Do you like buffets?

[Elementgreen]

I love buffets, even if the food is cheap. I have a very large appetite, and a buffet is a perfect place to indulge.

 

[MonkeyDragon]

I have to say, the most amazing meal I've ever had in a restaurant was at a Brazilian grill in Atlanta. I'd never heard of such a thing.

See, I was kind of disappointed by the buffet, cuz there wasn't much one it. It wasn't until I'd eaten a plate of salad and potatoes that the Meat happened. And then I discovered the joy that is all you can eat filet.

Best part was, it was all on someone else's dime. I was working for a small startup company for the weekend. They'd gone down to Dragon*con to promo their new mapping website. The company has since folded, sadly, but I got to go to dragoncon! And eat an absolutely fantabulous meal.

There's only one such place near me, and I've read poor reviews of it. So part of the fantasy of going back to dragoncon includes going back to that restaurant.

 

[ssampier]

...

Thus, for the first time in a while, my family is going to a holiday buffet at one of the major local hotels. I'm anxiously awaiting my Eggs Benedict, lamb chops, lox & caviar, chocolate mousse and whatever else catches my fancy.

By meal's end, I hope to be doing my best impression of a humanoid Sisyphean boulder.

Mmm, sounds good. I wish I lived closer to nice hotels. Being the son of a coal miner I have never had the opportunity to eat caviar. I had plenty of opportunity to sample the yearly lamb fry, though.

Plus, your post made me look up what Sisyphean means.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Mmm, sounds good. I wish I lived closer to nice hotels. Being the son of a coal miner I have never had the opportunity to eat caviar. I had plenty of opportunity to sample the yearly lamb fry, though.

Plus, your post made me look up what Sisyphean means.

Well, I didn't manage to meet my goal of dining until I reached mythological proportions, but I did have a good time.

Part of the reason I didn't just totally pig out was that the buffet- despite being of truly fine quality- had some oddities that just sapped my overall will to conspicuously consume.

Usually, such hotel Thanksgiving buffets have a nice fall harvest soup, like a creamy squash or pumpkin soup. It was completely absent.

Their chef decided to get a little extra fancy with the Eggs Benedict and altered the seasoning. It was still nice, but it wasn't the classic flavor I've come to expect. Plus it was a touch overcooked: the poached egg's yolk should have been slightly runny, as opposed to merely soft- it should help moisten the toasted English Muffin upon which it rests.

As far as caviar- I didn't have any. Really, its an acquired taste that my Mom once compared to salty sand. I first had some as a freshman in college as part of a holiday gift basket- a nice small jar of black caviar- that my best buddy and I shared along with some kippers and pate while watching Elvira (Mistress of the Dark) skewer some really bad movie. The RA came down the hall complaining that the smell of the buttered kippers we were toasting smelled like vomit, and made us stop using the hot plate that night.

Good times, good times.

I actually prefer some of the ones you get with certain kinds of sushi. They're not as salty and have a nicer texture.

 

[frankthedm]

I actually prefer some of the ones you get with certain kinds of sushi.

Yes that is some yummy roe.

 

[Kid Charlemagne]

Not a fan except in particular cases - some Indian places have really good buffets. In most cases, however, the food isn't very good, and the price is higher than a single entree. I'm not that big of an eater, so volume of food is not really a selling point. Variety is, but only if its good.

 

[odndfan.1974]

Coho Cafe: Seafood, Tex-Mex, Asian Fusion.

 

[Stormborn]

Its interesting people mentioning Pot Lucks. I just never think of them as buffets. I know they are served buffet-style but I just tend to think of buffets as commerical ventures where everything is provided by a single source. Pot lucks, on the other hand, are so common at this point in my life that I hardly think of them as anything different at all.

 

[Enforcer]

Depends. Fast food buffets are usually crap, but at least they're cheap. But when I was a paralegal we used to have a holiday lunch buffet at The Peninsula Hotel here in Chicago. That was amazing! But, probably more than $9.95 a person...

 

[Slider Wade]

I happen to like the Dragon China Buffet & the Island View Lodge buffet here.
Quality food for a decent price.