Posted on 05/07/2023 3:57:37 PM PDT by MinorityRepublican
The Covid-19 pandemic crushed all-you-can-eat buffets.
The owner of Old Country Buffet and Furr’s Fresh Buffet filed for bankruptcy in 2021. About the same time, so did Cicis and the owner of Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes. Operators cited occupancy restrictions, bans and health concerns. But now buffets are making a comeback.
In March, visits to three leading buffets — Golden Corral, Cicis, and Pizza Ranch — were up 125% from January of 2021, according to data from Placer.ai, which tracks foot traffic at restaurants and stores.
That figure outpaced the growth of visits to fast-casual chains and full-service restaurants during the period, according to Placer.
“The higher quality concepts that stuck it out are reaping some rewards, like Golden Corral and Pizza Ranch,” said Jonathan Maze, the editor-in-chief at trade publication Restaurant Business Magazine.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
Yeah how can you screw up making a profit off lettuce n tomatoes. Always busy X low cost produce. I understand COVID hurt them but still
LOL!! I remember going to a Chinese Buffet in a strip mall outside of Utica, NY with some co-workers. That was well over 20 years ago. The restaurant is not there anymore. This one day, we were making our way around the buffet stand, and I noticed a cockroach crawling over one of the pans of food. I immediately notified one of the employees, and they came right out, took the container of food away. I've always wondered if they had actually thrown the food out, or simply removed the cockroach, and brought the same pan back.
The Mom & Pop buffets never closed here in Fort Worth.
I had Golden Corral last week and enjoy Chinese buffet when I travel.
For some reason, my mother loves the casino buffet in town, and that is literally all she wants. Mothers day, fathers day, birthday, thanksgiving, easter, christmas. Every event, every year. No home cooked thanksgiving turkeys allowed, and I like cooking. It is like 80 bucks each, and she generally has a salad and an egg roll and an eclaire. Covid shut her favorite one down, but she quickly found the other one that didn’t close. God love her, but I swear I will never set foot in a buffet ever again after she is gone
Ah, small world. I’m in Aurora, so it’s a hike up there but I really like it. We’ve been talking about running up there sometime, maybe take our granddaughters who love CiCi’s, but have never been to Cinzetti’s (which is WAY better).
I can’t do buffets anymore. I can’t eat enough food to justify the price. If I try...I’m miserable after.
A lot of the best buffets are in the back of casinos. Pure genius.
Meanwhile Jenny Craig is going out of business. Americans have given up. If everyone else is fat why bother being thin?
Ha I once saw one sort through about 30 chicken breasts at a buffet
So I went elsewhere to look at other selections
When I got back he was sorting through them again - the other direction
(Biden is fixing the real value of your bank account.)
Yes he is. Indeed.
We are sooooo....Laz.
I don’t see too many Chinese buffets here in MA but there are some elsewhere.
Traveling in PA during the pandemic I saw that Hoss’s allowed buffets again; plastic gloves were available if needed.
Breakfast buffets at Doubletree (Pittsburgh) and Holiday Inn (Portland ME) in the last year were good.
Pizza Ranch has THE BEST fried chicken.
Staying at a Rodeway Inn in Milford PA, I saw there was a Chinese buffet next door.
Not too bad.
I incredibly miss my local Old Country Buffet! But a month ago went to Golden Corral in Spokane and it was really excellent... and no misbehaving kids or adults! And, for some reason, the buffets around here don’t seem to have that many really obese people.
“Is it more laxative laced iced tea you’d be wanting?”
We occasionally eat at one of those places, but some of the sights there can be appetite spoilers. I’m talking about huge obese lard a$$es that literally take up two seats. They have at least two plates just piled with food and sit there and pig out like real pigs. And then get up and get refills. They are disgusting.
American gluttony, slothful, obesity, diabetic, heart failure and hygiene on display. Yum yum. You just know all them nose/ear pickers, bathroom, scratching nasty freaks who want to stuff their disgusting faces full are just proud of their proper manners like washing their hands. That’s ok since the high quality ingredients are left for restaurants not pig troughs these things are. I don’t know what it is with older and fat people wanting to stuff themselves on crap food. Personally, I find the places are disgusting. I swear to the lord, last time I was in one a rat fell through the ceiling tile between two of the feed troughs and no one even slowed down. I just looked at the people I was with (They knew I hated those establishments) and they didn’t say a word.
The one I was at, I think it was in Maine was very nice and the food was good. It was after a 10 drive in solid rain. I didn’t eat much since I was more interested in eating immediately so a buffet worked great.
What draws me to the buffet is the ability to graze the entire line of offerings at the buffet against ordering off the menu and usually having only a surf and turf for variety.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.