Buffet style restaurants

[Fat Guy]

I thought Bourdain was quite clear.

AHR, fixed price AYCE and buffets are two different species -- or, rather, a buffet is a subset of AYCE. There's nothing inherently limiting about AYCE as there is about buffets. A meal at Charlie Trotter's is essentially an AYCE meal -- they just keep asking if you want more food until you say no. Nobody ever finishes the last dessert.

[Haggis]

Cured meat on breakfast buffets notwithstanding, a good strategy for a successful buffet is avoid all red meat. Beef, pork and lamb just don't do well on a steam table or over a sterno. There may be some exceptions, for example a stew might soften as it heats. But definitely avoid things such as "carving stations". There is one very good buffet that serves red meat almost exclusively This is Moonlite BBQ in Owensboro, Kentucky. Their chopped mutton and lamb ribs are superb. Just about everything is good. But the type of meat they serve is slow-smoked to begin with. This type of meat survives a buffet atmosphere better than others.

Another meat that can do well on a buffet is fried chicken. In New York, I like Charles' Southern Kitchen and Copeland's. Some of the best fried chicken I have ever tasted, buffet or otherwise, is to be found at The Inn at Science Hill in Shelbyville, Kentucky. Delicious, and totally greaseless. Across the river in Starlite Indiana there is Joe Huber's. This is a huge family farm that serves family style AYCE dinners. No buffet, rather, the servers bring you more of whatever you want. They serve very good fried chicken and ham, and all their veggies and sides are satisfying. If you are ever in Northern Kentucky or Southern Indiana, I highly recommend both of these places, as well as Moonlite BBQ a couple hours West of there.

[ahr]

FG, aren't there non-AYCE one-pass Southern cafeteria buffets? If so, your taxonomy fails. And anyway, why are you trying to censor AYCE discussion on this thread?

[friedclams]

The Bellagio in Las Vegas has 2 types of dinner buffets... this past July 4th I visited their "higher priced" gourmet version ($35) which included American Kobe beef sirloin, real lump crabcakes, soft shell crab and buffalo prime rib... much better than average buffet food ... their cold fish included sturgeon and scotch salmon...and more....

I'd recommend it to anyone who might ordinarily skip buffets...

except for the 2hr wait to get inside...

My buffet strategy is simple.... I go when I need mass quantity of one or two select items and skip the rest of the food...eg, half shell oysters or snow crab legs or prime rib.

I judge the VALUE of the buffet on price for the concentrated mass quantity food modified by the quality of the mass eaten item(s) allowing some compromise on quality to satisfy my immediate need for the mass quantity item.

Other buffets I'd recommend:

Old Boston Seafood Company, Hollywood, FL

menu: allUcaneat whole belly fried clams (heavenly... done in small batches)

allUcaneat steamers (med-large as I like 'em, one was too large at

4"..largest I've seen in a long while) also done in small batches...sweet

and fresh...excellent

allUcaneat: 1/2 shell oysters, clams, mussels, peel 'n eat shrimp, fried

calamari, fried smelts, fried mussels, baked scrod, baked flounder, baked

swordfish, baked salmon, boiled crabs, garlic crabs, snow crab legs,

excellent REAL prime rib (very slow roasted, very tender and flavorful),

roast turkey, baked virginia ham; BBQ spare ribs mash potatoes, fresh string beans; new england clam chowda, lobster bisque, assorted desserts

dinner price $20 pp weeknights, $25 weekends; lunch price $9.95 plus an early bird entry for dinner $16

- Todai serves mass quantity of high quality sushi and 4 types of larmen and a tempan grill for meat or seafood and all the broiled lobster you can eat (sorry they haven't opened in NYC yet) check their website www.todai.com for opening date (dinner $24)

- here in Dallas (at several locations) I've all the bbq beef ribs I can eat on Mondays for $8.95, Tuesdays thru the weekend I can get all the pulled pork, brisket and ribs for $10.95 probably better tasting than anythang cooked/burned/driedout at Blue Smoke .... not strictly a buffet but AYCE of several bbq items of better than average to excellent quality

For me, buffets/AYCE restaurants are for satisfying the craving for single/several mass quantity-reasonable quality item(s) at excellent dollar value when compared to the cost of eating a mass quantity of the item elsewhere.

