Lee Dong-gun addresses rumors his Jeju cafe 'failed' after just 18 months

Actor Lee Dong-gun said on the Nov. 1 episode of SBS’s My Little Old Boy that he plans to relocate his Jeju cafe to Seoul because traveling between the two places made it difficult to run. He said the cafe operated on Jeju for almost a year and six months and that the distance made it hard to meet the standard he wanted. Lee opened the cafe in Aewol in April last year; it announced a temporary closure for reorganization in July. Another brand was operating at the site in September.

Lee said he and spatial designer Ryu Jeong-su decided he should try again somewhere closer to him in Seoul.

Lee said he felt he was doing his best but still could not satisfy people, which he found difficult.

Lee’s preparations for opening the cafe and his experiences running it were featured on My Little Old Boy.

The cafe announced in July that it would temporarily close for reorganization.

Published Nov 2, 2026 12:01 pm KST

Lee Dong-gun / Xportsnews

Actor Lee Dong-gun has addressed rumors that his cafe on Jeju Island "failed," shutting down just a year and a half after opening, saying the decision was driven by the difficulty of traveling back and forth from Seoul.

On the Nov. 1 episode of SBS variety show "My Little Old Boy," Lee visited spatial designer Ryu Jeong-su's studio with actors Im Won-hee and Cho Jin-se.

The group was surprised to see that Ryu’s home even had a swimming pool. When asked whether he actually used it, Ryu said, "I'm basically the cleaning staff. Even if I clean all day, it never ends."

Lee Dong-gun / Captured from SBS

"The first thing I did when I went to work at my cafe on Jeju Island was clean the pond," Lee said.

Im then brought up the fate of Lee's cafe directly.

"I heard rumors that your Jeju cafe went under. What happened?" he asked.

Lee denied that the closure meant the business had simply failed, saying he is now preparing to relocate the cafe to Seoul.

"We operated on Jeju Island for almost a year and six months," Lee said. "But honestly, traveling back and forth between Seoul and Jeju was much harder than I expected."

He said the distance also made it difficult to operate the cafe to the standard he wanted.

"I felt like I was doing my best but still couldn't satisfy people, and that was difficult," Lee said. "So I talked with Jeong-su and decided that I should try even harder somewhere closer to me in Seoul."

Lee opened the cafe in Aewol in April last year, drawing attention as another celebrity venturing into the cafe business. His preparations for the opening and his experiences running the business were also featured on "My Little Old Boy."

The cafe announced in July that it would temporarily close for reorganization. Speculation about its future grew after another brand was found operating at the location in September, effectively signaling the end of Lee's cafe at the Jeju site.

Lee's latest comments suggest, however, that he has not abandoned the business altogether, but is instead looking to give it another try closer to home in Seoul.

This article from Xportsnews was adapted by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.

演员李东健在11月1日播出的SBS综艺节目《我家的小男孩》中透露，他计划将济州岛的咖啡馆迁至首尔，因为往返两地经营十分不便。他表示，这家咖啡馆在济州岛经营了近一年半，但距离太远，难以达到他预期的标准。李东健去年4月在Aewol开设了这家咖啡馆，7月宣布暂时歇业进行重组。9月，另一家品牌入驻该店址。

李说，他和空间设计师柳正洙决定，他应该在首尔附近找个离他更近的地方再试一次。

李说他觉得自己已经尽力了，但仍然无法让人们满意，这让他感到很困难。

《我的小老头》节目中报道了李为开设咖啡馆所做的准备以及他经营咖啡馆的经历。

该咖啡馆于7月宣布将暂时关闭进行重组。

发布于2026年11月2日下午12:01（韩国标准时间）

李东健 / Xportsnews

演员李东健就有关他在济州岛的咖啡馆“失败”的传闻做出回应，称开业仅一年半就关门的原因是往返首尔的交通不便。

在11月1日播出的SBS综艺节目《我的小老头》中，李和演员林元熙、赵镇世一起拜访了空间设计师柳正洙的工作室。

众人惊讶地发现，柳家竟然还有游泳池。当被问及是否经常使用时，柳说：“我基本上就是个清洁工。就算我打扫一整天，也永远没完没了。”

李东健 / 截取自SBS

李说：“我到济州岛的咖啡馆上班后，做的第一件事就是清理池塘。”

然后，Im 直接提到了 Lee 的咖啡馆的命运。

“我听说你济州岛的咖啡馆倒闭了。到底发生了什么事？”他问道。

李否认关店意味着生意失败，并表示他现在正准备将咖啡馆迁至首尔。

李说：“我们在济州岛运营了将近一年半的时间。但说实话，往返首尔和济州岛比我想象的要困难得多。”

他说，距离也使得咖啡馆难以达到他想要的经营标准。

“我觉得自己已经尽力了，但还是无法让大家满意，这很让人沮丧，”李说。“所以我跟正洙谈了谈，决定在首尔附近找个离我更近的地方，更加努力地尝试。”

李在去年四月于Aewol开设了这家咖啡馆，作为又一位涉足咖啡馆行业的名人，引起了广泛关注。他的开业筹备过程和经营经历也曾在综艺节目《我家的小老头》中播出。

这家咖啡馆7月份宣布将暂时关闭进行重组。9月份，另一家品牌入驻该店址，引发了人们对其未来走向的猜测，这实际上标志着李氏咖啡馆在济州岛的店面即将结束。

不过，李的最新言论表明，他并没有完全放弃这个行业，而是打算在离家更近的首尔再试一次。

本文原载于 Xportsnews，经人工智能生成系统改编，并由《韩国时报》编辑。