South Korean barista says Kim Jong Un's image has become as soft as latte foam

Record ID: 1120357

  • Title: South Korean barista says Kim Jong Un's image has become as soft as latte foam
  • Date: 5th June 2018
  • Summary: KIM JONG UN LATTE ART (SOUNDBITE) (Korean) OWNER OF IN & OUT CAFE, KIM JEONG-IL, SAYING: "He moved on from a mysterious image - behind a veil - to someone who is friendly. He is adorable when he smiles and he has a soft image." CAFE STANDING SIGNBOARD OF KIM JONG UN AND MOON HOLDING HANDS LATTE ART BEING PRINTED LATTES WITH IMAGES OF KIM JONG UN AND MOON (SOUNDBITE) (Korean) OWNER OF IN & OUT CAFE, KIM JEONG-IL, SAYING: "I watched the inter-Korean summit and was very impressed. My shop is named "In and Out" and I made (Moon Jae) IN- (Kim Jong) UN latte praying for peace in the sense that we would be able to go in and out of South Korea and North Korea." INTERIOR OF CAFE SOUTH KOREAN CUSTOMER STANDING BY SIGNBOARD OF KIM JONG UN AND MOON / KIM JEONG-IL TAKING PHOTOGRAPH OF HIM MOBILE PHONE SHOWING SOUTH KOREAN CUSTOMER POSING FOR PHOTOGRAPH LATTE ART BEING PRINTED (SOUNDBITE) (Korean) OWNER OF IN & OUT CAFE, KIM JEONG-IL, SAYING: "I thought about how I would be able to express my feelings at my workplace while watching the summit live, and decided to put President Moon Jae-in and Chairman Kim Jong Un's faces on the coffee foam. I posted the picture on Facebook, and surprisingly people responded positively. I started selling it with the name Ini-Uni latte, after President Moon and Chairman Kim's names." POINT-OF-VIEW SHOT OF LATTES BEING SERVED MOBILE PHONE TAKING PHOTOGRAPHS OF LATTE ART / LATTE ART OF KIM JONG UN AND MOON SOUTH KOREAN CUSTOMER DRINKING LATTE AND GIVING THUMB UP
  • Embargoed: 19th June 2018 10:39
  • Keywords: latte art barista North Korea Kim Jong Un
  • Location: JEONJU, SOUTH KOREA
  • City: JEONJU, SOUTH KOREA
  • Country: South Korea
  • Topics: Government/Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA0038J6526F
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: In the weeks after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un presented a smiling, softer image at his first summit with South Korean president Moon Jae-in, this cafe outside of Seoul started serving lattes decorated with frothy images of the Korean leaders.
    In & Out cafe in Jeonju city three hours south of the South Korean capital, also offers customers the chance to take a photo and appear on a latte along with the two Korean leaders.
    The café owner, Kim Jeong-il, who coincidentally shares his name with Kim Jong Un's father, said that the North Korean leader's image has become "soft" like the latte art he makes.
    Some anti-communist critics complained that his Kim Jong Un-themed coffee must "taste of red," but overall the response has been surprisingly positive, says owner Kim.
    Around 20 people a day come to his cafe specifically looking for the Kim latte.
    Moon told Kim during a second summit in May that the North Korean leader had "gained a lot of popularity in South Korea recently," to which Kim responded, "that is a relief."
    According to a limited survey of 106 university students at Kookmin University in Seoul, 57.3 percent said they had a positive image of Kim Jong Un after the first summit, compared to 19.8 percent before.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2018. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register