All you can eat doesn't mean all you should eat

[Disney_David]

Me. We were at Boma last night and I’m embarrassed to say on my 3rd round of beef (having 2-3 slices each time), the guy at carving station started to joke with me that he’d save me some for next round.

I’m nearly 50 and still haven’t the same appetite as when I was 25. Runs in the family. I am both proud, and also not at the same time!

My problem is no off button

 

[bcla]

About the time I turned 60 I began to appreciate the smaller portioned, smaller prices senior menu items.

When I was working a short term job in the Sac area I would maybe go once a week to Red Hawk Casino for their buffet. I never went crazy gambling there - maybe $10-20 was my limit and if I won I'd go home with extra cash in my pocket. But I was younger and my body could consume a lot - especially if I ate minimally during the day and saved myself for the feast at night. I mentioned it once when I returned to that place for a full-time job interview (we actually had a group lunch with just two interviewees and the rest of the team) and one of the team members said that most people there had gone there for that dinner buffet at one time or another.

And it was only $9.99 (with their free loyalty card) for M-Th dinner, where they had beef tri-tip that was grilled over a wood fire. And $12.99 on Sunday nights with prime rib. But one could eat just as much tri-tip for less money. The only thing I learned was to avoid the two nights (might have been Monday and Wednesday?) where they had their "Club 55" for 55+ guest at $5.50. I'd wait in line an hour to get seated even though I wasn't getting the senior price. I think once I thought maybe the line would be short and when I got there I gave up and ate somewhere else.

I thought that they canned the buffet but apparently brought it back. I don't think I would return at their current prices though. Even way back when, it was something like $25 on Fridays and they had something like crab legs.

https://www.redhawkcasino.com/dining/restaurants/koto-buffet/

 

[Renarr]

When the missus and I got married back in 2001 and pretty much just out of college, we went to WDW on our Honeymoon trip, and one of the promos they had going at the time was for Magical Wishes, where each of us got two per day. You could use that on meals at most table-service restaurants and they'd get you an appetizer, soup/salad, entrée, dessert, and non-alcoholic beverage (I'm sure there were some limitations on this).

So we did. Appetizer, soup/salad, entrée, dessert. Two meals per day. Every day. The first three days of the trip.

On Thursday, we were eating at the San Angel Inn Restaurante in the Mexico Pavilion of EPCOT for lunch, and we've used one of our wishes. We're about halfway through our appetizer and both of us are going super slowly. Our server comes by, "Is the food okay?"

"It's...*grunt* ...fine. Just... we're not... hungry?"

Turns out the server had witnessed it a fair amount. We were more sane after that with our wishes, and used some of them for other things (like miniature golf), but in planning all our future trips, we're always on the lookout for "Honeymoon EPCOT Mexico".

 

[footballmouse]

Did you have to eat the fries? I'm thinking just eat the meat and then you should have room for a 2nd or 3rd helping of the meat. I couldn't even finish the first plate but I'm sure my sons could eat a few plates.

 

[kdonnel]

When I was working a short term job in the Sac area I would maybe go once a week to Red Hawk Casino for their buffet.

Covid gave the casinos time to think about if selling the buffet as a loss leader was worthwhile or not.

So many of the Las Vegas buffets died during covid and were turned into either Food Halls or additional gaming space. Our closest casino, Harrah's Cherokee, closed their buffet and replaced it with a Food Hall of nothing but Gordon Ramsay fast food concepts. It sucks and is a huge downgrade!

I love buffets, I don't usually leave in pain, but I love the variety and choice. I never really get my money's worth in food but do in enjoyment.

A few months before covid hit my wife and I were in Las Vegas and made a plan to visit all the buffets, one or two per trip. That list is now so much shorter.

I feel bad and relieved at the same time that we never got to indulge in the Buffet of Buffets Pass. You got 24 hrs access to participating Caesars buffets. Start your pass just before 7pm on the first day and finish up just before 7pm on the second day. You could cram in 4 meals for $60 during the week, dinner, breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

 

[soccerdad72]

 

[John VN]

My uncle was 6'2", solid muscle, fitness nut. To the point that when he joined the Marines, he said bootcamp was like playtime. He regularly got himself kicked out of all you can eat places for eating too much!

