一食客留言:This is a very interesting restaurant that is so big it's almost like cramming Todai and Crazy Buffet into a single concept. The only buffet that I can think of that's of a similar size is Buffet City in Oak Lawn. The decorations are very nice and the selection is huge with a grill, sushi, Chinese food, Dim Sum, typical buffet items, seafood, desserts, ice cream, cotton candy machine, and more. If you're comparing this to Todai, I think it's a better choice since there's a lot more room to walk around, dinner price is better (about $20), drink prices are better (about $2), and the hot food is nicer. To match the nice decor, we experienced excellent service with a waiter that was very attentive and knowledgeable about the food. The only real drawbacks are that this place can get very busy, even early (like before 6 p.m.), getting good seafood items (like abalone with mushrooms, fried whole fish, crab legs, etc.) can be quite competitive, and depending on what time of day you go the food can sometimes be cold.I think that the food temperature is what accounts for the high level of variance in experiences between the diners. When the food is nice and hot, the food is actually quite comparable to the best Chinese restaurants in the area. In fact, I feel it is a bit less salty and can be better in texture than them. However, like with a lot of Chinese food, when it is cold it can feel oily and the flavor does not come out as well. So really you have to decide between a more relaxed meal with colder food or possibly having to wait for a seat but delicious food. Personally, I'd rather wait and be competitive for food so that I can get the best possible taste out of it. Plan accordingly for the experience you prefer.As for the food, it would take a long time to really describe everything so here are some highlights (these aren't the only good items, just I don't have the capacity to try every item they offer):Pot stickers - nice and juicy inside with a crisp skin, great when they come out fresh.Shrimp skewer - the vegetables are plump and juicy although the shrimp could use a little more seasoning.Rainbow roll - Fresh and light, great for starting the meal.Halibut fillet - A little under-seasoned I think but a surprising item on their menu.Philadelphia roll, dragon roll, shrimp tempura roll - very similar to other local Japanese restaurants. Not among the best but a solid choice, a bit above average for buffet maki.Mongolian beef - The beef is very nice and tender.Hot tea - Tastes like Lipton Mandarin Orange Green Tea, quite nice if you've never tried it before.Thai style fried whole fish - I think it was red snapper or rainbow trout, either way it was delicious and a very surprising choice for a buffet that wasn't that expensive.Mayonnaise shrimp - Nice light and crisp when it comes out fresh.Fried chicken - a bit better than the normal fried chicken you get from most Chinese buffets. The batter was nice and crunchy.Beef tripe - Not as flavorful or salty as you expect from dim sum restaurants but still pretty good.Pork spareribs - On par with most dim sum restaurants.Roast duck - Good for a buffet, not as nice as the fresh ones you get from Chinatown but it's hard to get this item out in the suburbs.Cantonese seafood soup - Could have used more seafood but a solid choice with pretty good flavor.Clam and wintermelon soup - You don't see this too often and the version the buffet does is actually pretty good. It would be excellent if they would add a bit of ginger to it to complement the flavor of the broth.Chive pancake - Nice and crispy when it's fresh. One of my favorite items.Chive dumping - As good as most Chinatown restaurants when it's fresh. It is not too salty but have a good strong flavor of chives.Fish ball on a stick - too bad I didn't see them serve octopus balls but these are pretty addictive as well.Red bean ice cream - Delicious, it was still good even though they ran out of my first choice (green tea ice cream).Cotton candy - Spun fresh. If you haven't tried cotton candy hot out of the spinner, you are missing out on a delicious experience (well, I guess as gourmet as cheaper candy can get).Cold jellyfish - about as good as other Chinese restaurants make it.Abalone and sea cucumber with mushrooms - Not sure if these are all real ingredients but the taste was pretty good. Surprising it's even offered considered how expensive these ingredients are.At this point I was stuffed beyond belief and I wasn't even close to trying a fraction of their items. They have an impressive selection of dim sum and sushi items I still want to try but it make take several more trips to sample them all. Throughout the night it did seem that items than ran out were being replaced with new items so that every time I took a trip to the buffet I'd run across new things. This buffet is truly impressive in both scale and scope.
