal.

I put off watching Coffee Prince for a long time, probably because it was so iconic. When I did watch it, a couple of years ago, I was amazed at what felt like the realism of the drama. It wasn't as over the top as many of the Korean rom-coms I had watched to that point (okay, comparing it to "You're Beautiful", "Playful Kiss" and "My Girlfriend is a Guhimo" maybe skewing the perspective a bit), but it felt more lifelike than the other dramas I had seen. The music, the angst, THAT KISS (oh heck, EVERY KISS) - it all enthralled me. Then I found the English translation of the novel online and fell in love all over again. I read it once a year, and watch CP clips every now and again.

The *one* irritation is how the second leads wind up in the drama, the book's wrap up for their plotline I found more satisfying.

Coffee Prince was one of my first dramas and it's still one of my favorites. It definitely withstands the test of time. I especially (like a few others have said) enjoyed the sensitivity in which the show treats Han Gyul's feelings of falling in love with a man. It was never a joke and it was interesting to watch his struggle. (Fingers crossed we'll see an actual gay/lesbian drama like this from Korea one day).

My only problem with the drama is the back and forth of Mr. A and Ms. B gets a little annoying, but even then, it's kind of real. I feel like even a lot of dramas today can't even compete with some of the depth this drama went for.

This was my first modern-era K-Drama. I am nervous to rewatch it since I loved it so much! Lee Sun-Kyun is so lovable in this drama. This is when symptoms for my my first case of K-Drama Second Lead Syndrome broke out!

Coffee Prince has long been my no. 1 favourite drama (recently Goblin has come in as an equal no. 1, but I swear it has nothing to do with Gong Yoo :P ). I have actually watched Coffee Prince at least 7 times now and was just thinking recently it was time to watch it again.
It was the 3rd or 4th kdrama I watched and I remember being shocked at how they dealt with the kissing scenes - in particular the scene where Han-sung and Yoo-joo reunite for the first time. The scene was passionate and there were real kisses, which was a bit of shock after the terrible kdrama kisses (we have all come to love and hate) in the other dramas I had watched.

There is just so much to love about Coffee Prince, such as the fact that it took a sympathetic and progressive stance on same sex relationships and that Eun-chan was not your typical helpless girlie lead, who gives up her career and dreams for the man she loved. I particularly love how the show dealt with the growing relationship between Eun-chan and Han-Gyul and that the same sex attraction was not played simply for laughs. Han-Gyul's growing attraction to Eun-chan, the discovery that she was a woman and the aftermath of this discover were all handled wonderfully.

For me, the beach scene where Eun-chan is asleep and Hang-Gyul lays next to her is possibly the most beautiful and moving love scene in any drama or movie I have watched (both Korean and non-Korean).

And finally, for my money, no other kdrama or other drama I have watched has had such a perfect OST/music score (Goblin recently came close). Not only were all the songs fantastically matched to the drama, they also played an important role in many cases in drawing out the emotion and storyline. For example, after Eun-chan and Han-Gyul fight but have still not admitted how they feel about each other, the song played as they drunkenly dance down the street is No Brain's You've Fallen For Me and the scene when the fight after the beach, Arco's Alien plays on the car radio. Both songs just extend the emotion and deepened storyline.

Even after all these years, I am still in love with Coffee Prince and despite it now being 10 years old, it is still definitely one of the best kdramas out there.

Thanks, TeriYaki, for a dandy stroll down memory lane with COFFEE PRINCE. You have reminded me that I'm overdue for another viewing of this touching tale. I vaguely recall stumbling across Kdramas for the first time on Hulu in July 2012, and initially only watched various flavors of sageuks, starting with DR. JIN. I used to see COFFEE PRINCE in the listings, and got intrigued. I think it was the first contemporary Kdrama I watched, and I loved it to bits. The OST and background music beautifully underscored the action, and were a feast for the ears.

The cast is wonderful, with many fine veteran actors supporting the handsome slingers of consciousness in a cup. Yoon Eun-hye's total immersion in the character Go Eun-chan is nothing short of marvelous. She is convincing as a tomboy, but it is her earnestness and desperation as the young head of household saddled with her feckless mother's debts that really gets to me. Choi Han-gyul is one of my all-time favorite lovable scamps, especially in relation to his formidable grandma. The way he spars and flirts with her is hilarious, but also touching. The deftness of the range and nuance of Gong Yoo's performance blew my doors off, particularly as his inner turmoil builds up to his “I don't care if you're a man or an alien” monologue. I'm tearing up just recalling the emotions it induced in me as I watched.

COFFEE PRINCE has become one of my prime touchstones for judging the emotional impact of Kdramas -- and a big factor in my ditching American TV. The show has oodles of heart, and hits me where I live, in a good way. It is so much more than just a rom-com with cross-dressing.

Coffee Prince was the definitive drama that made me into a k-drama fan and it still remains, to this day, as my all time number 1 favorite romance drama. It had a love story for the ages and my hopeless romantic self was shook to the core.

This drama is probably the mother of all contemporary gender bender roles. Before Goblin, Gong Yoo was already a fashion icon with his European dandy boy style from Coffee Prince. He was so beautiful as Choi Han Gyul. The story was touching the first half of the series especially when Han Gyul was trying to deal with a possible homosexual relationship with Eun Chan. Gong Yoo delivered the character with such tenderness and vulnerability that it made me cry but at the same time cheered when he finally had the courage to reveal his true feelings.

Top favourite and on the top of my annual re-watch list! Yeah I always rewatch Coffee Prince once a year during summer.

I also rewatch some episodes everytime I get bored by running dramas or if I need to recover after watching bad dramas LOL

My fave is Episode 6 which represents the whole spectrum of Coffee Prince. Hilarious and emotional at the same time, plus worries and hopes too.

For me no other dramas has topped CP until now especially in terms of versatility and relevance to current issues.

OH this drama. My first drama ever and I loved every second of it. It was also something that brought my grandmother and I closer. It was shown in the Spanish Channel Pasiones and she couldn't get enough of it.
I honestly feel that this show is the gateway to k-drama addiction cause now if they ever show any type of drama in that channel my grandmother is asking me if I've seen it or if I know what its about. Such awesome memories with this one.