Igok-dong, Daegu wedding buffet with live salmon carving: AW Hotel

When you go to a wedding, the buffet is almost as exciting as the ceremony itself, right? This time I visited the wedding buffet at AW Hotel in Dalseo-gu, Daegu. Besides the huge variety of food, the live stations where food is cooked and prepared right in front of you really stood out.

If you're looking into wedding hall buffets in Daegu, the menu and the taste are surely important factors. So let me walk you through my review of the AW Hotel wedding buffet, based on what I saw and tasted.

How many dishes does the AW Hotel wedding buffet have?

The AW Hotel wedding buffet is said to offer about 120 hotel-style dishes. The menu changes by season, reflecting seasonal ingredients and seasonal specials.

There's everything from Korean to Western, Japanese and Chinese food, plus seafood, salads and desserts, so you can pick whatever suits your taste. Best of all, the food stations were spread out widely, and you could see staff preparing food here and there.

Whole salmon carved right in front of you at the raw fish and seafood station

The first place that caught my eye at the AW Hotel wedding buffet was the raw fish and seafood station. A whole salmon was laid out on ice, and a staff member was cutting it up right then and there. Rather than just picking up pre-sliced salmon, you can watch it being prepared in front of you, which I found impressive.

The carved salmon was neatly arranged in bite-size pieces, and its vivid orange color looked so appetizing. Besides salmon, there was flatfish sashimi, tuna sashimi and a variety of other seafood. I liked being able to take a little of each kind.

Octopus and other seafood were laid out too, so if you love raw fish, I think you'd end up spending a long time at this station.

How was the yukhoe at the AW Hotel wedding buffet?

The yukhoe (Korean beef tartare) at the AW Hotel wedding buffet was slightly spicy with tender meat, and it's one of the dishes I remember most. It was piled generously on shredded radish and chives, tossed in a red seasoning.

When I tried it, the meat was tender and the seasoning had a mild kick. I especially liked that it wasn't sweet. Yukhoe can get cloying fast when the seasoning is too sweet, but this one was pleasantly spicy without being sugary, and it suited my taste well.

Herbal galbitang simmering in a cauldron

One of the signature dishes at the AW Hotel wedding buffet is said to be the herbal galbitang (short rib soup with Korean herbal ingredients). At the galbitang station, bowls with meat and garnishes were already set out, and the broth was kept boiling in a huge cauldron.

I noticed that even galbitang gets its own separate station at this buffet. Seeing the broth boil in a cauldron made me think it would be a great choice for guests looking for something warm. After trying lots of different dishes, finishing with a bowl of hot soup sounds perfect, doesn't it?

Tender cube steak

Among the meat dishes at the AW Hotel wedding buffet, the cube steak was satisfying too. Bite-size pieces of steak were served with vegetables, and when I tried it, the meat was tender and tasty.

Buffet steak is disappointing when the meat is tough, but this cube steak was soft and easy to eat. If you like meat dishes, I think it's worth putting on your plate at least once.

Malatang and the hot food station

The dishes AW Hotel introduces as signatures include malatang (spicy Chinese-style hot pot soup). With spicy Chinese dishes on top of Korean food, the choice felt really wide.

The hot food station had various meat dishes, stir-fries, fish dishes and more. The food was kept in warming containers to stay hot, and the station stretched out long, so it was fun just to walk along and look at everything one by one.

Crispy, freshly fried tempura station

One of the things I enjoyed most on this visit to the AW Hotel wedding buffet was the tempura. The tempura, fried on the spot by the staff, was really crispy.

Several kinds were neatly laid out, including fried green chili peppers, and that crunchy texture you only get from freshly fried tempura was right there. Soggy tempura at a buffet is such a letdown, but what I ate was crisp and memorable. It was served in pretty dishes too, so it looked even neater.

Pasta cooked to order

The pasta station at the AW Hotel wedding buffet had creamy carbonara and spaghetti with red tomato sauce.

I could watch the pasta being cooked, too. Seeing not just the finished dish but the cooking process was a different kind of fun from an ordinary buffet.

You can watch yubu chobap being made too

At the live station, I also filmed yubu chobap (sushi rice in fried tofu pouches) being made. Watching a staff member make the food piece by piece was nice, since you get to see how it's prepared.

Having dishes that are cooked or prepared on site like this was the most impressive part of the AW Hotel wedding buffet for me.

Salad and fruit station

When you're eating lots of different dishes, you end up wanting something light like salad or fruit now and then, right? The salad station at the AW Hotel wedding buffet had lettuce and a variety of vegetables.

The fruit station had plenty of variety too. Watermelon, melon, dragon fruit, oranges and other colorful fruits were cut up and ready to eat. It'd be a refreshing way to cleanse your palate after the meal.

What are the desserts and bakery like at the AW Hotel wedding buffet?

The AW Hotel wedding buffet had a wide range of desserts, including cake, macarons, doughnuts and roll cakes. And finally, the dessert station, which you can't skip! Personally, whenever I go to a buffet I look closely at the desserts.

Colorful desserts were lined up neatly in the showcase, so just looking was fun. The bakery selection was varied too, so I took a little of this and that.

Fruit juice, sikhye (sweet rice drink) and sujeonggwa (cinnamon punch) were also prettily set out.

I meant to have them at the end, but I got so focused on other dishes that I totally forgot, which was a real shame, haha.

From croissants to small cakes, cookies and baked sweets, it made for a pretty generous plate.

It looked like a spread that would go nicely with a coffee after the meal.

AW Hotel wedding hall banquet size and location

The AW Hotel wedding hall has about 1,350 seats across its two banquet halls. Food matters, but when choosing a wedding hall, guests' ease of getting there and parking matter too.

A parents' room is said to be available as well, so it's worth knowing if you're preparing for a wedding.

• Address: 413 Seongseo-ro, Dalseo-gu, Daegu, South Korea (Igok-dong)