We were looking for a place to eat in Dongdaemun’s LOTTE FITIN after visiting DDP, and we didn’t want to eat back at our usual CoCo ICHIBANYA, and we actually chanced upon…
A BUFFET!
From my experience, I haven’t actually seen a lot of buffets in Korea, sans the BBQ ones, but even those are not that common, tbh. This was a real gem, and so we excitedly went in to check out what this buffet had in store.
For a better look at the prices:
| Lunch on Weekdays (Opening to 5PM) | Dinner on Weekends (5pm to Closing) | Weekends and Holidays | |
| Adult | 14,900 | 23,900 | 23,900 |
| Schoolchildren | 10,900 | 10,900 | 10,900 |
| Preschoolers | 7,500 | 7,500 | 7,500 |
Dinner is a little pricey, but lunch is absolutely worth the money!
One thing we observed was that there were a lot of locals, and no tourists at all. In fact, we were the only tourists there… a tad strange, since a lot of their signs, food labels, and information are in English. However, I think this restaurant may not be very well-known among tourists. I’ve heard that there is an Insadong branch for this, and it’s the one that tourists usually go to.
Gyejeol Bapsang focuses on Korean food, so most of the food you find in this buffet are staples (if I may say) in Korean diets. Of course, they also cater to more international palates, with offerings of spaghetti and fries. Beverages are free-flow too: you can take your pick from juices, coffees, and teas.
Here are a few photos of the food we took:
Some dishes that I definitely recommend taking:
- Udon/Yakisoba: I know it’s a bad idea to eat carbs in a buffet because it makes you full and you can’t get more rounds, but I really think this is super worth it. It’s not a half-assed, barely-there kind of udon, but a flavourful one that really whets your appetite.
- Barbecued chicken: much better than the fried one, glazed with a sauce that tastes a bit like honey and soy sauce (not teriyaki).
- All the vegetables: Most are well-marinated, can’t go wrong.
- Gamjajeon (potato pancake): I know, another carb-loaded item, but this is really worth both thumbs up. If you like potatoes, you’ll know what I mean.
- Radish kimchi: Okay I know, you can get this free-flow in some Korean restaurants, but some, not all, right? I recommend eating this with porridge at the end of your meal for a satisfying end.
- Fruits: I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but fruits are not the cheapest things in Korea. Even tangerines and pears, which are grown locally, aren’t that cheap. Bananas are an even more expensive luxury, so eat to your heart’s desire here. Just be careful about eating too much fibre ya?
We ate about 3 rounds per person, excluding fruits and beverages, so I think it worked out to about the 14,900 won we paid.
Was it worth it? Yes!
Was it delicious? Absolutely!
Would I come back? Don’t ask the obvious.
DIRECTIONS
Address: 21-31, Euljiro 6-ga, Jung-gu, Seoul
[Subway]
Dongdaemun History & Culture Park Station (Seoul Subway Line 2), Exit 11 or 12
It is connected by an underground path.
[Bus]
1. Dongdaemun History & Culture Park Station
-Blue bus: 105, 144, 152, 261, 301, 420, 407
-Green bus: 7212, 2014, 2233
-Airport bus: 9403
2. Euljiro Co’op Residence
-Airport bus: 6001
3. Gwanghui-dong
-Blue bus: 100, 105, 144, 301, 420, 407
-Green bus: 7212
4. Euljiro 6-ga/ National Medical Center
-Blue bus: 100, 105, 202, 152, 261, 407
-Green bus: 2014
THEVYPEFFECT 