(YVR) Gluttony - the best of the 7 deadly sins

[Pez]

A friend of mine who likes his food in mass quantities is coming to visit and it's all-you-can-eat or nothing. I know of a few decent buffets/all-you-can-eat places (Saffron, Shabusen), but thought I would see if anyone had some good suggestions.

Cheers,

T

[Keith Talent]

The best buffet in the city is at The Captains Club prior to Canuck games at GM place. The food generally follows a thematic logic, so you never have jello nesteled next to roast beef. Plus, you get to keep your table for between periods and after the game for drinks/coffee.

The other kinda okay not so bad buffet is Samba Brazillian BBQ. Not a buffet per se, rather the waiters bring assorted meats to the table and slice it onto your plate.

And if there's a good all you can eat Japanese place around, I don't know of it.

[Vancitygirl]

I've had success at Tomokasu - really I have.

I'm borrowing the quote from Discover Vancouver

http://www.discovervancouver.com/forum/top...?TOPIC_ID=27598

"Tomokasu, W. Broadway. Excellent raw fish selection, including oysters, beef tantaki etc. Very fresh, top notch service."

[BCinBC]

Gluttony won this year? Hmm I remember voting for Lust as best overall, perhaps it and Gluttony just alternate by year, not unlike Lumiere and West for Best Restaurant.

Anyway, if you want mass quantity as well as good quality, go to Pho Thy (or any number of Vietnamese places) with a $20 bill, then spend $12 on pho and bahn mi's. You will get all you can eat, plus have $8 left over. With that you can drive over to WingNuts, go mad and buy 2 deep fried Mars bars. Surely that would be all you could or would want to eat for dessert.

[rm_blizzard]

Griffin's at Hotel Vancouver is worth checking out in my opinion. I'm not a buffet fan at all, but I have been to Griifin's a couple of times for dinner (though most recent was about a year ago). Very good appetizer and dessert buffets are available as add ons to your main course. I remember a good seafood chowder; skipping the salads and pigging out on smoked salmon, crab legs, mussels, and prawns as "appetizers"; having a good but un-memorable main course; then finishing myself off at the dessert table.

[chef koo]

at handis in west van they have an all you can eat for only $01

[nwyles]

at handis in west van they have an all you can eat for only $01

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I am assuming you meant $10?

All you can eat for a buck is a bit of a deal.

[eatvancouver]

Gluttony won this year?  Hmm I remember voting for Lust as best overall, perhaps it and Gluttony just alternate by year, not unlike Lumiere and West for Best Restaurant.

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I'm partial to all seven, but right now, I'd go with wrath.

Anyhoo, I heard the sutton place hotel has an all-you-can-eat chocolate buffet. Sounds pretty disgusting to me, but it might be up someone's alley.

[sanrensho]

Anyhoo, I heard the sutton place hotel has an all-you-can-eat chocolate buffet.  Sounds pretty disgusting to me, but it might be up someone's alley.

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Hmm, I wonder if Lorna can give us the low-down on the chocolate buffet. Sadly, I no longer have the ability to gorge on a dessert buffet, or any kind of buffet for that matter. Until then, I will live vicariously through Lorna, our one and only dessert queen.

Edited March 30, 2006 by sanrensho (log)

[Ling]

^Sorry, I haven't tried the dessert buffet. I've walked by it when I was heading into the lounge, and the offerings looked pretty standard, but not great. (It is a buffet after all.)

[Zucchini Mama]

For desserts, try the seafood buffet Fridays at PICA.

PICA CHEW!!!!!

Sorry--mom humour.

[Badiane]

I was, for a brief moment in time - cooking school externship torture treatment - the crepe girl at the all chocolate buffet at what is now the Sutton Place Hotel.

As I recall, I manned a giant crepe doohickey, and then there was a lot of stuff to pile on the crepe - ice cream and various sauces, etc. Also a lot of chocolate mousse in fancy glasses and a lot of chocolate cake. The only thing I really remember is that a) you couldn't eat enough to justify the price and b) the stuff wasn't that good.

