A Splendid Salad at Seven Springs in Seoul

If buffet chain restaurants were a flock of teenage girls, Seven Springs would be the Queen Bee demonstrating the supreme art of  smörgåsbord dining in Seoul, Korea.

I ventured to one of Seven Springs’ Seoul locations recently. When a friend mentioned she wanted to go to a buffet restaurant for her birthday dinner I laughed and asked where we were really going. She was excited for this particular salad buffet in Hongdae, and because it wasn’t my birthday I went along with the green meal idea and made my way out of Exit 8 at Hongdae Station and found the veggie oasis.

I quickly ate my words, along with a mountain of deliciousness.

Seven Springs is glorious. It boasts a passion for seasonal, local, homemade, and environment-friendly food. This is not just another picked-over buffet with cheap fried food and soggy pizza. The food is healthy, fresh and the vegetables are actually delivered every morning to the different restaurant locations.

You can order meat and other things for the table to share, but I recommend just going with the standard salad bar. There are separate lunch and dinner prices. I admit the prices are a bit steep, but I think the food’s taste and quality are worth the money spent. The salad bar option also includes hot food items (think: baked pumpkin, pastas, honey bbq chicken, corn on the cob, pizza, and more) appetizers, dessert (think: ice cream, green tea cake, and yogurt parfait), drinks (think: mint and lemon infused water, berry, and non-alcoholic mojito concoctions to quench your thirst).

I piled my plate high with some strange combinations. I jumped for joy when I spotted capers (CAPERS!), green olives, various leafy greens, homemade salad dressings, avocado (the real deal), bowls of walnuts and almonds, and corn on the cob.

I recommend Seven Springs for vegetarians in Korea, but I also think anyone who needs a green fix or appreciates fresh food will leave this place smiling and planning a second Seoul Salad Soiree.