The Rise And Fall Of The Buffet Chain - Cheddar Explains

[@Huntress_Hannah]

“But that peak didn’t continue to rise” That’s...generally what peak means, yes. 😐

[@tiwtid6055]

Cheers Hannah

[@youngblisslife4308]

🥴😂

[@richlizard709]

Peak a boo

[@PRCutie101]

😂😂😂

[@Alex-by9kt]

@Angelo River it is always downhill for a regular peak tho

[@motherhorsefucker]

if you look at where the business model came from it was never going to survive the modern restaurant landscape in america. When the casinos made the buffets they own the real estate sell one of your big three costs is already taken care of. Also, the point of the buffet was not to make money from selling food it was to keep people in the casino gambling as long as possible I.e. it was never supposed to make money.

[@drfusioncraft]

When I'm on a road trip I loved visiting the local casino just for the cheap buffet. Each two meals amount of food in one sitting and save a bunch of cash.

[@motherhorsefucker]

@@drfusioncraft lol same, when I was at college I'd eat one meal a day and go to the dining hall that had a buffet

[@codycast]

Except buffets DID make money for a long time. The business model wasn’t bad. Tastes just change over time

[@user-vi4xy1jw7e]

It had a good run of 60+ years though.

[@XrayTheMyth23]

@@codycast comparing it to a regular sit-down restaurant, they had no real staying power though.

[@ethanwagner6418]

"Buffets are unsanitary!" Me: "Oh no! Anyway..." *Shovels inhuman portions of mac and cheese onto dinner plate.*

[@Ddnmddnn]

Me in hotel buffet: iTS a fRee ReAL ESTATES

[@ralphjosephacobo8014]

Bacteria and Viruses: Yes, all according to plan.

[@eleniayuwoki4443]

I thought you’re talking about the Darcia Sandero

[@woodenhoe]

Clarkson approves

[@FCT8306onTwoWheels]

Chinese food buffet always a win for me

[@markman278]

When I was a kid, I saw someone at Ryan’s take mash potatoes put them on the plate, try them, and then scoop it back into the buffet tray. We never went back. And it’s now gone.

[@Ease54]

If you hadn't seen it, you'd never have known.

[@dogsbecute]

@@Ease54 i think thats the point. it was the eye opener lol.

[@jorgenoname6062]

@@Ease54 if your ok with that then you have some serious problems

[@entertainmentforall6609]

As someone that works with the public on the daily that's not shocking. The amount of people that can't even be bothered to wash their hands after using the restroom is appalling.

[@PeacefulPeteable]

@@jorgenoname6062 Oh man. Just think of all the things you don't know about when you go out for a regular meal or fast food.

[@nateofthesouth]

I've had great and terrible buffet experiences. For me it really comes down to cleanliness. A deal-killer is kids are running around touching all the food with their grubby little hands.

[@brentschmgbert3578]

Hating kids eh? Go to a more expensive restaurant then.

[@cllk115]

@@brentschmgbert3578 why so defensive, if you can't control your kids don't bring them out, simple really, nobody wants kids dirty hands in everything.

[@dogsbecute]

@@brentschmgbert3578 what made you think they hate kids? Whats to enjoy about a parent that cant keep their kids in line while out in public?

[@jblyon2]

@@cllk115 I love how it's everyone else's problem when people refuse to lift a finger to raise their children!

[@Figgy_Jub]

@@cllk115 Kids are gross, they don't understand hygiene typically, that is a fact. Buffets are public, do the math.

[@mrpmj00]

I'll miss the buffet for the variety of dishes, no waiting and nostalgia.

[@lilytran3414]

Yep, variety was always what drove me. I'm not interested in eating one giant plate of a single entree like at most restaurants... I'd rather have small amounts of a bunch of different things. Like a dim sum model for other types of food.

[@diablo.the.cheater]

@@lilytran3414 There are restaurants like that, where you have up to 20 different plates of small bite size foods on a single menu

[@johniii8147]

Nope it’s nasty Go get some frozen food at Walmart it’s actually better quality

[@johniii8147]

@J C It’s not really about getting sick it’s just crappy food

[@nesstheapprentice]

@@johniii8147 has if frozen food ain't crappy

[@Funnylittleman]

I loved Golden Corral as a kid. Hell, even as an adult. After Covid I’ll never be able to blissfully ignore how unsanitary they are again.

[@ariansmovies]

You got that right.

[@RuffWarl0ck]

Went to Golden Corral for years when I was a kid. The last time I went was in 2014. I had food poisoning that day. After that, I said "Never again". Haven't been there since.

[@bridgettem9]

Ikr! I go on cruises too and they also do buffet. I can't see myself going on another cruise.

[@TrangleC]

I'd say, considering the billions of people who have been eating at buffets over the decades, a hand full of outbreaks with a few hundred infected at worst, is actually a stellar track record. Your chances to be hit by lightning or be killed by a cow are statistically greater than your chance to die from a serious disease you caught at a buffet. People need to calm down and switch their brains on again. It is as if everyone would suddenly have forgotten what statistics and risks are and as if a disease that is less deadly than the common flu would somehow have invented and introduced the concept of death to the world. With every step you make you can stumble, fall and break your neck or crack open your skull and people still walk. And do we need to talk about the deadliness of unhealthy diets? The fat in buffet food is more likely to kill you than the viruses it could also carry.

[@steampunkpixie2643]

You can always make sure you use hand sanitizer before selecting food and using the Buffet utensils.

[@mceleste4188]

who here is old enough to remember dine in pizza hut buffet

[@jimzecca3961]

We went to the one near work sometimes since it was all you could eat. Usually they had trouble keeping the simple plain cheese and pepperoni pizzas stocked on the buffet. Usually had one kind of dessert pizza. I think salad was included there if you wanted to bother with it.

[@Oddity2994]

Who remembers the KFC buffet

[@kamille6636]

It was great i feel nostalgiaic

[@Prairielander]

There is a pizza place where I live in Canada that does a lunch buffet. It is $10 and all you can eat pasta, pizza, salad, bread, and desserts.