I like the brunch buffet at Griffen's quite a lot...you can stuff down a lot of expensive seafood if you plan it right

[Ling]

I've had success at Tomokasu - really I have.

I'm borrowing the quote from Discover Vancouver

http://www.discovervancouver.com/forum/top...?TOPIC_ID=27598

"Tomokasu, W. Broadway. Excellent raw fish selection, including oysters, beef tantaki etc. Very fresh, top notch service."

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My friends like to eat here too. I've dropped by (ate dinner elsewhere) to meet up with them at Tomokasu and saw the food on the table--looked pretty decent for AYCE Japanese!

[kurtisk]

On an idle Sunday a few weeks back, we pigged out at the River Rock Casino buffet. We didn't eat for the rest of the day, it was rather inexpensive, and all things considered, the food wasn't half bad.

AND you can try and win your money back!

http://www.greatcanadiancasinos.com/riverrock/buffet.html

k

[Pam R]

On an idle Sunday a few weeks back, we pigged out at the River Rock Casino buffet.  We didn't eat for the rest of the day, it was rather inexpensive, and all things considered, the food wasn't half bad.

AND you can try and win your money back!

http://www.greatcanadiancasinos.com/riverrock/buffet.html

k

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I don't know if I'd go out of my way for the buffet there... BUT - if you take some money out of a cash machine at the casino, you may also get a coupon for a free buffet

[badpesto]

One of Vancouver's best kept secrets is The William Tell on Sunday nights. Between 5:30 and 8:00 pm they have a killer all-you-can-eat buffet for $34.50 (raclette anyone?). It's a steal for the quality.

Sutton Place has a good brunch buffet on Sundays as well (and konig ludwig on tap)

.....make a day of it ...Sunday is the new all you can eat day

[kurtisk]

On an idle Sunday a few weeks back, we pigged out at the River Rock Casino buffet. 

k

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I don't know if I'd go out of my way for the buffet there...

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for the record, it was brunch...

<3,

k

[jamiemaw]

I'd vote for the Swiss Farmer's Buffett at The William Tell as well. Sturdy food for accomplished trenchermen.

What school of etiquette do you follow in the buffeteria line-up?

In my family, certain protocols are tolerated if not actually encouraged.

1. For breakfast buffets, if they only have those teensy 3 fl. oz. glasses, it's completely fair to take the whole juice pitcher back to the table.

2. Eating in line is also fair game, especially at weddings. This way, you can pile through the cheap fillers (salads, cold cuts, chicken legs, vegetables etc.) while ensuring you arrive at the prime rib carving station with a completely clean plate.

3. At the carving station, thrust out your plate to the carver and plainly state "Rare-Medium-Rare", husky boy portion, please, even if you are not. Continue to hold out the plate (with two hands so your arms don't tire) until it has been filled to the desired level; he who blinks first loses. Avoid the jus. Hog the horseradish.

4. Things to avoid in a buffet line-up: Virtually anything on the steam tables, especially moldering chicken in hunter sauce or pre-sliced roast pork - these are sure to end in tears; scrambled eggs unless they've just been replaced; pasta salads - a cheap filler; luncheon meats with rainbows on them; 'seafood' ravioli'; sushi rolls unless the hotel you're in is called The Four Seasons; nerf rolls (they expand in the gut, disallowing extra lashings of roast beef); poor conversationalists - if you're talking you're not eating; rice of any description (see pasta salads, above);

5. It's entirely permissible to eat entire plates of freshly picked crab-meat with Louis sauce, then get back up for a load of shrimp with red sauce, then gravlax, then poached salmon etc. These frequent waddles to the smorgasbörd encourage the kinds of social interaction that makes Canada a great country.

6. When your server is only serving coffee, filling water glasses and removing crockery that looks like a re-enactment of The Battle of the Somme, should you tip out at the regulation 15% plus? In a word, yes, but let him/her know at the outset that a.) you are a trained professional and don't look kindly on dirty plate gridlock, and b.) that bringing by extra helpings of quality proteins during bussing lulls will be remembered fondly.