I've never been remotely like that. I usually order an appetizer or share an entree, because I can't eat much at all in one sitting.

5' 10" @ 165lb back in '70's and Future MIL really enjoyed having me over for dinner. If I didn't have 2nds AND 3rds she would be concerned that her food was not up to her standards of excellence. For the wedding reception she ordered 2 Prime Rib dinners for me and was extremely upset that I only ate 1. Was just slightly busy during the entire affair.

About the time I turned 60 I began to appreciate the smaller portioned, smaller prices senior menu items.

Guess I'll have to wait until I turn 80 to appreciate the smaller senior offers 'cause I DON'T WANT smaller at 72.

BTW, all this buffet/can/should stuff is timely for me. I'm getting ready to go on a cruise Saturday, and the breakfast buffet is one of my favorite things.

ENJOY YOUR CRUISE!!!! Doing DCL???

Our last cruise in November (a MSC Yacht Club) DW ordered her Caesar Salad, Filet mignon with baked potato + veggies and 1 scoop vanilla Sunday. I order 2 entrees + 2 dinners + 3 deserts and had to finish her salad + Fillet + last of the scoop. Some times you gotta do what you gotta do. Next cruise in April.

 

[ronandannette]

I just do not get this concept of eating more than you want/need just to get your money’s worth. If I’m OK with the price of an entree (or buffet or whatever) I order it if it’s appealing and eat only as much of it as it takes to satisfy me. Goofy’s Kitchen at DLR is about $65CAD/pp for dinner. I don’t eat any more there than I do anywhere else.

It actually sounds a little grotesque to go in calculating how many ribs or shrimp or fries you need to choke down just to feel like you’ve come out ahead on your $15 bucks.

 

[BrianL]

I just do not get this concept of eating more than you want/need just to get your money’s worth. If I’m OK with the price of an entree (or buffet or whatever) I order it if it’s appealing and eat only as much of it as it takes to satisfy me. Goofy’s Kitchen at DLR is about $65CAD/pp for dinner. I don’t eat any more there than I do anywhere else.

It actually sounds a little grotesque to go in calculating how many ribs or shrimp or fries you need to choke down just to feel like you’ve come out ahead on your $15 bucks.

Yeah, the price shouldn't matter much, though I hate paying a lot for a lousy buffet. When it's a good buffet, or endless offering, I might go a little nuts. Like at Garden Grill for example where the food is actually fresh and delicious - I might eat my weight in the steak with chimichuri. I can go overboard at Biergarten and Tusker House too. Of course, I'm still not getting my "money's worth" considering Disney prices!

If I'm too full after Biergarten, I just go ride Mission: SPACE - Orange Team and that can take care of it!

 

[mjkacmom]

My kids love local all you can eat sushi restaurants, I think it’s around $28 pp and they certainly get their monies worth! You can order as much as you want, but have to pay for what you don’t finish. My kids are kind of health nut gym rats, my daughters are a size 2. I refuse to go with them. With age comes a smaller appetite and I don’t enjoy it. They do starve themselves all day and don’t eat the non sushi items, although they love ice cream and fried Oreos at the end.

 

[Mysterian]

The client asked me to pick up the pace tailing the widow in the mink furs, so I figured I'd give my feet a rest. I left the train station and arrived at Sloppy Joe's Diner. They're offering a BOGO, any side, with a large drink, thanks to their rewards card (from now until February 15th).

Then I high-tailed it over to Pescatore's for a Deep Sea Sampler, grilled and lathered in lemon. It's only $8.99 on Tuesdays, and you'd be a fool to pass that up on any day of the week..

Figured I'd stop at a hotel for a snooze. Best Western is offering a night's stay for only $39, with their Tuckered Buckaroo rewards program. That sloppy joe did it's best to keep me up at night, so I walked to CVS for some Pepto Bismol, only $4.99.

After a good night's rest, I took an Uber downtown, using a 20% promotional coupon, good for this week only. I was there to see what all the commotion was about, and boy was I in for a shocker: Outback Steakhouse had sirloin and Tasmanian shrimp starting at $16.99, and a free Bloomin' Onion, with your Dingo Dinkum club card....