[Blue Heron]

- Todai serves mass quantity of high quality sushi and 4 types of larmen and a tempan grill for meat or seafood and all the broiled lobster you can eat (sorry they haven't opened in NYC yet) check their website www.todai.com for opening date (dinner $24)

Todai sushi Japanese buffet has gotten mostly poor reviews in Seattle & Portland (I have not eaten there), and their sushi is not considered top quality.

The kind of buffet I like has smoked salmon & other assorted smoked fish, fresh cracked dungeness crab legs, peel & eat shrimp, steamed clams & mussels, ceviche, fresh fruit in season, excellent cheese. There are a couple of places out in the Northwest that offer these types of buffets/brunches (The Lobster Shop and Rosario's come to mind, as well as Salty's which I've heard mixed results on). I totally skip all pastries, container casserole type dishes and other fillers and just have the items I mentioned. That said, I rarely go even to the type of buffet I have just mentioned.

fried clams... I've never had whole belly fried clams but they sound intriquing. Are they like fried razor clams or more like steamers?

[Fat Guy]

AHR: Yes, but you have to be crazy to eat at a buffet that isn't AYCE. It's the worst of both worlds.

Fried Clams: The trick at Bellagio is to get a line pass. It's their lowest level of comp and you can get one just for standing around and making nice with any manager.

[ahr]

FG, I have no personal experience to relate, but the Sterns might disagree about high-traffic Southern one-pass buffets specializing in just a few items.

BH, whole belly fried clams are precisely what you suspect: a New England specialty of steamer clams -- minus shell, neck, and foreskin -- coated with corn flour and deep-fried. If you want to try cooking some at home, see Ipswich Shellfish Company.

[Bux]

you have to be crazy to eat at a buffet that isn't AYCE.

I thought that was an old Catskill's hotel, prison, summer camp, etc, joke. The food's terrible and the portions are so small.

[Fat Guy]

Yeah but the thing is you need at least two passes through a buffet to develop an effective strategy. On the first pass you take a little bit of everything no matter how disgusting it looks because you just never know what's going to be good; if you think you can judge visually you're just wrong. Then you go back and hit the best items. The other reason you need multiple trips is you have to keep watching for new stuff coming out onto the buffet. Like if you walk through and there are two scraggly pieces of fried chicken left you have to wait until someone takes those so you can get the new stuff. Or if they come with new fried chicken before the old runs out you have to get right in there and watch those two nasty old pieces like in three card Monty because they're going to try to position the old pieces so they're the first to get taken from the refilled tray. Get it?

[Jinmyo]

Get it?

[SobaAddict70]

Fried clam bellies are the BEST. Its almost like slurping down oysters, they're so good.

Pity you can't get them here in NYC. Well, at least, I've never heard of a place that serves clam bellies.

SA

[Blue Heron]

BH, whole belly fried clams are precisely what you suspect: a New England specialty of steamer clams -- minus shell, neck, and foreskin -- coated with corn flour and deep-fried.  If you want to try cooking some at home, see Ipswich Shellfish Company.

ahr ... those look delicious. Thanks for the info & photo.

[Fat Guy]

Soba, they're a specialty at Gage & Tollner.

http://www.gageandtollner.com/main.htm

Who was it who said: "I take my steamer clams like my men -- minus shell, neck, and foreskin."

[friedclams]

BH: regarding Todai you've missed my buffet strategy.... "high quality sushi" is a relative term... if I want mass quantities of uni at a value price thats where I go ... I've no local japanese food market importing uni any cheaper than I can get mass quantities at Todai fully prepared

FG: first pass take alittle of everything strategy is usually a good one but immediate pig-out gratification over one or two items req'd in mass quantity usually diverts my attention, eg, if I need half shell oysters, I take 2doz first pass... other strategy, I usually fill up/eat fish before starting on the meats

Also, on July 4th holiday no one would give a buffet pass (I begged and I wasn't goin' to gamble 2get one!!)... but thanks for mentioning the tip...

