Maewoldang | Restaurant Guide | K-Travel Mate

Seowon were private Confucian academies in the Joseon Dynasty established to hold memorial services for distinguished Confucian scholars and to educate the local community. Hwanbong Seowon enshrines General Cheon Man-ri, who commanded 20,000 ironclad Ming dynasty relief troops to suppress the Imjin and Jeongyu Japanese invasions, and who achieved remarkable military accomplishments. It also enshrines his two sons, Sang and Hui, who participated in the expedition. General Cheon Man-ri was a Chinese immigrant naturalized to Joseon during King Seonjo's reign, with the pen name Saam. He was skilled in martial arts, especially known for his expertise in archery. Today, the Cheon clan regards this place as their bon-gwan (ancestral home).

Maewoldang is a café that sells traditional Korean tea made from hand-picked tea leaves harvested in the wild. Their signature drink is Goryeo dancha (fermented wild tea), made by roasting leaves in an cast-iron pot using traditional methods, sourced from a large wild tea plantation discovered in Namwon's Maechon Village. Visitors can enjoy tea in a traditional thatched-roof house, and reservations are required in advance.