[@Spintechfilms]

Pepperidge Farms Remembers

[@Burt1038]

I live in Houston and we have some awesome Chinese buffets. There are a few observations: 1. I think they can keep food costs down b/c most of the meats are either breaded, heavily sauced, or mixed with vegetables. They don't just serve up steak on a plate. 2. A lot of the cheap items are really, really, REALLY good. As a customer, my inner a-hole really wants to get the most "value" from buffets by skipping the cheap stuff. But man the soups, dumplings, and fried rice are amazing. 3. The dark underbelly of many "thriving" restaurants in Houston is illegal immigrant labor, often paid less than minimum wage. Make of that what you will but it is everywhere and has to be considered.

[@lostinmuzak]

Yeah man. They are great. Hope you are saving up some money for the doctors too. Sorry but it’s coming for anyone who is a long term buffet eater.

[@AwkwardConverse-ation]

Hunan chef is my personal Houston favorite. I miss it very much

[@vaughnreedjr6592]

Buffet suck.

[@Dr.ZoidbergPhD]

@@vaughnreedjr6592 Your grammar sucks.

[@tohaovershell]

What buffet do you like in Houston?

[@gregthompson3481]

I live in Texas and go to my local Chinese buffet weekly and it’s always packed with people. A lot of the chains definitely are dying down but I think some of the Chinese buffets will stick it out. Then again I also live in Texas which isn’t known for being healthy or taking the pandemic too seriously.

[@catkasimir]

Lucky you

[@Aztesticals]

Tell me about it my family lost 5 and somehow it was the fault if Jimmy carter's alcohol policies that killed them and nit covid

[@blastermaster5039]

Based Texans dabbing on big pharma. Keep Californian immigrants out of Texas please lest they make your home-state be the new failed state.

[@acs6132]

I mean I live in pa and Chinese buffets over here are doing just fine as well

[@gregthompson3481]

@@acs6132 I grew up in PA but moved away 7 months before the pandemic. By June 2020 in Texas I was already back at the buffet and most places in PA were take out only.

[@petergriffiinbirdistheword]

I'm super short and sneeze guards wouldn't stop someone of my stature from being gross. Just saying... Also, when I was a kid... I watched a grown adult drop a serving spoon and put it back. Enough said. 😦

[@187fukdaworld]

Stuff like that happens in most restaurants believe me

[@petergriffiinbirdistheword]

@@187fukdaworld Ahhhh... that's horrifying, but I believe you.

[@villewintermaul1907]

Ummm yeah who really cares 🤣

[@petergriffiinbirdistheword]

@@villewintermaul1907 42 people so far.

[@petergriffiinbirdistheword]

@@craigjensen6853 lol gross, never knew that but I appreciate the info 😄

[@thawhiteazn]

The Chinese buffets in my area do pretty well, and they can be counted on to have good oysters, crab legs and crawfish, as well as sushi and the other typical fare.

[@user-gu1hl2kx2k]

how do they managed to still be opened?

[@asianblockguy]

@@user-gu1hl2kx2k having asian food and large amount of people come

[@thawhiteazn]

@@Gulpathfinder $15 is about the price of the cheaper buffet we go to, but our favorite one that has the best quality everything is more like $30 per adult.

[@asianblockguy]

@JustAMotobug There are some buffets partly have a good asian american population have really good asian food

[@thawhiteazn]

@@asianblockguy yep, that's the beauty of living in Houston

[@alexiss6990]

Here in Switzerland buffets are more common than fast food restaurants. The food is much more healthier and you have more variety.

[@jetfan925]

So some of these foods are banned from the E.U. borders.

[@ThePmso]

In Portugal, we have rodízio. It's almost the same, but the employees goes to the tables offering the food. Most times in rodizio, you have grilled meats with rice, beans and fried potatoes.

[@BrunoOliveira-xn7yr]

At Brazil we have both buffet and Rodízio (which was invented here BTW). Buffets are EXTREMELY common and nowadays you have to wear your mask and a disposable glove to serve yourself. Here also the options tend to be healthier and cheaper than a normal restaurant.

[@BrunoOliveira-xn7yr]

@@ThePmso you go to a rodizio in a daily basis? Here we have mostly meat, pizza and sushi rodizio (burgers, Mediterranean, Mexican and others also exist, but less common) but the prices are higher and we tend to go to eat until you can't anymore hahaha

[@ThePmso]

@@BrunoOliveira-xn7yr Daily basis, not. But almost weekly. Most popular here is rodizio of grilled meats and fish. You can have it around 10€(with drinks included)

[@sunnyguan716]

COVID has realized how disgusting EVERYTHING is. But like as soon as it’s over I still might go😂

[@usuallydead]

It's never going to be over.

[@sunnyguan716]

@@usuallydead not over but hopefully better than how it is now

[@Sebastian-jt5up]

@@usuallydead The virus won't but the pandemic will

[@bdrv18]

@@usuallydead stop being that person

[@ZePopTart]

Once you’ve got the vaccine I say you do it! Your immune system needs something to do or it’ll start finding benign things to attack.

[@jacob21266]

I go to buffets like once or twice a year. I love the idea of being able to eat so many different styles of food so I want to still go to them. Hopefully they can innovate.

[@LivvieLynn]

I think buffets started to die out when consumers starting associating "how much" to calories instead of dollar value.

[@amdl270]

True I wish there would be healthy buffets though with different tasty vegetable or legume dishes. It would be awesome to get stuffed with variety but not feel bad about it lol.

[@roryhanlon927]

@@amdl270 Didn't you just describe a salad bar?

[@codycast]

@@roryhanlon927 Lol best reply of the day :-)

[@chatterbox2567]

@@roryhanlon927 😂

[@ahirschfeld1974]

For me at least it’s quality over quantity when it comes to dining out and buffets are almost the exact opposite quantity over quality for the most part.

[@JustADioWhosAHeroForFun]

The amount of leftover food at Buffets are kind of a waste

[@ferdy5890]

True

[@Dranomoly]

Reheat... re-serve

[@LimeyLassen]

I worked at a gas station buffet for years. We tossed more than we sold.

[@user-vn7ce5ig1z]

"Kind of" a waste? 🤨 The obvious solution is to let people take home the leftovers in a doggy-bag, but they won't do that because they figure it encourages people to grab a lot of extra when they're done to take home, but how is that worse than just throwing out as much as they do? 🤦

[@KaiserMattTygore927]

@@user-vn7ce5ig1z EXACTLY

[@anonismust]

No wonder Warren Buffet is rich . He invented food

[@blink182bfsftw]

Don't be stupid. He only invented all you can eat food

[@austinhernandez2716]

And bribed politicians of course. I mean "lobbied".