[Tyke]

I would stake my life on buffet meals being a nice vehicle to ship out the crap that has been hanging around too long. In fact its a safe bet, cos I've done it. Its the daily special board in disguise, do not go there.

[SobaAddict70]

Danke, Herr FG.

Sounds like I need to have lunch there one of these days...at G&T.

Anybody wanna come wid me?

SA

[Wilfrid]

I had a mixed experience with fried clams while on vacation, although I got to learn the difference between bellies and strips (nobody mentioned the foreskins, happily).

Gage and Tollner I know. Anywhere else in the NYC area come highly recommended? What about up City Island way?

[Schielke]

BH: regarding Todai you've missed my buffet strategy.... "high quality sushi" is a relative term... if I want mass quantities of uni at a value price  thats where I go ... I've no local japanese food market importing uni any cheaper than I can get mass quantities at Todai fully prepared

FG: first pass take alittle of everything strategy is usually a good one but immediate pig-out gratification over one or two items req'd in mass quantity usually diverts my attention, eg, if I need half shell oysters, I take 2doz first pass... other strategy, I usually fill up/eat fish before starting on the meats

Also, on July 4th holiday no one would give a buffet pass (I begged and I wasn't goin' to gamble 2get one!!)... but thanks for mentioning the tip...

If by "High Quality" you mean "Absolute lowest quality on earth".

Sorry, the todai we have up here is really really bad. I felt violated after I left.

Ben

[friedclams]

Gosh, I never thought that Todai would get such a negative reaction...BUT

I stand by my original thought.... "high quality sushi" is a relative term

Although I can get authentic high quality sushi at really high prices in land-locked Dallas, I often prefer AYCE quantities of uni, a typically high cost sushi item at any Dallas Japanese restaurant...

I've found that the Dallas Todai serves acceptable uni for my AYCE requirements/buffet strategy.... nuf said about that....

sorry 2hear Todai is unacceptable for sushi in other locations.....

[southern girl]

Hate to add to the list...but, the one here in LV is pretty bad too...

[Schielke]

Gosh, I never thought that Todai would get such a negative reaction...BUT

I stand by my original thought.... "high quality sushi" is a relative term

Although I can get authentic high quality sushi at really high prices in land-locked Dallas, I often prefer AYCE quantities of uni, a typically high cost sushi item at any Dallas Japanese restaurant...

I've found that the Dallas Todai serves acceptable uni for my AYCE requirements/buffet strategy.... nuf said about that....

sorry 2hear Todai is unacceptable for sushi in other locations..... 

Yeah, I have heard that they are kind of hit and miss. The one in Hawaii is supposed to be good, so yours must be in that vein.

I heard tonight that our Seattle one recently got a health violation. Ill have to look into it. I am not suprised...the sushi I had there was warm.

Doh!

Ben

[cmvnapa]

I've heard of a Sunday brunch buffet at Ballys in LV; the price is over $50 per person with champagne (recently Mumms Cordon Rouge but it changes), Maine lobster, and just about anything you can think of at various stations. Maybe I'd be interested if I was younger and could still put away tons of food, but seems rather gluttonous. One review I read was written by somebody who had had 4 whole lobsters which seems a little over the top.

[friedclams]

Todai Plano update...

I returned there on Sunday to get the free birthday meal (nothin' better than a FREE lobster/sushi buffet)....several points need to be transmitted to the group:

- the food quality has degraded, more expensive items have been deleted, for example, there was no Uni for me to chow down on which was very disappointing

- the FREE birthday meal will not be honored unless you bring in at least one person with you, ie, no free buffet if you're alone...

So it would seem that Todai Plano is slipping into the same place as other locations previously rated less than satisfactory by others in this thread...

[Nick]

I don't know if they can be classified as buffets, but if they can, the best I've had are at good openings - of the art type.