Wednesday, July 8, 2009

China Buffet

As a hungry Marshalltownian, some of the best 4 words you can hear are: "All You Can Eat". The newly opened China Buffet on Center Street delivers on the promise.

The Looks
Interestingly, the building that China Buffet occupies was previously used for... a Chinese restaurant. Must have made the remodeling job cheap. The dinning room is pretty standard. Booths and tables, walls are plain. Funky chandeliers don't really fit... we're not here for elegance, we're here to shovel food in our pie hole. Or should I say egg roll hole.

The Cost
The menu does offer standard dishes made to order, ranging from $6 to $8. But let's be honest. If you're coming here, it's for the buffet. And from a value point of view, this buffet is great. Only $8.25 for the post 4:00pm dinner buffet. But the real steal is the lunch buffet. All you can eat for $5.99! So much food, and only one stomach!

The Grub
The buffet selection contains surprisingly few selections of traditional Chinese food. A few chicken dishes and a few beef dishes. The General Tso's chicken was tough. There's a small salad bar, and fresh fruit. The egg drop and hot and sour soup come recomended. The buffet has a large amount of non-chinese appetisers such as chicken wings, onion rings, potato wedges, and garlic bread. And of course the more traditional appetizers, such as egg rolls, crab ragoons, and pot stickers.

China Buffet
2500 S Center St #A, (641) 753-3545