[@JJJameson.]

Pff don't let me start on Steve jobs

[@jayandree4361]

He didn’t invent food stupid, he invented the way to eat food, buffet style

[@NickGold]

@@jayandree4361 Ever heard of a “Joke”

[@RuRaynor]

Buffets should have a sink by the door and patrons have to wash their hands before they sit down >___>

[@AlexMint]

I do think more restaurants should have handwash sinks that aren't necessarily in the bathrooms, with no mirrors to discourage taking a long time, but I've only seen like two that were like that.

[@okaywhatevernevermind]

a chinese buffet in florida i used to go to has a hand sanitizer dispenser in the entrance (and that was before covid)

[@RaymondJiang444]

I used to absolutely stuff myself with food at Old Country Buffet and Asian buffets whenever my family went to them when I was young. I'm 25 now and haven't been to one in several years. Even if I were to go to one now I doubt I'd be able to eat as much as I did when I was younger. That was one of the great things about eating at buffets as a kid - it was the perfect place to satisfy your always constantly hungry stomach plus you were at the age where you could eat large amounts of food without getting easily full or putting on a lot of weight.

[@jhixofficial7634]

Dude my dad would eat like 2 plates and I'd have like damn near 5 plates 😂 . Was just reminiscing on the local chinese buffets with coworkers

[@beyonderaatrox1670]

This is all true but I think kbbq and sushi buffets will still survive, at least in downtown

[@michaelsotomayor5001]

you do know you can make your own sushi right? ...

[@davidp1017]

@@michaelsotomayor5001 you realize that you can make your food right? Whats the point of having all of these restaurants then? Lol you can legit make pretty much anything from home if you learn how to cook It's just about the convenience and affordability 🤷🏻

[@michaelsotomayor5001]

@@davidp1017 in all honesty.. after my previous relationship.. I learned that the mother of the house should cook the food always. In Ecuador my family would have someone cook food for us since we would all be busy. My ex would be baffled at the reason why.. she said “women should stay home and cook” it’s her way of saying that is how mothers take care of the family. After that I learned my lesson. NO ONE will ever cook food for you as properly and lovingly as you or your mother can. Therefore, there truly is no need for restaurants. Especially fast food.

[@vanillajack5925]

Yuck, could there be anything worse than a sushi buffet? 🤮

[@beyonderaatrox1670]

@@vanillajack5925 I used to think like that until I went to some higher quality places haha

[@heatherswanson1664]

I love buffets, this isn't gonna make me stop going to them. I don't care about being served, I care about the food and the variety of it

[@jasonm949]

Tell us you're pushing 300lbs, without telling us you're pushing 300lbs.

[@slumphub]

@God Does Not Exist it kinda is not very healthy

[@leonardo.diCATio]

​@@jasonm949 This is just rude. I've seen skinny people eat WAYYY more than I've ever seen a fat person. Even so, you can go to a buffet and come out just fine. I doubt this person is going daily.

[@jasonm949]

@@leonardo.diCATio Skinny people exercise. Fatties don't.

[@frds_skce]

@God Does Not Exist Here to die meanwhile not being fit in a coffin.

[@sohopedeco]

Here in Brazil, per kilo buffets (you weight your plate to pay a proportional price per weight) are probably the most common kind of restaurant. For any one working with limited lunch time, they're a fast way to pick a little bit of everything you'd be having at home.

[@saugocondesb]

Fiquei procurando um comentário falando do Brasil, pq aq é muito comum mesmo

[@mageyeah7763]

In the US the only places I see doing that are Brazilian places. They're super popular, no idea why the idea isn't copied.

[@cheekychappy1234]

@@mageyeah7763 Doesn't Whole Foods also do a hot bar that you pay per kilo?

[@mageyeah7763]

@@cheekychappy1234 Store vs restaurant. But same basic idea, yeah.

[@na2sosa]

Much much faster then going do BK or MC Donald's which supposed to be fast food hahahaha

[@aj402]

Worked as grill cook at Sizzler in West Palm Beach Fl. I could see into salad bar prep area. They kept back door open all day due to heat in kitchen. All salad bar foods left out all shift and constantly covered with flies. Nobody including management cared. I had to quit. Restaurants pay workers and managers the absolute bottom scale and we put their products in our mouths? Not me. This 30 year restaurant veteran says you are crazy to ever eat at most restaurants.

[@lisamac8503]

My Uncle worked at Chasen's in Beverly Hills CA for 20 years - Very posh with movie stars coming and going all the time and he knew them all and he said he wound never eat there because he saw what went on behind the scenes Eating in any restaurant is always chancy

[@SuperLocrian]

Worked in food service for over 10 years - the things I've seen🙀. People who have never worked in a restaurant have no idea!

[@Darke_Exelbirth]

I've a feeling the biggest reason buffets suffered has more to do with how wages have been stagnant for 40 years, but cost of living has consistently increased, reducing the "go out and eat" portion of people's budgets to $0/year.

[@nadie8093]

That is just untrue. It was found that in 2020 americans spent more on takeout and eating out as they did in groceries for the first time in history. Besides, wages have been stagnant BUT adjusted for inflation (AKA rising living costs).

[@ArtisticlyAlexis]

Ah, being a kid in the 90s, getting appetizers like "crab meat" rangoon, a salad drowning in ranch, mac & cheese that looks yummy, but tastes like yellow, mashed taters, a big ol' piece of meat, & every dessert offered!

[@ShroomoftheLoom]

“Tastes like yellow” is such an accurate description lol

[@JoshGerhards]

For real, why does the mac and cheese look so good and taste so bad at every single buffet?

[@ex0stasis72]

I have a newfound respect for those extended family members, in my childhood, who had the self-discipline to go to the bathroom to wash there hands AFTER having filled their plate and brought it back to the table where it’s now getting cold.

