I have to admit, when we planned on touring Seoul, we were a bit nervous about two things: finding vegan eats in the first place and not breaking the bank. We were right about one of those two concerns.
Seoul has plenty of vegan options...that are all super expensive! Prepare to spend more here than you would in any other Asian country, comparable to what you would pay in Western countries.
Looking back on our four nights in Seoul, my favourite meal has to be at the Buddhist vegan buffet on the second floor of the Templestay Building.
The buffet is located on the second floor of this massive building. Hard to miss!
There is a restaurant on the 5th floor of the Templestay Building, but we heard it was even more expensive, so we opted for floor 2 and we are glad we did.
The cost of the buffet is around $8 USD. You pay as soon as you enter, and then join the line-up to get your food.
Lining up for the different stations of the buffet
It was such an interesting cultural experience to eat here. We were the only Westerners in sight and there was definitely a ritual/process to how the food was to be eaten.
Once you line up, you take four different bowls, and each part of the meal goes into a designated bowl. We were a little confused (okay, that's an understatement), so we just followed suit of the person in front of us.
The four different bowls
We loved this place because you get to pick your portion size, and you can go up again for round 2 of the buffet if you please!
The food was incredible. We love Korean food, and this is authentic as it gets. The kimchi was amazing, the soup was interesting, and the tofu main dish was very flavourful.
Victoria's favourite part - unlimited salad!
Our meal at the Buddhist vegan buffet in the Templestay Building
But above all, we loved this place because of the experience. Watching how and what order the locals around us ate their meal was super cool! A couple times we noticed some of them peaking over at us and smiling, so I think we messed up the order a few times. Nonetheless, we tried our best to eat in the correct order, and had an amazing time.
Jal mug get sum ni da!!!
We recommend the Buddhist all-vegan buffet on the second floor of the Templestay building to vegan and non-vegans alike visiting Seoul.