best buffet in vegas?

[mfreeck]

So one of the things that I look forward to in vegas, since I don't gamble and find the stripclubs sub-par to what we've got here locally, is vegas buffets! I'd like folks to share their experiences at various buffets in vegas. Location doesn't matter so much as the quality and variety of food.

Points of interest include:

Variety of foods
How long the line is, or ways to circumvent the line. Spending 3 hours in line is difficult when you need to eat every 2 hours.
Any specialties the buffet may have
And from a purely personal perspective, do they have any sugar free desserts?

Even though I thought the Paris was a little overrated, it was great they had sugarfree apple pie! They didn't even bother with artificial sweeteners, which is the way I think apple pie should be. Nice naked succulent apples. I should mention that anyone looking for a large variety of desserts should definitely go to Paris... amazing!

I've been to the buffet at Aladdin, Paris and (for lunch) Mandalay Bay. So far my favourite is the Aladdin. I found the Paris a bit overhyped and thought there was more variety at the Aladdin, though I could be fooled since Aladdin was my first vegas buffet. Mandalay Bay was ok for the money.

I'd also be interested in GOOD seafood at a buffet. There may not be such a thing. I have yet to ever find a crab leg that tasted like more than salty water. But since I'm from the NW, I am spoiled on fresh Dungeoness crab.

Share those buffet stories!

[[Syntax]]

Re: best buffet in vegas?

Paradise Buffet - Fremont Casino
At DC12 everyone I was with really enjoyed the dinner buffet at the Fremont Casino downtown.. It had alot of seafood, Mahi Mahi, crab, shrimp ect.. they also have sushi. I just had someone ask me if we were going there again this year.

Dinner Monday and Thursday, 4-10pm-$9.99
Dinner on Tuesday 4-10pm, Friday 4-11pm, and Sunday 4-10pm, features Seafood Fantasy at $15.99
Dinner on Wednesday, 4-10pm and Saturday, 4-11pm, adds a bonus of cooked-to-order steaks at $12.99

Rio Buffet- Rio Casino
At DC13 we tried the Rio Buffet which was voted one of the best in Vegas several years in a row. The selection was the largest I think Ive seen anywhere, cheesecake was real newyork cheesecake (not powdered mix), they had gelato icecream, really good deserts, and served glasses of wine with the buffet.

The buffet stretched a long wall of the building, they had Chinese, Mongolian BBQ, BBQ, American, Italian, Mexican & Breakfast. All of us agreed the food was pretty good, but unless your really hungry the price tag is a litttle steep. $24 for dinner

If you google the "Rio Buffet" you will see alot of people talking about it.. Its got to be possibly the largest buffet in Vegas.. They also have a seafood night from what Ive read.

[Nikita]

Re: best buffet in vegas?

I'd also be interested in GOOD seafood at a buffet. There may not be such a thing. I have yet to ever find a crab leg that tasted like more than salty water. But since I'm from the NW, I am spoiled on fresh Dungeoness crab.

Share those buffet stories!

The Rio is the best buffet EVER. The Seafood was great by my standards. Considering they had crawfish and I couldnt get enough of it, i would say they did a damn good job. Im originally from New Orleans so my standards are hard for most yankees. The crab was great- seattle spoiled too- and so was the prime rib. They had sushi too for all you weird types. The line, considering we went at supreme dinner rush was actually not that bad. They give you a number and you wait to get in line until that number is up on the board, maybe an hour, but there is a bar RIGHT there serving you drinks while you wait>. its not bad at all, unless you are like me who walked to the rio from ceasers after walking the entire strip. :P

[dYn4mic]

Re: best buffet in vegas?

Rio Buffet- Rio Casino
If you google the "Rio Buffet" you will see alot of people talking about it.. Its got to be possibly the largest buffet in Vegas.. They also have a seafood night from what Ive read.

Yeah.. (I think it was last year) but, I've been to the Rio buffet before and it was great.
There was TONS of food of all kinds, and it was quite tastey too. I don't remember the price per-person though :-/.
The luxor is pretty good too, its also cool to go there and try to get onto the inclinator.

[goathead]

Re: best buffet in vegas?

bump for the Rio. good foodcourt buffet, definately much better than the Riv's. Although last time they were grilling up wonderfully excessive amounts of steak to order... that was nice.

[DaKahuna]

Re: best buffet in vegas?