[@agoradacerto]

I was just thinking about it. Almost every restaurant in business areas here in Brazil are buffets, everybody likes it and the secret is keep small amounts of food in the trays to have it tasty and appealing. We have well defined lunch hours, so it will be available from 11h to 14h, maximum. And usually everybody washes their hands before get there, it's just cultural.

[@ex0stasis72]

@@agoradacerto Ah that's the key. Probably less than 50% of people (and I'm being generous) was their hands before touching the shared serving utensils where I'm from in the US (Seattle, WA). Although this pandemic may actually change that trend, hopefully.

[@lindsey9728]

I was the only person in my immediate family who did that every time, I was the oldest child. Since I was young, serve food, wash hands, eat. Covid hand washing was not an adjustment for me, I just added 5 seconds to it.

[@Lvlaple4Ever]

F for buffets. There is still a place for them despite current times...

[@melodysafo5437]

F

[@ieuanhunt552]

F

[@ameridesign]

F

[@vaderladyl]

Well A to me! I happen to have many, well managed ones around my area.

[@gavinthecrafter]

I think a lot of those sanitary concerns could be solved by requiring guests to wear gloves while serving their food, or maybe even just hiring staff to serve it for you, like some fast casual restaurants. It would drive up costs but also alleviate a lot of those health concerns among consumers.

[@katatat2030]

Yeah. Though I think people might prefer serving themselves in a buffet setting, cuz it's less fussy and less awkward. I don't know

[@kirkc9643]

Do you know what a buffet is? It's not that.

[@aquariusthompson8212]

Is it still a buffet of somebody is serving you? The guest wearing gloves is a good idea

[@CJ9007]

That’s how Fur’s was. Nasty shit too tasted like canned food they served to you by the scoop on a cafeteria tray. It was dubbed a “buffet”

[@ArisaPD]

Buffets here in Japan started to do this when Covid hit, there are disposable gloves that guests must use before getting food and must be thrown away after use. They set up a plastic bag at your table to dispose of the gloves.

[@AndrewDangerously]

I used to love Golden Corral, my best friend and I originally bonded over weekly outings there. As I grew older, I realized that you are essentially paying to get full. I can get full eating just about anywhere else and it would be cheaper. The variety is nice, but everything is a lesser quality.

[@joylox]

That's what I found about buffets on cruise ships. Usually they'd be lower quality stuff than the main dining hall, but it was so quick and easy as everything was already made. Although when it comes to quick food, cruise ship or not, my go to is stir fry places, where they throw everything in a wok and cook it right there. It's almost like a buffet because you can chose what goes into it, but you know it's not contaminated and is usually half the price. The cheapest place I can eat, with my gluten intolerance in Canada, is Thai Express, and it's $8 for a good size bowl of noodles or rice.

[@BillionairesArentYourFriends]

My brother got sick as shit at one and had such bad food poisoning we never went to another one again.

[@acardenasjr1340]

*Variety. I can get full all day sure, but can I get full off Meatloaf, Tacos and Cheesecake all in one sitting? Nope. You're not paying to "get full", you're paying for your personal choice in variety and as much as you want*

[@AndrewDangerously]

@@acardenasjr1340 You have rocked my entire world view, and I am going to fundamentally rethink my life.

[@theotherjared9824]

Buffet: "All you can eat." Bowling ball shaped men named Chuck: "Are you challenging me?"

[@SignedDiamond]

As a parent it is just really nice to be able to put 20 different foods in front of your kid. So often a child will just say “I don’t like spaghetti” and then just won’t eat or they barely peck at a plate as they try to go play with their toys. My kids are underweight so seeing them uninterested in food is very stressful.

[@jturquoise]

Or you can just cook them what they want to eat lol

[@EveryBurgerinVegas]

@@jturquoise No she has to make spaghetti

[@jturquoise]

@@EveryBurgerinVegas I don’t think she knows how to cook anything . That’s why she takes her kids to eat out.

[@ArtVandelayOfficial]

They would have bigger appetites if you let them have a little puff of marijuana before going to the restaurant

[@jturquoise]

@@ArtVandelayOfficial very wise Art Vandelay. Very wise indeed. Hope the import/export business is treating you well :)

[@josephsheranda]

Goodbye Sweet Tomatoes. Best soup and salad buffet ever. Damn you COVID.

[@patpierce4854]

Agreed…😢

[@stephanieg8545]

Miss that place so much 😢 it went out in my area quite a few years before Covid. Don’t know why but that place was just special. I guess nostalgic.

[@josephsheranda]

@@stephanieg8545 In the unhealthiest country in the world where it's difficult to teach your kids good dietary habits eating out, it was a rare gem. To me that was its greatest appeal.

[@kriztin1000]

I am European and I've visited Florida once. I had never been to a buffet like golden corral before. We went there, and people were vomiting outside the restaurant to be able to go back inside and fit more food in their stomachs. The gluttony of it all was just horrifying, never been to a buffet since

[@spideywhiplash]

😆😆😆 Sounds about right for Florida.

[@spideywhiplash]

@Daniel Valente ...come on, she is talking about Florida...😆😉😝

[@kricku]

Were they fat as shit?

[@eacorpe88]

@Daniel Valente nah ... people do. But not outside. That's the part I have to attribute to FL. Usually people use the toilet (because you aren't leaving to establishment to "reset" eating capability)

[@tonytoledo6251]

To be fair that could be any given restaurant in Florida, not just Golden Corral

[@jasonparrish8670]

Growing up in the 70's to a construction/logging family I would argue the most important piece of this equation left out is the literal generational change that took place in America. The WWII and Baby Boomer generations were raised in relative scarcity and lived in a far more manual/less-automated society, with far fewer choices for food. Buffets offered a veritable unlimited cornucopia for consumers that allowed you to just walk in, put your coat on your chair, and have a variety of time-consuming dishes immediately at your finger tips. A one-up from the diner/greasy-spoon restaurants that predominated outside urban centers. Fast forward a few decades and you now have a rainbow of ethnic food and small personal restaurants, every sort of fast-food franchise, and deli counters in every grocery. Add that to the almost extinction of manual labor in the US in favor of mechanization/automation and no one 'needs' the calories anymore.