7. Queue jumpers should be quickly but cheerfully dealt with. Preferred deterent: tip the tartar sauce into their blazer pocket of purse.

8. It is rude to bring a doggy bag to a buffet and in several provinces, actually illegal. So be discrete, or just bring the dog.

I hope this is helpful,

J.

Edited March 31, 2006 by jamiemaw (log)

[nwyles]

I would like to add to the above that you want to hold your plate in your left hand ( if you are right handed ) so to keep your "fightin'" hand free to

A) shovel food into your mouth.

B) push distant relatives out of the way ( in the case of a wedding )

C) grab the cheap ass prime rib carver by the throat so he / she clearly understands your desire for more meat.

D) to crash people out of the way as you are running block and tackle for a table mate so you actually have three plates between the two of you.

[flowbee]

lol@buffet postings competitive eating in polite society?

re: Tomokasu

I usually groan (inside) at the mention of AYCE japanese whenever out-of-town friends come in. But I put on a brave face and went to Tomokasu last year, and it was actually not too bad. Impressive selection of fish for an AYCE....we even had geoduck etc. But truth be told, I'd still rather pay the same (maybe a little more) and get better quality at Shiro, Toshi, Ajisai or even my friendly neighbourhood Takara-Bune. I've had way too much Granville Sushi...not even Tomokasu can convert me to an AYCE-lover.

[jamiemaw]

lol@buffet postings competitive eating in polite society?

re: Tomokasu

I usually groan (inside) at the mention of AYCE japanese whenever out-of-town friends come in. But I put on a brave face and went to Tomokasu last year, and it was actually not too bad. Impressive selection of fish for an AYCE....we even had geoduck etc. But truth be told, I'd still rather pay the same (maybe a little more) and get better quality at  Shiro, Toshi, Ajisai or even my friendly neighbourhood Takara-Bune. I've had way too much Granville Sushi...not even Tomokasu can convert me to an AYCE-lover.

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Do you take an AYCE Bandage flowbee? Or just fall back on the traditional cummerbund gambit?

[Dumpling Girl]

My fav buffets (back when I still did them. Trying to watch my portion sizes these days) include the Chocoholic buffet at Fleuri. I think the quality of the desserts are much better than the dessert buffet at Griffins(Do I have the right hotel restaurant? It's kind of casual, with booths and black and white tiles everywhere. I was definitely not impressed). Also the El Caravan at 809 Seymour St. downtown has (or used to have) a nice lunch buffet 11:30 - 2:30 pm (maybe weekdays?). Great little bunch of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern dishes. Yes, it's always a tradeoff - you can't expect a la carte quality in a buffet, but I think these two do pretty well. What's that place on Kingsway, somewhere near Joyce - Samosa House? They used to do an alright Indian buffet. I've always wanted to try the PICA Seafood buffet one of these days, so please report back if you wind up going.

Nancy

[flowbee]

Samosa Garden. I remember back when they didn't do buffet, and the food was really good. We've been there a couple times for the buffet and it's fine. They definitely tone down the hotness though We always leave stuffed--I guess that's the point of buffet

(There's a korean restaurant, Da Rae Oak, right next door to Samosa Garden. Not buffet, but pretty good korean food a la carte.)

[flowbee]

Do you take an AYCE Bandage flowbee? Or just fall back on the traditional cummerbund gambit?

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lol, I should totally wear a bandage around my head next time I go to an AYCE...sorta like how japanese people tie a thing around their head when they're really concentrating on something (according to the movies and anime i've seen).

We can call it the AYCE Gluttony Bandage.

[Paul B]

The other possibility is an "all you can eat" joint. My son, who is 17 and a competitive rower, can eat his own body weight at a sitting. When he and his friends come off the water they want to eat major portions. They go to an "all you can eat" sushi place on Robson a couple of blocks from Denman and do some serious damage by the sounds of it. Maybe someone knows the place.