The 10 Most Awful All-You-Can-Eat Chain Buffets In The US & The 10 Best
Quality & Quantity Don't Always Have To Be At Odds With Each Other
It doesn't get much more American than all-you-can-eat buffets. They're the picture of excess, abundance, and variety. The buffet boom of the 1980s may have come and gone, but they're rapidly rising in popularity once more, as Americans look for ways to feed their hungry families in a tough economy. However, not all buffets are created equal. Some, we wouldn't go to if someone paid us, while for others we'll gladly put on our best Sunday clothes and dish out 50 bucks a head. From all-American mainstays to multicultural gems, here are the 10 worst all-you-can-eat buffets and the 10 best.
1. Cici's Pizza
Cici's Pizza is an international chain of all-you-can-eat pizza restaurants based in Texas. It was founded in 1985, and although the food is garbage, so many Americans have such hardcore nostalgia for it that it's still in business.
2. Shoney's
Shoney's has been serving all-you-can-eat classic American fare since 1947. So many of us have fond memories of piling our plates sky-high with ham cubes here, but it doesn't really pass the quality test into adulthood.
3. Souper Salad
Souper Salad is the all-you-can-eat buffet for people trying to make healthy choices. Perhaps it's fortunate that the food here is so bland, as it makes you not want to eat that much of it. It seems the full-on gluttony you want to experience at buffets is slightly at odds with healthy eating, as the 150 locations have dwindled to only a handful, mostly in Texas.
4. Pizza Ranch
Who wouldn't want all-you-can-eat pizza? Well, maybe if it's Pizza Ranch pizza, you'll have second thoughts. It's sad-looking with uninspired toppings and really does feel like the cheapest-quality ingredients were used to make it.
5. Old Country Buffet
Old Country Buffet is the perfect example of what overexpansion can do to the quality of a restaurant. The parent company hopped on the buffet trend in a big way, but the clientele just wasn't there, and the food quality and general ambiance of the restaurants declined sharply.
6. Western Sizzlin
Western Sizzlin' was founded in 1962, not in the West, but in Georgia. The concept behind it was a little puzzling: you could either order a steak dinner or have a buffet of salad and sides. There were once hundreds of locations, but today only about 30 or 40 still stand.
7. Sizzler
The concept of Sizzler was promising: an affordable steak and seafood restaurant. It grew to having over 1,000 locations in the buffet boom of the 1980s, but it struggled to maintain quality with rising food costs. Only around 100 locations remain today.
RegionalQueenslander on Wikimedia
8. Golden Corral
The buffet chain specializes in American comfort food, and while it's often seen as good value, the sheer variety of foods on offer is so overwhelming that it can take your appetite away. Golden Corral tries to do so many things, but it doesn't get anything right.
9. King Buffet
King Buffet is a small buffet chain specializing in Asian fusion. The restaurant offers everything from fried chicken to sushi, but it's a no-frills experience that'll fill you up but leave your taste buds wanting.
10. Buffet City
Buffet City is a chain of Chinese-American restaurants that serve a mixture of American classics and Asian dishes like sushi and fried rice. They're criticized for using low-quality ingredients, having dirty dining areas, and dated decor.
Now that we've covered some of the most horrendous all-you-can-eat options these United States have to offer, let's talk about the places where you'll leave feeling full and happy.
1. Chuck-A-Rama
Chuck-A-Rama is one of the most highly rated buffet chains in the US, celebrated for the freshness of its products. The biggest mistake you can make here is not saving room for dessert, as the dessert bar is the standout feature, serving up pies, cakes, and soft-serve ice cream.
2. Happy Lamb Hot Pot
At Happy Lamd Hot Pot, diners are offered an array of proteins and a pot of boiling broth. Sure, you could argue that you're basically paying a lot of money to cook your own food, but the appeal is the interactive dining experience. The place is celebrated for the quality and freshness of the ingredients.
3. Captain George's
Captain George's is a seafood buffet known for serving up delicacies of the sea like lobster and crab, cooked to perfection. Although the $40 to $50 price tag seems like a lot, if you consider the cost of a regular lobster dinner at other restaurants, this is a steal. The hushpuppies and prime ribs are also immaculate.
Frits Hoogesteger on Wikimedia
4. Sirloin Stockade
Sirloin Stockade is a steak lover's paradise, serving up all you can eat of the finest cuts of beef. The restaurant is also known for its agreeable ambiance, perfect for a casual night out.
5. America's Incredible Pizza Company
This all-you-can-eat chain is a child's dream, offering endless pizza, arcade games, and go-karts in a 1950s-themed environment. A mainstay of kids' birthday parties across middle America, the restaurants offer endless entertainment and exceptional food quality for the price.
6. Fogo de Chão
Fogo de Chão is a Brazilian-style steakhouse known for its incredible all-you-can-eat experience. The meats here are cooked over an open flame and carved tableside by gauchos (Brazilian cowboys). The experience comes complete with a salad bar stocked with regional cheeses, polenta, rice, and fried plantains.
Mariordo Mario Roberto Duran Ortiz on Wikimedia
7. Texas de Brazil
Texas de Brazil offers a similar churrasco experience to Fogo de Chão, but slightly more casual. It's another paradise for meat lovers who enjoy the interactive element of the gauchos carving the meat right in front of you.
8. Hibachi Grill & Supreme Buffet
This American-Asian buffet has over 250 items on offer, but they don't sacrifice quality for quantity. The standout feature of the restaurant is the hibachi grill, where diners can select their choice of meats and veggies, which are then cooked to order right in front of them, adding an interactive element to the dining experience.
9. Rodizio Grill
Another popular Brazilian-style steakhouse, Rodizio Grill, offers the all-you-can-eat tableside meat service experience but for a fraction of the price. It's a lot more casual than Texas de Brazil, but still has plenty of high-quality cuts on offer along with Brazilian sides like pão de queijo (cheese bread) and grilled pineapple.
10. Big Boy
If you're lucky enough to live near one of the Big Boys locations that offer breakfast buffets, it would be a shame if you don't spend all your Sunday mornings there. The pancakes, breakfast potatoes, and biscuits and gravy are the perfect representation of everything that's best about a good, ol' fashioned American breakfast.
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