[@kgoblin5084]

Yeah, this theory sounds legit. I've noticed the real distaste for buffet's comes from younger millennials & zoomers... people whose parents are likely gen-X or later. Although you're not quite right on manual labor being extinct... it literally can't go extinct because we actively need it; which has led to a shift where the trades are either becoming specialty professions demanding high wages, or being fulfilled by folks from outside the borders... which then feeds into the whole immigration controversy. Smart money if you've got a college-age kid (or ARE a college age kid) is to consider the trades over university BTW. You'll have less debt, be more active, & depending on what you specialize in earn the same or more money than an office worker with a degree.

[@donrico8212]

Can't wait for CoVid to be over so I can go back to my fav Chinese buffet

[@user-vn7ce5ig1z]

The only buffet place that we used to go to was Mandarin because they had good food for a reasonably low price. But we haven't been there in years because they kept increasing the prices constantly and the quality of the food kept going down. Now with the pandemic, I'd be surprised if they're open at all, but considering all of the things I've seen and learned about China and its people, I'd be surprised if it's not. I don't think we'll ever go back again. 😕

[@stezton]

Me, too, assuming they're still open. I literally haven't eaten in a restaurant since March. It's depressing.

[@donrico8212]

@@stezton I have gone out and restaurants were doing everything properly. It's a shame they can't open - alot won't reopen

[@donrico8212]

@@user-vn7ce5ig1z don't generalize Mandarin for what goes on in another country. Alot of the seafood is Canadian too

[@vanillajack5925]

Just don't eat the Wuhan bat chop suey.

[@henk-3098]

I still love them, after Covid 19 ends I'm definitely coming back

[@vaderladyl]

I do too. And here in 2021 they have reopened and i am lucky to have some very good ones nearby.

[@princessatellaluma]

idc abt covid! the chinese buffet in my town has killer sushi!!

[@julialee179]

"we're starting to see food halls pop up" me: *laughs in southeast asian*

[@jetfan925]

I wish I was living in Southeast Asia.

[@csmlyly5736]

Is this because Southeast Asia has a lot of them already? Or because they had a bad experience with them? Do people from Southeast Asia have a predilection against food halls?

[@deckarddwizardd1909]

True true. Like every community here has a food hub of some sort.

[@OliverLouiseConner]

even small towns can have at least a food hall, a big city in southeast Asia will have hundreds/thousands, it's very common also buffet still exist here

[@ghivifahmi4252]

Hey there neighbor!

[@abbyl5659]

i genuinely didn't understand how gross buffets were until COVID and now I can never unsee it.

[@wutzerface77]

"a new take on the buffet model has been rearing it's head" Shows Reading Terminal Market which has been open since 1893

[@Ev0ltion]

Just keep food behind glass and have someone serve it to you... As long as you have "our plate" we will fill it.

[@Ev0ltion]

@SnoopyDoo I think I've been to sevral places like that in Poland too. I just cant think of any particular from top of my head.

[@cheekychappy1234]

@@Ev0ltion Are you thinking of a "Bar Mleczny" by any chance?

[@Ev0ltion]

@@cheekychappy1234 bar mleczny works more like a fast food restaurant but with decent quality food there are no refills. But i know "pizza hut" have refill event from time to time.

[@리주민]

That would be called a cafeteria, not a buffet 😋

[@Ev0ltion]

@HoboMaster Tbh horrible idea. Most of the customers would straight ignore it.

[@starsINSPACE]

Man, Ryan's was amazing as a kid

[@Caercutta30]

My class got Food Poisoned there.

[@danielantoniozd26]

I miss early 2000s Home Town Buffet

[@hothotheat3000]

Best buffet I’ve ever had was a sashimi place in Tokyo that gave you 90 minutes to eat as much as you wanted. It was pretty good, and not very expensive, either.

[@sumocupid8461]

Guy said “or even thirds” 😂😂 I’m out here getting 8+ full plates

[@jeremywj]

I would probably end up getting about 6 plates (including desert) myself. However, I would usually on finish about half of each plate. Lots of times it was due to the fact that I ended up not liking what I didn't eat.

[@okaywhatevernevermind]

america 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 where you half eat 8+ plates and throw away the excess food as a middlefinger to poor people.

[@RichV20]

If you aren't getting a minimum 5 plates, don't even bother going to the buffet. Also skip the breads, macs and starches and veggies and go straight for the meats and other high ticket items.

[@TheMobius999]

COVID-19 spared no one and nothing.

[@GulfCoastTim]

Sadly this is about right

[@j.foobar1764]

I took two business trips for work between mid-November and early December. The first was to California and there was a Golden Corral near my hotel. It was completely closed and had "temporarily closed" on the signboard. The second was to Atlanta and again there was a Golden Corral near where I was staying. It was open and had a fairly full parking lot. Kind of a perfect example of how two states have reacted to the pandemic differently.

[@jesusramirezromo2037]

Except the cleaning product industry They made a fortune

[@j.foobar1764]

@@jesusramirezromo2037 I wish I owned stock on the companies that make those adhesive "6 FT Social Distancing", etc. floor signs.

[@Danflave]

I don't recall Chi Chi's ever being a buffet?

[@essbee1641]

I was thinking the same. I haven’t seen one in years but I remember ordering from a menu.

[@bobbrownell2303]

there was no buffet at chi chi’s.

[@sandrajamieson7033]

Some Chi Chi's did have a lunch buffet.

[@j.foobar1764]

And the other two examples they cited were from cross contamination in the kitchen at buffet restaurants, not from dirty tongs. Shoddy journalism.

[@petenielsen6683]

@@sandrajamieson7033 NOT the one featured in the video!

[@MrZedblade]

I skip all the buffet tables and go straight for the hibachi station. My food is made to order and tastes much better than whatever was sitting under the heat lamps with people coughing on them.