 

[shh]

We have long had a saying in my family. On special occasions, ie: your birthday/anniversaries/holidays, etc you can have a gut ache if you want one. I am 39 and have now come to the conclusion that I don't want one. No matter the occassion, I don't want a gut ache. It is just not worth it.

It's also extremely unhealthy - it forces one's digestive system to work much harder than it was designed to do and that can have serious and painful long term health repercussions well beyond heartburn, upset stomach or anything temporary. (And nope - I'm hardly the poster child for perfection: I did my share of buffet damage in my early years). But I stopped eating like that decades ago when I learned more about the stress and harm to the body physically.

 

[shh]

My kids love local all you can eat sushi restaurants, I think it’s around $28 pp and they certainly get their monies worth! You can order as much as you want, but have to pay for what you don’t finish. My kids are kind of health nut gym rats, my daughters are a size 2. I refuse to go with them. With age comes a smaller appetite and I don’t enjoy it. They do starve themselves all day and don’t eat the non sushi items, although they love ice cream and fried Oreos at the end.

I love this rule - hate seeing people load up and leave piles of food that get thrown out. As someone upthread said, you can always go back for more.

This always bothered me at cruise buffets. So much waste.

 

[bcla]

Covid gave the casinos time to think about if selling the buffet as a loss leader was worthwhile or not.

So many of the Las Vegas buffets died during covid and were turned into either Food Halls or additional gaming space. Our closest casino, Harrah's Cherokee, closed their buffet and replaced it with a Food Hall of nothing but Gordon Ramsay fast food concepts. It sucks and is a huge downgrade!

I love buffets, I don't usually leave in pain, but I love the variety and choice. I never really get my money's worth in food but do in enjoyment.

A few months before covid hit my wife and I were in Las Vegas and made a plan to visit all the buffets, one or two per trip. That list is now so much shorter.

I feel bad and relieved at the same time that we never got to indulge in the Buffet of Buffets Pass. You got 24 hrs access to participating Caesars buffets. Start your pass just before 7pm on the first day and finish up just before 7pm on the second day. You could cram in 4 meals for $60 during the week, dinner, breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Oh - I’ve done that before. It was around Christmas 2012. The secret is to get dinner in twice. We went to Rio to bookend. And breakfast was at Paris where we were staying. No lunch. I don’t think I could have handled it. Even with that, it cost less.

As much grief as Golden Corral gets, I found out closest one OK. I had the day off and picked up the kiddo from school and got there before lunch hours ended. We waited for the Friday prime rib and steak, where there was a line.

There was one place I refused to go - Captain Kidd’s on Harbor in Anaheim across from the Disneyland pedestrian entrance. That place is notorious. My wife heard about it and insisted on going. We were back in our hotel room in Buena Park before just me and kiddo heading back to Disneyland while my wife took a nap. She took a bus and then headed to Captain Kidd’s where we were going to meet up, but we just ate at McDonald’s and then waved at her from outside Captain Kidd’s. She said it was OK but it looked pretty nasty. It’s gone now. Last time I was in Anaheim (not to go to Disneyland) I was on an Anaheim Regional Transportation bus and mentioned something to another passenger about Captain Kidd’s as we passed by the location (now a Mexican restaurant). The driver overheard and told the bus load of passengers that she used to work there as a hostess. Apparently all employees could eat whatever they wanted there for free, and few took them up on the offer.

https://www.ocweekly.com/winner-win...rst-restaurant-in-the-anaheim-resort-6625153/​

While not everything was awful, and someone dragged through the power of peer pressure to the restaurant can eat a meal and not come away hungry, there is absolutely no doubt in my mind that our readers were correct: Captain Kidd's has won the dubious honor of being named Worst Restaurant in the Anaheim Resort. Even allowing for a very relaxed standard of review given its situation, it is frankly a revolting place to eat. Avoid it at all costs; while the IHOP next door and the Tony Roma's half a block down are not exemplars of fine gastronomy, they're certainly better options than Captain Kidd's. That the meal cost nearly $15 is a slap in the face to visitors, and as a proud Anaheimer, I am offended by this place's presence.​

​

Gentle guests in our city: there are so many other places to eat where you can spend $15. This isn't the Anaheim I know and love; please take some time to eat elsewhere for the same or less money.​

 

[bcla]

I love this rule - hate seeing people load up and leave piles of food that get thrown out. As someone upthread said, you can always go back for more.

