Kensington Resort Seorak Valley | Buffet Quality This Good?
As summer slowly started heating up, I couldn’t help wanting to head for the mountains or the coast for a getaway. I recently took a relaxing trip to Goseong, Gangwon-do with my friends!
One of my friends managed to get a free stay at 켄싱턴리조트 설악밸리 (Kensington Resort Seorak Valley) through a company welfare benefit, and it was confirmed for the Buddha’s Birthday holiday weekend from Friday to Saturday. My friend was the best! 😍
I’d actually visited a Kensington Resort before thanks to this same friend. Since the rooms allowed cooking and barbecue, we’d gone all out with a meat feast. This time, though, we decided to switch things up and try the dinner buffet inside the resort.
There was a guest discount available, and the first five groups could enjoy unlimited beer without any extra charge, so it felt like the perfect opportunity.
🏢 Stepping into a Cozy Swiss Chalet Vibe
From the lobby entrance, the log-style wooden walls and mounted deer antlers immediately made it feel a bit like I’d stepped into a Swiss mountain lodge.
We arrived around 6:30 PM, and I was surprised to see quite a crowd already inside. If we hadn’t reserved in advance, we might’ve ended up waiting for a table. Resort guests could also get a 20% discount by booking ahead, so I’d definitely recommend making a reservation beforehand.
By around 7:30 PM, when we finished eating and headed out, most guests had already left.
It wasn’t an enormous buffet, but the tables were spaced comfortably apart, making it easy to enjoy a meal and conversation. I also noticed plenty of families dining with children.
🐟 Diving into Kensington Resort Seorak Valley’s Best Dish
As soon as I walked in, I grabbed a plate and started looking around. My first pick ended up staying my favorite dish of the entire evening.
The winner was the plum flatfish ceviche!
The fresh flatfish paired with a sweet-and-tangy sauce created a bright, lively flavor that felt surprisingly refined. It was the perfect appetizer to kick off the meal. My friends loved it too and kept going back for second and third servings.
The orange salmon confit was beautifully presented and tasted light and refreshing.
The avocado and sweet shrimp next to it were creamy and slightly sweet, so I kept reaching for more. Since these weren’t dishes I came across often, I enjoyed them even more.
The cute cups below actually contained mulhoe, a Korean cold seafood soup. It didn’t really look like mulhoe at first glance, did it? The seafood dishes were presented so elegantly that the whole setup felt closer to a hotel buffet.
🥩 With Tender Steak and Piles of Snow Crab
Whenever I visited a buffet, I always felt a strange mission to get my fill of the premium items. My meat-loving friends were especially impressed by the flat iron steak.
It practically melted in my mouth. The meat was tender, well-cooked, and seemed to be excellent quality. It was prepared around medium doneness, making it easy to enjoy, and there was plenty available so nobody had to wait around for a fresh batch.
The warm dishes nearby, including beef bourguignon and blanquette de boeuf, were all delicious as well.
Then there was the snow crab that instantly grabbed everyone’s attention. It was stacked high and kept warm in a steamer. People picked it up so quickly that only three pieces were left when I took this photo… 🥲 Thankfully, the staff refilled it almost immediately.
This was our table… hahaha.
We all grabbed a crab leg and had fun pulling out the meat together.
🍣 Finishing Off With Sushi and Sweet Desserts
I couldn’t skip mentioning the sushi bar. It was stocked with shrimp, flatfish, salmon, and eel sushi. One of my friends even said the salmon sushi was the highlight, which showed the overall quality was quite impressive.
And of course, no matter how full I got, there was always room for dessert.
The lineup included Basque cheesecake, crispy-on-the-outside creamy-on-the-inside crème brûlée, and slightly bittersweet tiramisu. The tiramisu was especially memorable. It wasn’t heavy at all and melted away so smoothly that I finished an entire cup before I realized it. Dieting could wait until tomorrow.
To wrap everything up, I paired some brownie cake and red velvet roll cake with a little fruit and a cup of coffee. It was the perfect ending to the buffet.
💡 Who Should Come Here?
1. Guests staying at Kensington Resort Seorak Valley who’d like an easy and satisfying dinner option with a 20% discount.
2. Anyone wanting to enjoy quality steak and fresh seafood at a relaxed pace.
3. Families looking for a cozy, uncrowded place to gather with children.
💬 Wrapping Up With a Satisfying Feast
The Kensington Resort Seorak Valley Montreux Dinner Buffet left me completely satisfied. The flavor and quality of each dish were genuinely impressive. My friends kept saying it was far better than the average wedding buffet, and everyone left happy.
Considering that many hotel buffets nowadays cost around 200,000 KRW per person, being able to enjoy this level of quality in the 60,000 KRW range felt like an incredible deal.
Being able to eat well and relax comfortably made it one of the highlights of this healing-themed trip.
📍 Location: Welcome Center 1F, Kensington Resort Seorak Valley, 8-25 Sinpyeonggol-gil, Toseong-myeon, Goseong-gun, Gangwon State
⏰ Hours: Daily 17:30–20:30 (advance reservations recommended)
💰 Price: Adult dinner 79,900 KRW (20% discount for resort guests who reserve in advance)
🅿️ Parking: Free parking available in front of the resort Welcome Center
If you’re driving, search for “Kensington Resort Seorak Valley” on your navigation app and enter through the Welcome Center building. You’ll find the restaurant immediately on the right side of the lobby.
Kensington Resort Seorak Valley Montreux Restaurant
Welcome Center 1F, 8-25 Sinpyeonggol-gil, Toseong-myeon, Goseong-gun, Gangwon State