[@리주민]

Mongolian for me. Pick the raw things to be cooked and the chef puts it all together and cooks it

[@csmlyly5736]

I make a sandwich at home

[@MrZedblade]

@@csmlyly5736 By far the smartest decision

[@jetstreamdefalpha5411]

@@MrZedblade make a shit loads of em, sandwich buffet? Hot cheetos or takis, and ice cold dr pepper

[@benjifranks8360]

Yeah stay home and be afraid of the world girls

[@SurprisinglyDeep]

Ideas to save buffets: 1) Make a menu of only a few cheap items (like a few pastas, potato salads, soups and normal salads.) 2) Have a full stocked liquor bar and soda bar and make people pay full for drinks 3) Put alcoholic hand sanitiser dispensers at the beginning and end of the lines 4) Have sanitising UV light emitters that the tongs can sit on top of when not in use. Instruct customers to put the tongs on the emitters after they're done using them 5) Hire an employee to oversee the lines and to continuously clean down the tongs and surfaces every 20 minutes or so 6) Give each employee a checklist of items each day involving instructions for steps they must follow to keep the restaurant clean. If they fail to follow through and fill up the daily checklist each day too many days in a row, make sure they're either forced to take remedial training or that they're fired 7) Work with delivery companies to craft food items for take out or delivery meals that are more expensive than the all you can eat buffet meals offered in the restaurant (a restaurant near me already does this.)

[@DeMews]

Best value buffet I ever has was in the 90's at Pizza Hut: $4.95 lunch or $9.95 dinner. Help yourself to as many different pizza slices and bowls of salads as you like. If I remember correctly, drinks (pepsi, coke) were extra.

[@xanderkyron]

The pizza hut buffet was still amazing value well into the late 2000s/early 2010s, I don't know if it still is, but now I'm going to check when my nearest pizza hut opens tomorrow. That was great.

[@youngblisslife4308]

I fell in love with sushi at Japanese Buffets as a teenager. The last time I went, the sushi looked old and I realized that they weren't making fresh sushi until the old sushi was gone and dinner started. Later on, the place shut down for months "holiday" and never reopened. I can definitely say, I'm 27 years old and haven't been to a buffet in 6 years or so. I havent been to Golden Corral or any main buffet place and over a decade besides a cruise and I avoided that like the plaque. Btw Chi Chi's was my favorite restaurant growing up. Hurt my heart when they closed

[@mseatapplesauce6199]

Post cov-19, anybody else questioning their whole life?? Just imagine how many germs we’ve encountered! I used to loooove buffets!

[@xsu-is7vq]

just keep your mask and gloves on, and you’ll be fine.

[@newhale07]

Building our immune system

[@ironicdivinemandatestan4262]

God, those baseball games were a pathogen powderkeg.

[@AGenericAccount]

i think buffets are worth the risk

[@Purplesquigglystripe]

I’m guessing things like that are how I’d randomly get sick

[@wompasdub]

None of those outbreaks had anything to do with the utensils. Also Chi Chi's wasn't a buffet style restaurant, I don't even remember them having a salad bar. Buffets are gross but it seems misleading

[@romecottrell4558]

I believe that cleanliness is the main concern of many restaurants 😋. No matter where you go out to dine .

[@jediknight38]

Ever herd of the Crystal Palace at the Magic Kingdom at Disneyworld? They've got an awsome buffet that serves all you can eat breakfast, lunch and dinner meals everyday. At breakfast I would stuff myself and spend the rest of the day burning it out of system by walking, exploring and riding as many rides as I can untill I'm ready to eat again at 5 or 6 in the afternoon.

[@SeenDiving]

Still love golden buffet as long as it’s a clean one. Also much of the high end buffets in Vegas are amazing

[@uptin]

Definitely sir!

[@djp1234]

My favorite is sushi buffets. Looks like that's gone forever.

[@michaelsotomayor5001]

you do know you can make your own sushi right? ...

[@djp1234]

@@michaelsotomayor5001 and you can also make your own soap and cheese too. Anything is possible if you put your mind to it.

[@tnatstrat7495]

How do you feel about kaitensushi? Thats the sushi restaurants with the little conveyor belt that goes to peoples tables. You pick an item on the conveyor or you order and item off a tablet on your table and it comes to you by the conveyor. Much fresher than a buffet.

[@djp1234]

@@tnatstrat7495 it’s cool, but it’s not all you can eat like a buffet. And that system still wouldn’t work during a pandemic because kids and adult kids would be touching and coughing on the plates as they go by.

[@exultantblade50]

@@djp1234 They more often have 2 conveyor belts. One for the sushi rolls that regularly go by, and one for specific orders. It's better to attribute them as robotic waiters rather than buffets. Especially since it's not a one fixed cost, you pay for each dish. Actual waiters, of course, still exist. In pandemic times, you can just disable the second conveyor belt. Of course, there are still other problems such as the system being suited for closed buildings, resulting in someone eventually breathing in infected air. There would also be the need to have the tablet menus be cleaned regularly.

[@edcenatus9825]

Announcer: buffets are unsanitary My mind: take 3 vitamin gummies and you’re goooooooooood.

[@KailyKail]

I went to an all you can eat place for my birthday this year, but it was anything but a buffet. It was also super expensive. After tip, it was $250 for three of us. As for the food, it was a Brazilian steakhouse, where they come around to your table and offer you different types of meat, which they slice off a stale right in front of you. It’s a really cool experience, and the food was amazing.

[@sjajsjsja4523]

Lol. Just start by saying you went to a Brazilian steakhouse. They're all like that.

[@KailyKail]

@@sjajsjsja4523 But that kind of defeats the purpose of my post. The intent was to lead people on.

[@leshpar]

When I was a kid it was always my favorite time of the month when we went to go eat at Hometown Buffet. Man that sign brings back some nostalgia.

[@All.For.You.Lord.]

Last buffet I went to was in 2019 where I witnessed a 12 year old girl eatting food off the serving spoon and then proceeding to put the spoon back into the food.... it was the most horrific thing I ever saw.... needless to say that was my last time ever going to a buffet again

[@LulfsBloodbag]

Would have been hard to since it was 2019 when you last went

[@alsaunders7805]

You've had a very sheltered life if that was the most horrific thing you ever saw? 🤔🍻

[@packerqueen7932]

How would you know she was 12

[@daniellatheczarina2u915]

Exactly, she could have been an adult midget person.

[@dereksalas8195]

then Covid said, “die, buffets” ,and it was done.

[@watchdealer11]

I'm glad people are starting realize just because you can eat as much as you want doesn't mean you should.

[@cattysplat]

Upselling food by making food snobbery common practise is also abhorrent but the industry will gladly charge you more than double for the same thing with fast casual and organic.