This always bothered me at cruise buffets. So much waste.

I have never heard of any place enforcing a “wasted food” policy. I’ve seen signs, but there’s a basic difficulty in enforcement. Most buffets are pay first (easy to just walk out), but even when there’s a check on the table, most employees don’t want to deal with it.

 

[mjkacmom]

I have never heard of any place enforcing a “wasted food” policy. I’ve seen signs, but there’s a basic difficulty in enforcement. Most buffets are pay first (easy to just walk out), but even when there’s a check on the table, most employees don’t want to deal with it.

In the case of all you can eat sushi, you fill out forms and the food is brought to the table on large trays, you pay when you are done. It’s enforced (my kids went once with friends who were inexperienced).

 

[mrodgers]

We went to Country Buffet one time with relatives from out of town and this little girl from a few booths down shouted, "My dad is on his 5th plate!". Super embarrassing for the dad, but obviously there are some people who can eat a lot in one sitting.

Had an off-site meeting which we were doing after lunch that day and then in the morning up to lunch the following day. 2nd day was lunch by the boss. First day, 4 of us ran up to the Chinese buffet before heading to the site.

One coworker had his plate piled so much he left a trail of food falling to the floor from the buffet to our table clear in the back. I said, you know you can go back up again to which he says, I know, I plan on it.

It was embarrassing for people to see him come to the table I was eating at. I never went out to lunch with him again.

 

[mrodgers]

About the time I turned 60 I began to appreciate the smaller portioned, smaller prices senior menu items.

Can't do it any more like I use to. Started in my 40's, 50 now.

Never bothered with buffets or all-you-can-eat because I was always with my family and had 2 young daughters that wouldn't sit still long enough for me to "get my money's worth."

I know people at work who could put an all-you-can-eat out of business. One guy has an insulin pump attached to his hip and we've actually crawled through the ceiling tile from the women's bathroom because he was in insulin shock unconscious locked in the men's room. He can put down 10-11 plates at a buffet. No, I should say, he puts down 10-11 plates.

 

[tvguy]

Can't do it any more like I use to. Started in my 40's, 50 now.

Never bothered with buffets or all-you-can-eat because I was always with my family and had 2 young daughters that wouldn't sit still long enough for me to "get my money's worth."

I know people at work who could put an all-you-can-eat out of business. One guy has an insulin pump attached to his hip and we've actually crawled through the ceiling tile from the women's bathroom because he was in insulin shock unconscious locked in the men's room. He can put down 10-11 plates at a buffet. No, I should say, he puts down 10-11 plates.

With picky kids a buffet was always a Godsend. Not because of all you can eat, but because everyone could find something they wanted to eat.

 

[bcla]

In the case of all you can eat sushi, you fill out forms and the food is brought to the table on large trays, you pay when you are done. It’s enforced (my kids went once with friends who were inexperienced).

I've been to "all you can eat" sushi restaurants of different types, but I haven't seen full trays brought to the table. I remember one where it was only at the bar, orders went right to the sushi chef (prepared freshly), and there was a 1 hour limit to order (although there might have been a fuzzy end to the hour). The chef (a Japanese woman who was very good at it) suggested that we order the most (a la carte) expensive item on the menu first - a baked sushi roll that took about 15 minutes. I've been to one where the procedure was to order up to 3 at a time and they wouldn't allow another order until the previous order was reasonably consumed. A sushi boat place wasn't too bad.

Just traditional buffets have usually been pretty much on the honor system. Again - have seen the sign but I have never seen an employee confront a guest about wasting food. And my father in law can absolutely bring tons to the table that he never intends to finish. Kind of reminds me of the infamous scenes of Chinese tourists at all you can eat places.