As a veteran of many a Chinese buffet, I know what you are talking about! Buffets around here tend to be in the 8-10 buck range so there is more pressure to “get your moneys’ worth”.
The one near my house is $10 on the weekends but they have salt and pepper shrimp (head on!) and crab legs. They also have a seafood combo that has scallops and peeled shrimp in it.
I usually just load up on those as they are far and away my favorites. Re: the crab legs I have to be agressive, several times I have seen them bring out a new platter of them only to have an elderly Chinese couple take the ENTIRE order back to their table! Grrrr…
Plus when you take the hot and sour soup and throw a few scallops into it…Heaven!
Other runners up in the money category are shu mai, egg rolls, and other labour intensive products.
Why not just go in with a plastic trash bag in you jacket and fill it up under the table while nobody is watching. Take it home and “graze”. You should probably load up on cheese products so the food will stay in you longer. You don’t want to crap away your “deal” too soon. Don’t forget to load up on the free mints as you leave and take all the tooth picks and chopsticks for you fireplace.
Because he is not looking to eat what he wants, he is looking to cause expense and that is quite antisocial. His satisfaction is not in eating what he wants to eat but in causing expense to other people. I find that antisocial and very, very, low class. I am not try to insult the OP. I am trying to make him see that getting satisfaction from jsut spending other people’s money for no reason is very petty. Do you think other people like that kind of behavior? Would you tell your date you do that? It is very low class.
The best answer to “Best way to take a Chinese buffet to the cleaners?” is “Don’t do it” just like the answer to “What is the best technique to beat little old ladies to the only free seat on the bus?” is “Don’t do it”.
I have to add that soda costs the restaurants a few pennies a serving. Unlimited serve-yourself soda is a moneymaker for them even if you drink a gallon of pop.
Well, they might not be ancient…or Chinese, but they’re good. As near as I can tell it’s just a couple tablespoons of an even mixture of cheese and mashed potatoes deep-fried into little tots. Also, yes, it’s in Wisconsin, which is why I fault the cheesy potatoes for not having gravy.
I should add that many of those places do not exactly have “deep pockets”. And, honestly, I can’t remember the last time I saw a $5.50 buffet; they all start at around $7.00 U.S. here, at least. Think about a value meal from, say, McDonald’s or Wendy’s: the price of a buffet and all you can eat (even if they cut you off, saying “All you can eat”) compared to a meal from any of these places is no contest in the favor of the Chinese buffet. It’s most probably healthier too.
Buffet prices rise too, and this is one sure way of causing such a rise. My advice given earlier about how to cause a dent is to be taken with a grain of salt (MSG? ), and used only for arguments sake.
Regarding your posts, Sailor, I am not looking to cause expense, I’m looking to feel, just once, like I ate $5.50 worth of food that they charged me for. That’s what I paid for, that’s what I want. If you went to a restaurant, paid for a 32 ounce steak and they served you a 24 ounce one would you object? Would it be low class or petty to demand the larger steak you paid for? The 24 ounce steak would be the same meat and will probably fill you up, afterall. As for eating what I want, it’s not an issue. I’d be happy eating an entire meal of any single thing they served there, it’s all good and I’m not picky.
I think “all you can eat” simply means that you eat until you are full. If you can get full cheaper some place else then yes you are not getting the best deal. Your 32 ounce steak example is not comparing “apples to apples”. The Chinese menu does not say “eat X lbs of food”. It says “eat all that you can until you get full”. It seems pretty obvious that if you are eating until you are full you are indeed "getting your what you paid for.
Bah…you obviously have not seen a fat person hurdle something. Sure it takes effort, but for trough of food with 10 different gravys, my cousin would roll through a 12 pack of old lady nuns without looking down.
In the interest of fighting ignorance, I must remark that $5.50 for a buffet, even a lunch buffet, is at least $2-3 cheaper than the cheapest chinese-cuisine lunch buffet I’ve seen in the last couple of years.
And I’m in the midwest, not exactly the most high-priced place in the USA.
**Flint Ironstag **, I am not wanting to pick on you but why don’t you just eat what you feel like eating and forget what it costs the restaurant? Why did you tiitle this thread “Best way to take a Chinese buffet to the cleaners”?
$5.50 for as much Chinese food you can eat sounds like a bloody good deal to me. That’s about the same as what we Brits pay for a Burger King meal, which barely satisfies your hunger. I know which of the two I’d rather choose, given the chance.
Ignore the restaurant’s costs - that’s their concern - and take the deal at face value. If you feel that $5.50 is overall a reasonable price to pay for stuffing yourself to the gills, just enjoy the food. If you think that’s too much to pay for a full stomach, look for a better deal elsewhere instead.
), and used only for arguments sake.