[@watchdealer11]

@@cattysplat true, I like local places that aren't chains the best. The places you mentioned rely on idiots hearing that BHA causes cancer but not looking into the study to realize the doses required to do any sort of damage weigh more than entire meal.

[@gustavrsh]

Most buffets here in Brazil charge by weight, so you literally weight your plate (the plate itself doesn't count of course) and people don't waste much when you pay by weight. There aren't many chains here, but local buffet restaurants fuels most of the population who needs to eat out daily for lunch. They're relatively cheap and healthy.

[@dogsbecute]

i feel like buffets are supposed to be a sort of "subsidized" part of a business, meant to simply keep people around spending money on other amenities

[@laurice8056]

Wedding receptions, Quicineras, Birthday parties, Baby showers, Funerals, Anniversaries and other celebrations are often held at Buffets nowadays. It’s a money and time saving option for a lot of people. No worries about decorating, cleaning up or food preparation. And there’s something that’s tasty and appealing for most of the guests. And the Restaurant owner has a guaranteed block of time that their business will have a lot of customers. Some of these customers may return some time in the future if they liked the food and venue. Very interesting video. Thanks for sharing!

[@scottseaver4070]

your ecoli scare isn't localized to buffets. buffets aren't even the biggest contributor

[@michaelsotomayor5001]

it's still a contributor though so.. scratch it off the list for me.

[@Raja1938]

@@michaelsotomayor5001 You should scratch supermarkets and farmers' markets off the list too, then. They contribute far more.

[@michaelsotomayor5001]

@@Raja1938 not if you can clean your stuff before eating it.. it’s not the same. Besides you have to actually cook your food stuff you don’t just buy apples and chow it down. Do you? If you do you remind me of Peter griffin

[@Raja1938]

@@michaelsotomayor5001 Not necessarily. Many e.coli outbreaks in the past decade were linked to lettuce and other leafy greens that are commonly eaten uncooked. And no, I've never cooked apples before chowing them down.

[@michaelsotomayor5001]

@@Raja1938 The more you know (in a singing tune) I don't buy lettuces. Just vegetables that will end up cooked like broccoli or peas. Also you don't use apples for applesauce? huh.. I guess it's just me.

[@Depplover4good]

I grew up in a big family. We loved buffets because we could eat as much as we want and each eat what we wanted. Now that I'm older, I realize buffets are unsanitary. I still love family style since it's nice to have with my big family.

[@mikeyllo]

When my coworkers and I first learned about the coronavirus back in February, we stopped going to the serve-yourself style setups. As much as I loved the variety of foods you could get at a buffet, I don't see myself getting comfortable enough to go again with everyone touching the same serving utensils. I've heard that some buffets have switched to having a server put what you want on your plate, or having customers get new gloves each time they hit the buffet bar, but that's not the same. Doesn't seem worth it.

[@linksow5331]

That is overall the most common kind of restaurant in Brazil if I remember correctly.

[@EmeralBookwise]

If those news reports are anything to go by, sanitation wasn't ever that much of a problem. The number of infected patron is pretty low when compared to an entire nation wide business model. Not trying downplay the inconvenience, suffering, and in rare cases death that occurred. Honestly, however, pretty similar outbreaks can be caused at any kind of restaurant due to cross contamination or poor employee hygiene.

[@markvolpe2305]

My friend and I went to a Golden Corral in Connecticut back in September and they were serving the meals in cafeteria style, it was much nicer and more organized than the old way.

[@kickballfever]

Who else remembers when Wendy's had a buffet? Those were the days.....

[@Ryan-yw8iz]

Wow, didn’t know that!! I love Wendy’s! How long ago was that?

[@kickballfever]

@@Ryan-yw8iz This is when I was a kid, about 30 years ago. They had a hot and cold buffet and you could make your own tacos.

[@tonyhogg9839]

Yes I ate at their buffet a couple of times.

[@j.foobar1764]

@@Ryan-yw8iz It was called the Wendy's "Super Bar". This would have been in the early 90s.

[@keithbender2061]

I remember our local Wendy's had a salad bar (small in size) back in the 80's.

[@uhohhotdog]

I washed dishes in a buffet years ago. It’s never ending. After it was converted to a normal restaurant there were far far far fewer dishes to wash.

[@alexmaclean1]

The Chinese place here does a buffet 3 days a week for like 3 hours. They replace every set of tongs/spoons at the buffet every 10 minutes and everyone is required to use a foot activated sanitizer station before any trip up. Seems to have alleviated most peoples fears, they are packed every time.

[@glorygloryholeallelujah]

I’ve had 3 buffet loves in my lifetime... 1 was the chain *”soup’r salad”* - 2 was the chain *”Chuck Wagon”* and 3 was the *”Amish Buffet”* in Intercourse, PA (although that one falls into a weird grey area because it’s “all you can eat,” but it’s communal dining-platters of food are brought to each massive banquet table, instead of traditional buffet self serve.) ❤️

[@Chuubie]

Food halls are less economically efficient for the end customer though- so to try 3 diff items is basically buying 3 diff meals $$$. Buffets gave us all the selection under one roof which reduced the costs vs buying them separately. I think a better comparison is the huge trend of GHOST KITCHENS- which are part of the delivery order boom (Seamless / Uber eats)- where 7 diff restaurants menus are actually all produced under 1 central kitchen

[@RedSliceGaming34]

We lost a Golden Corall and a place called Jumbos it was a Chinese/Japanese all you can eat and they had frog legs. :( Gonna miss eating there

[@goofyahseb]

Over in my area, there’s this buffet, that actually had really good sanitation throughout the dining area and restrooms. The previous buffets were Chinese food buffets, and had very little sanitation, and when this buffet chain came, everyone came and was pretty successful, until of course... Covid, but I think everyone will have some type of memory about buffets

[@MarinaMeoli]

In Brazil they’re extremely popular. It’s the type of restaurants most workers usually go to for lunch if they can’t eat at home.

[@panagea2007]

I like chicken, I like steak, I like seafood, I like most things in fact, but restaurants generally serve meals of one thing only. I enjoy buffets not because it's all I can eat, but because I like a little bit of everything. There are still buffets in my area. They tend to be on weekends at the bigger hotels.

