The summer special course at Dorim, the Chinese restaurant at Lotte Hotel Seoul [Lotte Hotel Seoul]
The summer special course at Dorim, the Chinese restaurant at Lotte Hotel Seoul [Lotte Hotel Seoul]

Hotels across South Korea are rolling out summer special menus built around stamina-boosting ingredients such as eel, abalone, croaker and samgyetang, looking to capture demand for premium dining ahead of the hottest stretch of the season.

Lotte Hotel Seoul is offering summer specials at three of its restaurants through Aug. 31. Its Chinese restaurant Dorim has prepared a special course that includes Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, white-broth-sauce croaker and premium eel with sea cucumber, along with "paljin naengmyeon" — cold noodles topped with eight garnishes including silkie chicken egg.

The Korean restaurant Mugunghwa is presenting a "Mugunghwa's Summer" course featuring imjasutang (chilled sesame chicken soup), sweet-and-sour eel, sea bream mul-hoe and handmade buckwheat naengmyeon from Bongpyeong. The Japanese restaurant Momoyama is running a "Momoyama Course" that includes seasonal sashimi with croaker and tuna belly, steamed kabocha squash, and eel and pollock roe claypot rice.

The Great Hongyeon, the Chinese restaurant at Joseon Palace Seoul Gangnam, has also prepared a summer course menu through Aug. 31. The lunch course centers on five-spice braised Korean beef arongsatae, red-braised seafood soup and freshwater eel in spicy garlic sauce. The dinner course is built around crispy red-rice lobster cheung fun, steamed tofu with Donghae sea cucumber and bird's nest, spicy stir-fried seafood and freshwater eel in spicy garlic sauce.

Andish, the buffet restaurant at Gravity Joseon Seoul Pangyo, has also added new seasonal dishes for the same period. Highlights include five-day dry-aged prime beef rib barbecue, naengmyeon made with beef brisket broth simmered for six hours, "gusujye" — a classic Sichuan summer chicken dish — and "mushiawabi," a slow-steamed preparation of live domestic abalone.

Westin Seoul Parnas is offering a seasonal stamina menu at its dining restaurant On:Table. It will extend its wild croaker spicy stew through July 25, the second of the three "boknal" dog days of summer, before introducing "hwangje haesintang" — a rich broth of young chicken, galbi, sea cucumber, abalone and pine mushroom. The lineup also includes lobster suan-la soup, a northern-style cold spiced chicken dish and fresh ginseng kimchi salad.

The 'Momoyama Course' at Japanese restaurant Momoyama [Lotte Hotel Seoul]
The 'Momoyama Course' at Japanese restaurant Momoyama [Lotte Hotel Seoul]

Walkerhill Hotel & Resorts has put together a summer wellness dining promotion using premium ingredients including abalone, sea cucumber, eel and Korean beef. Its Korean beef specialist Myeongwolgwan is presenting "samsantang" — a broth of abalone, live octopus and water-grown ginseng — alongside a summer special course, while Chinese restaurant Geumnyong is featuring Buddha Jumps Over the Wall, Chinese-style cold noodles and an abalone-focused special menu.

The Korean restaurant Ondal will follow with two consecutive seasonal offerings: "Summer Living I" in July, centered on freshwater eel soup, and "Summer Living II" in August, built around Korean beef bulgogi and Pyongyang-style mul-naengmyeon.

Kensington Hotel Yeouido, operated by E-Land Park, will run a "Boyangjinji" promotion at its buffet restaurant Broadway from Tuesday through Aug. 31. The menu features a range of restorative dishes — eel sushi, octopus risotto, abalone samgye porridge, seafood galbi noodles, Buddha Jumps Over the Wall and ox knee bone soup.

Paradise City on Yeongjongdo Island in Incheon has launched a summer-limited "wellness dining" menu through late August. Its Japanese restaurant Raku has prepared a stamina course using abalone from Wando, eel and sea urchin roe, while Italian restaurant La Scala is running a summer course built around seasonal ingredients including mango, passion fruit and kabocha squash.

Seoul Dragon City has released an online-exclusive home meal replacement product, "Black Hwago Native Chicken Samgyetang," timed to the boknal season. The dish uses free-range native chicken, black ginseng — a premium processed ginseng — and black hwago mushrooms, and requires only reheating before serving.

"We hope people can enjoy a dignified stamina meal at home through our Black Hwago Native Chicken Samgyetang, made with the know-how of our hotel chefs and carefully selected ingredients," a Seoul Dragon City official said.


soho0902@heraldcorp.com