My parents live near an Indian restaurant that, for ten bucks, will let you fill a container with whatever you want from the lunch buffet. They will go there, get several things and share the food over one or two meals.
What's the most expensive thing I can put in the 22 oz. take home box from the Golden Corral Buffet?
I have no idea about most expensive, but at $1.99, I’d fill the thing with pot roast or meatloaf or chicken and have stuff for sandwiches most of the week’s lunches.
Assuming the steak is off the menu, so to speak, for the take-away box, the pot roast is probably one of the higher-cost items. At the moment, chuck roast is $6.99 a pound at the grocery store. Their “USDA” steaks are probably Standard grade, which is about as low as you can serve to humans and not get into trouble. (Would you willingly eat “Utility” grade beef?)
I can’t get the link to open, but was wondering about the box - 22 ounces of salad or something else that will stay in a pile would work in a “clamshell” box as you can pile it high and it won’t pour out. Or is it like a Chinese take-out box that could hold soup or rice equally well?
Following the link there and looking at the specific dinner menu of that location (it’s a little different than the link above), there seems to be a fair amount of decent choices, even if steaks are out. (on a side note, I notice that grilled steak and baked potatoes are on the “healthy choice” menu. Only at a Golden Corral…)
Ribs probably have too much wasted space, but pot roast should fit well, as should the pulled pork.
Brownies could also easily be made to conform for almost no wasted space, you can usually smush those down to get quite a bit into a given space if you really want to.
Not particularly saleable, though. Go for the kidneys.
I’m guessing you could probably make it better and cheaper at home.
To the two people who answered “dignity”,
If you are at the golden corral already, it is already quite obvious you have no dignity and/or your dignity is worthless.
Thank you.
I’ve never eaten at Golden Corral, but if it’s like the other buffets I’ve been to, you can get another plate and go back through the line to get another “steak” (quotes because I’m not really sure exactly what that stuff is.)
Ounce for ounce, go for the protein. If not steak, then pot roast.
outside of harvest time, i’d bet it’s something along the lines of chicken breast or broccoli, fresh pineapple or melon.
i’ve been to Golden Corral and it ain’t bad, but let’s be honest, there’s sirloin steak and SIRLOIN steak.
Assume that the sirloin steak is frozen and probably just select-grade.
there’s no ‘legal’ definition for sirloin steak when it comes to advertising. Just as a langoustine or certain prawns can be advertised as “lobster.”
bottom line, carry out whatever you liked the most. At best, you’ll take home $4 worth of broccoli or $4.50 worth of protein for $1.99.
They do, as a special now and then during certain promotions. It’s certainly not up to the quality of what you’d get at a steakhouse or other places, but for buffet it’s not bad.
Bizarre. Every chinese buffet (or any buffet really, including Golden Coral) has a carry out option. It’s not all you can stuff into a box the way this 1.99 thing is, but you get a carry out container, fill it with whatever you want, then they weigh it and charge you by the oz.
Or more likely that they’re not a snob when it comes to food.
You’re welcome.
Hey now! I’m sure we’re all aware of the empty void in MY dignity hole. But food snob? That seems a bit hyperbolic considering I’ve already admitted elsewhere that I liked hamburger helper…
Ahem.
Maybe because they’re used to having people eat there whose eyes are bigger than their stomachs.
That guy in the picture is Jeff Foxworthy and he’s been photographed with some sort of fish-eye lens I think. Speaking of losing one’s dignity…
I’ve often thought about doing something like this at a local chinese buffet for their “volcanic three spicy”.
I’d agree with the steak/lobster/crab legs. Another good bet would be bacon wrapped scallops, if they have them. Unless they are bay scallops. That’s just wrong.
The thing that gets me about all this is that I viewed Golden Corral as one of the fancier places growing up. The buffet is much bigger than any other restaurant here in town. It was a treat.
Likewise Applebees, but I still insist it’s pretty good. I can’t fathom how you guys have such amazing restaurants that both of these are considered bottom of the barrel, and the prices are 50% higher than local fare.
Forget it, BigT. It’s the Derp.
New around here? 
This board has a population that is oddly snooty, it seems the idea of an average restaurant is 100 bucks a plate place at minimum. But bad talk some poor quality pre packaged food and expect blow back and accusations of snobbery, Hershey’s chocolate is a touchy subject. It is odd.
No, no, no… the idea is that whatever restaurant you have, I have one that’s 3x as good for half the price so you must be debasing yourself to live and dine among troglodytes. Also, I could make a rapturous version at home for two wooden nickels.
Perhaps many of us live in more urban areas in which we have choices other than chain restaurants?