[@juanvaldez4043]

It’s interesting how they jack around prices, recently my cost (family of 3) at Golden Corral was $53, but a dinner at Texas Roadhouse was $35

[@Oniontrololol]

As a former employee in a buffet I can confirm some leftovers are kept and served the next day.

[@quagmiretoiletgaming]

Ok

[@j.j.r98]

Lie 100% lie

[@Oniontrololol]

@Jacob Carson google it and u’ll know it’s not a lie

[@gustavrsh]

As a normal person I can confirm I eat leftovers from one or two days ago

[@MrCheesecake1928]

🤮🤮🤮

[@thespiceful]

Buffets have no business existing at weddings either.

[@9064bow]

I used to go to sizzler with my grandma and I usually got the salad bar. I loved loading my plate up with chicken wings and drenching them with the squeeze bottle of hot sauce that was there. And I'd usually go back for seconds and put the bbq sauce on them. 🤣 Also in my old neighborhood there was a Chinese buffet that my mom took me and my brother to all the time. I was so sad when it closed, but that was over a decade ago

[@glennso47]

My wife and I went to a buffet restaurant and a waitress brought us some dinner rolls that were leftover from another table. We called the manager and she went to the back room and got us fresh rolls. Golden Corral in Rockford Illinois.

[@williamhaynes7089]

I wish my golden corral was open, I miss it... This negative video didn't scare me off

[@fearlesscrusader]

Golden Corrals have been open for the past 6-8 months around here. Nothing has changed. This video is stupid.

[@vaderladyl]

They have reopened in 2021.

[@Alex_Plante]

I've noticed a marked decline, over the past 20 years, in Chinese restaurants. Could you make an episode about that?

[@what-a-ride8247]

We started that food hall trend in Mississippi in Jackson it’s nice too have more food choices then a buffet

[@ghosty4]

Oh, Souplantation. How I miss you!

[@Homemadegameguru]

I will never forget when in grade 11, a bunch of us went to a buffet called Imperial and two of my friends found cigarette butts in the fried rice. To keep us quiet, our entire meal was free and we took the deal. However, after that experience, I've never felt comfortable at buffets again.

[@Tonyhouse1168]

Strong disagree, after 23 years in the restaurant business dealing with costs: 3-4% goes to front of house staff 12-16% goes to back of house staff Salaried staff doesn’t count against costs or labor. Try exceeding those percentages and see if you still have a job at the end of the month.

[@kgoblin5084]

"Salaried staff doesn’t count against costs or labor." This is nonsense. I'm going to be charitable & make a guess that you've only acted as local, on-site management and probably only dealt with the costs within your control, which would probably not include your own salary... but you earned pay dude, paid in MONEY, that had to come from somewhere... and a manager paid circa ~$40k/year (what google tells me is a rough median pay) is earning more than a $15/hour person at a full 40 hours/week. Do you really think a successful business can be run without making sure that cost can be recouped?

[@kineticstar]

I use to work at a Ryan's when I was in high school...it was awful. Damn customers were disgusting and completely ignored cleanliness. I hated that job because of the poor treatment, low wages and bad customers.

[@Young_Bourdain]

MAY PONDEROSA LIVE FOREVER! TACOS W/ HAM CUBES ON TOP OF THE NACHO CHEESE

[@Ryan-yw8iz]

Love Love Ponderosa! There is one 30 mins away from me.... Well it was there 11 months ago.

[@toykeyper8914]

Ponderosa, my first "restaurant" job. The best part of the buffet was the mini corn dogs. We used to have these really scummy people come in for the lunch buffet and stay until after the dinner buffet was put up. The whole time loading plastic grocery bags full of the food to take home when they thought we weren't looking.

[@Caercutta30]

Hear hear!

[@legoclonetrooper8966]

I have such good memories of hometown buffet and a place called sweet tomatoes that recently shut down

[@paulhunter6742]

My favorite buffet style restaurant was Wendy's which on 1980s had All U can Eat Salad Bars. I was thought was safer because most items were chilled. My favorite now is Cafe in major hospital. The Hot Soups are always great.

[@ians8184]

Chi-Chi's was NOT a buffet, I don't know where you're getting that information from.

[@laurens1698]

THANK YOU, I thought I was going crazy. I used to go to Chi-Chi's all the time with family as a kid and I don't remember them ever having a buffet.

[@virginiakingsford9470]

YES!!!!

[@gregleuze6657]

I worked there for a time, no buffet at my location. Makes me question other information in video.

[@ThexDynastxQueen]

Apparently in the very early 90s it had a buffet (probably not every location tho) but it must not have lasted even a decade.

[@jeremywj]

Thought the same thing! It may have had a salad bar, but that would be about it. Don't recall for sure, didn't eat salad as a kid.

[@ProfessorDarkAcademia]

Chi-Chi’s was *not* a buffet. That’s blatantly poor reporting.

[@sandrajamieson7033]

Chi Chi's did have a lunch buffet.

[@petenielsen6683]

@@sandrajamieson7033 NOT at the location he mentions!

[@knight9831]

I was going to say that. I remember that very well because my sister ate at that restaurant & had to get tested when they announced that outbreak

[@starcherry6814]

I can’t be the only one that notices buffet chains never clean their dishes

[@mmminteresting2440]

Wait really....oh no.. OH NO.......

[@scronx]

Food halls? Tell us more -- I have never heard of them! Thanks for this fascinating information. Buffets have added immensely to my life as a single person with nobody to take meals with most of the time. Boy do I miss Quincy's and Ryan's -- the loss of Ryan's is a real tragedy. I was afraid you would mention another factor for the buffets' evanescence -- vacuum cleaners like me. I mostly eat one meal per day and have often had three or four plates worth at the groaning boards. Have assumed this was part of their business plan since most people are there for a normal sized meal. I think a major factor you don't invoke is people's fickle tastes. Attendance at Ryan's was quite healthy for a long while there but send down and down and down. This was a chain with genuine down home style and selections, very humble and totally lacking in pretense. I understand the brass gave employees the shaft at the end, giving almost no notice (or was it no severance pay -- something like that).

[@DFPercush]

There was a restaurant in the mall where everything was laid out in a line, but they had servers dipping stuff onto your plate. You paid up front, walked through the line with your plate, told them what to put on it, then you sat down and ate. I don't remember ever getting seconds though. Seems like a much safer way to do it.