The Rio is a great buffet. MGM Grand also has a very good one as well. However, if we were taking a vote, I would have to say that by far the Ballagio has the best quality buffet on the strip. I believe it is also the most expensive. The sushi there impressed by my wife and I and that is not easy to do. The Alaskan King Crab legs were some of the best I have ever had. Large variety and good quality, a very hard to beat combination.

[octalpus]

Re: best buffet in vegas?

I hated the Rio but we went way at the end of the night, so it's very likely that's why the selection was poor and tasteless when we were there. Flamingo has a very decent buffet with a great price and you can add lobster for something like $5, I think? It was really cheap and very tasty. It wasn't overly large and they pretty much stuck to the basics, but everything they had was good.

[dYn4mic]

Re: best buffet in vegas?

I hated the Rio but .....

Great.... thanks for ruining the "rio is the best" party ;-P

[[Syntax]]

Re: best buffet in vegas?

I ate at the Tropicana Buffet and it was pretty poor, rather small..

The only nice thing they had was a pasta chef, who would make the pasta of your choice, with the sauce of your choice (vegetarian marinara, tomato meat sauce, alfredo sauce) and then any vegetables or meat (mushrooms, shrimp)..

Ive heard the MGM is good, the line is always a good 20 minutes around lunch or dinner time.

[Skeletone Jack]

Re: best buffet in vegas?

It's been a while since I went to the Main Street Station buffet, but I've been there a few times. All I really remember is that they had a good selection, and I loved the food.

[eecue]

Re: best buffet in vegas?

Personally I've always thought the Bellagio was top notch. I enjoyed it more than Rio in years passed. Mandolay bay wasn't very good either.

[lil_freak]

Re: best buffet in vegas?

Okay mfreeck started this thread, but I'm going to slightly hijack it by asking the following: What about best buffet in Vegas that has a lot of healthy items to pick from? And buffets that don't have a lot of shellfish for those of us who would end up in the hospital if we got to close that kind of food let alone eat any of it?

[DaKahuna]

Re: best buffet in vegas?

Okay mfreeck started this thread, but I'm going to slightly hijack it by asking the following: What about best buffet in Vegas that has a lot of healthy items to pick from? And buffets that don't have a lot of shellfish for those of us who would end up in the hospital if we got to close that kind of food let alone eat any of it?

Buffet /= Healthy.

Actually you will find most of them have very passable salad bars but the main attraction at most of them is the protien and desserts.

[mfreeck]

Re: best buffet in vegas?

Okay mfreeck started this thread, but I'm going to slightly hijack it by asking the following: What about best buffet in Vegas that has a lot of healthy items to pick from? And buffets that don't have a lot of shellfish for those of us who would end up in the hospital if we got to close that kind of food let alone eat any of it?

How do you define "healthy?" That could mean many things depending on the person. Some people think the Atkins diet is "healthy," other vegetarian, high-carb/low fat and for me, "healthy" is whole grain/low sugar, but asking for brown rice at a buffet in vegas will probably get me thrown in the pokey. ;)

[TheCotMan]

Re: best buffet in vegas?

I think I went here before Defcon 12 to help pick out a place that had a good price and good reviews from "Las Vegas Locals"

From there, I compared rating to price, and found a great deal with Ports O' Call Buffet in Gold Coast 702-367-7111

I will be going there again for Breakfast this year-- probably for the breakfast-end, lunch begin to save money and get more variety.

I'll probably also get a list of other good values, and try them if I have time.

It was coparable to the Rio but much cheaper (at least for bunch.) The breakfast run had the most healthy food, with lots of fresh fruits, and alternate choices for omlettes. You could request yolk free omlettes I think- memory is hazy here.

Some info I gathered on saving money and maximizing your selections:
1) pick an arrival time that is just before the end of one shift and the beginning of the next. This sometimes allows you to pay "breakfast buffet prices " for a breakfast buffet *then* lunch buffet when they change it, or pay for a lunch buffet and get a lunch and dinner buffet selection.

2) Review the sites you want to visit on multiple review pages and sites.

3) Weigh cost savings against time to transport, and cost of transport. (Some Locals in Las Vegas sometimes say, "It takes 30 minutes to get from anywhere in Las Vegas to Anywhere else in Las Vegas." Those trips can cost a lot by cab.

4) If you find out someone is going to be going out to a buffet and they have room in their car, carpool. Offer to pay some money towards gas-- it will be wayyy cheaper than a taxi, and more convienient than a bus.