Euljiro lunch buffet with snailfish and seafood pasta: Hotel Kukdo

I had a lunch appointment in Euljiro, so I visited the lunch buffet at Hotel Kukdo Patio. Euljiro has so many office workers that people are always looking for good lunch spots or places to meet up. We went on a weekday lunch too, and there were quite a few office workers actually there for a meal.

You can eat at a leisurely pace inside a hotel, and the Asian buffet plus skirt steak or pasta comes to ₩29,800 per person, which felt more affordable than I expected. Since you can enjoy both steak and pasta, it's also worth a look if you're searching for Western food or a steak restaurant in Euljiro. ☺️

Hotel Kukdo Patio: location, lunch hours and price

• 📍 Hotel Kukdo, 164 Eulji-ro, Jung-gu, Seoul, South Korea
• 🚇 Near Euljiro 4(sa)-ga Station
• ⏰ Weekday lunch 11:30–14:00
• ⏰ Last food order 13:30
• 💰 Asian buffet + main dish, ₩29,800 per person
• Reservations available (Naver Reservation supported)

Hotel Kukdo is close to Euljiro 4(sa)-ga Station, so it's easy to reach if you're looking for a spot in that area. It's not far from Euljiro 3-ga either, so it also works if you're looking for a lunch meeting spot anywhere around Euljiro.

※ Hours, menu, and prices may change depending on when you visit, so it's a good idea to double-check when you make a reservation.

When you arrive at the Hotel Kukdo building, you can spot the Patio Asian buffet signage right on the exterior wall. When I visited, it was clearly marked with "Asian buffet + steak or pasta ₩29,800," so it was easy to find. I went inside the hotel and took the escalator up to where Patio is. The location itself is right in the middle of Euljiro, so it looked convenient for nearby office workers to come for lunch.

Hotel Kukdo Patio wasn't hard to find at all. As soon as you come through the front entrance, you see the Asian buffet banner, and taking the escalator right next to it brings you up to Patio restaurant. The signage was clear throughout, so even a first-time visitor could find it easily. ☺️

What is the dining room with the floor-to-ceiling window like?

Once inside, the space was brighter and more relaxed than I expected. One whole wall is a giant floor-to-ceiling window, so natural light pours in during the day and you can look out over the Euljiro streets.

It's a hotel restaurant, but the atmosphere isn't overly formal, so it was comfortable for a relaxed Euljiro lunch. The tables had a decent amount of space between them, and I could actually see office worker customers around. It seemed like a good option for a weekday team dinner-style lunch, a team meal, or a group lunch gathering in Euljiro.

What is on the Asian buffet spread at Hotel Kukdo Patio?

Hotel Kukdo Patio isn't a massive hotel buffet with an overwhelming number of dishes, more like a well-curated lineup of things actually worth eating. Centered on Asian dishes, it ranged from Korean food to Japanese-style menu items.

The futomaki (thick sushi rolls) were prepared generously as well. Even one or two pieces felt fairly filling, and there was kimchi and various side dishes alongside them, good for switching up your palate along the way.

The first thing that caught my eye was kushikatsu (deep-fried skewers). Several types of fried skewers were laid out, so it was fun picking one of each kind. If you like fried food, it's worth trying one of each.

Snailfish (mulmegi): the dish I went back for

One dish I really enjoyed that day was the hairtail sculpin (물메기).❤️ The flesh was extremely soft and moist, with a texture that melted gently in my mouth. The flavor wasn't too strong either, so it went well eaten alongside other dishes. At a buffet, you usually taste everything once and then go back for whatever you liked best, and the hairtail sculpin was one I went back for.

I also checked out the warm dishes one by one. There was a dish combining abalone and shrimp, along with filling options like fried udon, a good variety of Asian dishes. Being able to try a little of everything is the fun of a buffet, of course. 😋 Unlike an ordinary Western-style Euljiro restaurant where you'd just have one steak or pasta dish, being able to try many different foods together was another advantage of the Patio lunch buffet.

Butagakuni, the moist braised pork belly

I also liked the butagakuni (Japanese-style braised pork belly). The meat was slow-braised so it was really tender, and the salty, savory seasoning matched well. Meat dishes that sit out a long time at a buffet can easily turn dry, but the butagakuni stayed moist, and I really enjoyed it. Personally, the butagakuni and the hairtail sculpin were the two dishes that stuck with me most from that day.

The salad corner had a variety of vegetables, cherry tomatoes, and olives, along with fruit like grapefruit and orange. After eating warm dishes for a while at a buffet, you start craving something refreshing, and it was nice having salad and fruit to pair with it.

There was also a corner where you could cook your own ramyeon (instant noodles). Being able to boil ramyeon fresh right at the buffet was a surprisingly fun addition.

Sake and matcha at the buffet

When I visited, unlimited sake was available too, along with self-pour matcha. Since it was a weekday afternoon, it's hard to really indulge in sake, but if you have time for a leisurely lunch gathering, it's nice to have a light drink alongside the food. With this kind of setup, it could be a good option not just for lunch but for a casual work dinner-style get-together in Euljiro.

There was also a Naver review event advertised on the table. Writing a Naver review after your meal lets you enter, and the gift for participating was a Thai pastel yadom (herbal inhaler). You need your receipt for the event, so keep it if you want to join. ☺️ Event details and the gift may vary depending on when you visit.

Skirt steak or seafood tomato pasta: which main to pick

Aside from the buffet dishes, each person also gets one main dish. On our visit, we could choose either skirt steak or seafood tomato pasta. We were curious about both, so we ordered one of each.

The skirt steak came with a generous amount of sauce, plus mashed potatoes and vegetables. Even after eating a decent amount of buffet food, having a separate warm steak arrive made the meal feel noticeably more substantial. Search for steak in Euljiro and you'll find plenty of pricier restaurants, so getting steak and a buffet together for ₩29,800 was a real advantage here.

The seafood tomato pasta had plenty of tomato sauce and included seafood, making it easy to alternate bites with the steak. If two of you are visiting, I'd recommend ordering one steak and one pasta to share. With steak and pasta both on the buffet menu, it didn't feel like just Korean or Asian food, you could enjoy Western-style Euljiro dishes all in one sitting too.

Is Hotel Kukdo Patio a good lunch meeting spot in Euljiro?

Hotel Kukdo Patio is a bit different from a flashy, massive hotel buffet. Instead, being able to enjoy the Asian buffet plus steak or pasta for ₩29,800 per person felt like its biggest strength. There were also dishes a bit different from a typical buffet, like kushikatsu, butagakuni, and hairtail sculpin, plus the fun of picking from build-your-own ramyeon, sake, and matcha. Being close to Euljiro 4(sa)-ga Station and convenient for office workers searching for a good lunch spot in Euljiro was another plus.❤️

Hotel Kukdo Patio was a good pick among Euljiro 4(sa)-ga restaurants when I wanted a slightly more relaxed lunch. The window-side seats by the floor-to-ceiling glass had especially nice sunlight during the day. If you're looking for a good lunch spot in Euljiro, steak in Euljiro, or a restaurant around Euljiro 3-ga or 4-ga, consider Hotel Kukdo Patio as a weekday lunch meeting option. ☺️