In Daejeon’s punishing heat, the line for Sungsimdang winds on as pastry pilgrims wait
As temperatures soar, crowds from across Korea keep flocking to Daejeon’s landmark bakery, where parasols, ice water and refrigerated lockers have become part of the experience.
Customers wait in line under parasols outside Sungsimdang, Daejeon's best-known bakery.KIM SUNG-TAE
DAEJEON — At around 4 p.m. on Tuesday, about 200 customers were lined up outside the main branch of Sungsimdang — Daejeon’s most well-known bakery — and its nearby cake boutique in Jung District, Daejeon, waiting for their turn.
The temperature climbed to 37 degrees Celsius (98.6 degrees Fahrenheit) that day, which triggered authorities to issue a heat wave advisory.
Despite the sweltering conditions, customers patiently remained in line, wiping away sweat. Many tried to stay cool with parasols, bottles of ice water and hand-held fans.
Most of those in line appeared to have traveled from outside Daejeon, including from Seoul and Busan.
"The heat is intense, but I'm willing to endure it to buy bread from Sungsimdang,” a woman in her 20s from Busan said.
Although the heat wave has continued for days, customers continue to flock to Sungsimdang. In response, the bakery has introduced a range of measures to help customers cope with the extreme heat.
Employees walked along the waiting line distributing ice water and loaner parasols. The bakery provides about 6,000 bottles of frozen water and around 500 parasols each day. It has also installed more than 10 large electric fans around the waiting area.
Bottled water provided to customers waiting in line at Sungsimdang is seen in the image.KIM SUNG-TAE
A sign at the entrance to Sungsimdang asks customers to notify staff if they feel dizzy or need water.KIM SUNG-TAE
"If you feel dizzy or unwell, please notify a nearby staff member. We will provide candy,” a sign posted near the queue reads.
"I came to buy cakes and bread to share with my fellow teachers,” a teacher from Chungju, North Chungcheong, said. “It was hot, but I waited using the parasol provided by Sungsimdang and drinking the bottled water."
The bakery also provides salt-glucose tablets and has prepared emergency heat kits equipped with an automated external defibrillator, cooling pads and other first-aid supplies.
Sungsimdang said it recently treated a customer suffering from heat-related illness.
"Some customers have briefly collapsed because they couldn't withstand the heat, and we've had to call 119 emergency responders," a Sungsimdang staff member said. "Quite a few of the parasols are never returned, but we continue to provide them because we want to take care of our customers."
The employee added that many customers arrive early in the morning without eating in hopes of being among the first inside.
"Because of that, we plan to continue providing bottled water, parasols, salt-glucose tablets and candy through August while the extreme heat continues," the official said.
Regarding the long lines, the official said the bakery had previously tested a numbered-ticket system but found it unsuitable for customer flow and queue management, so it has continued to use an on-site waiting system.
A customer stores bread purchased at Sungsimdang in a locker at a storage facility in an underground shopping arcade near the bakery's main branch.KIM SUNG-TAE
Sungsimdang's popularity has also created a niche business: storage services dedicated to pastries and cakes.
About 15 storage businesses operate in the underground shopping arcade and at street level next to the bakery's main branch. A nearby hotel has also installed storage lockers. All operate as unmanned self-service facilities.
Each location has between 40 and 50 lockers, most of which are used to store pastries, cakes and other bread items purchased at Sungsimdang. During a visit on Tuesday,many lockers contained Sungsimdang shopping bags.
Prices vary by location, ranging from 2,700 won ($1.90) for three hours to between 4,000 won and 8,000 won for all-day storage, with payment made by credit card.
Such businesses first appeared about two years ago and have continued to increase in number.
"I started this business specifically to serve Sungsimdang customers,” theowner of one unmanned storage facility said. “Since it doesn't require employees and Sungsimdang remains consistently popular, the income has been fairly good."
Customers select bread at Sungsimdang in Daejeon.KWEN HYEK-JAE
Customers typically store their purchases before sightseeing around Daejeon or attending baseball games. Daejeon is home to the KBO baseball team Hanwha Eagles.
"I was worried the cake might get spoiled, but I felt relieved after using a refrigerated storage locker,” Lee Seo-hyun, who visited from Seoul with friends, said. “After storing the cake, we visited [amusement park] O-World, Yuseong and other attractions around Daejeon."
BY KIM BANG-HYUN [kim.jiye@joongang.co.kr]
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
