Lunch @ Royal Buffet

We stopped in to the brand-new Royal Buffet for their grand opening, to see what all the hullabaloo was about.  Located in the old Ryan's Steakhouse building, our first impression of the place was, "Gorgeous!"

As you first walk in, you notice a giant, color-changing, fiber-optic chandelier, a fountain loaded with huge chunks of colored glass, and various lit pillars all around.  It is easy to tell that, during the planning of this restaurant, decoration was definitely a priority for the owners.  Greeted immediately, we were led through the buffet area (which itself is stunningly beautiful), and seated along the perimeter.  We ordered our drinks, and headed straight to the food.



In order to give this restaurant a fair review (and to give all of you a good idea of what to expect), I decided to try as many different things as possible in the short time we had to eat.  As such, I'll depart from the standard format of our reviews and just go on down the list:

• Sushi: There is a sushi chef on staff, and I tried all 6 of the different types of sushi that were set out.  While the rice was cooked a bit too much for my taste, both the variety and flavor of the sushi were above par.
• Coconut Chicken: Not bad, but with the creaminess of the coconut sauce, it would have been nice to have either a salty or spicy complimentary flavor in either the chicken breading or the sauce itself.
• Egg Drop Soup: Definitely delicious; they didn't skimp on the eggs, and the flavor was full and rich.
• Egg Rolls: While I enjoyed my egg rolls as well as most around town, they weren't the best I've had.  My companion, a self-professed "Egg Roll Aficionado," didn't like them at all, opting to leave hers unfinished after only one bite.
• Sesame Chicken: Quite delicious, with just the right amount of toasted sesame, and not at all overcooked.
• Pepper Chicken: Spicy, yet not too spicy.  While I would have preferred a bit hotter fare, I do understand that, on a buffet, you have to tone things down a bit.
• Steamed Rice:  You would think that an Asian-themed restaurant would have rice down to a science, but this is one area that could use some improvement. Overcooked and even a bit mushy, it was even worse than the rice in my sushi.  I'll give them a one-time pass and assume that this was due to not being sure how much to make for their first day being open.
• General Tso's Chicken: Again, not as spicy as I would have liked, but it had a great, complex flavor.  I'll definitely have more of this the next time I come back.
• Thai Chicken: Nothing too special; not hot or spicy at all, and just standard stir-fry fare.
• Hong Kong Shrimp: While there wasn't too much about this that stood out, the shrimp were surprisingly not overcooked, considering that they were on a buffet.  Also, the pan was completely loaded with shrimp to the point that I had to dig through them to get to the vegetables.
• Pepper Steak: Not bad at all; thin, tender strips of beef in a pepper sauce with slices of jalapeno; another dish that was spot-on.
• Lo Mein Noodles: Good texture, not too oily, and a good flavor; these noodles would have gone well with any of the stir-fry dishes I had to choose from.
• Dim Sum: The name is simply a catch-all for any small, light Chinese dish served alongside tea.  Royal Buffet chose a noodle, stuffed with what I believe was sausage and peppers.  In any case, it was tasty and cooked well, and deserving of a permanent spot on the buffet.
• Hibachi: The restaurant features a two-station hibachi, where you can select your own ingredients and type of sauce, and have a cook fry them on a flat-top grill while you wait.  I chose crab meat, lo mein noodles, onions, peppers, and a spicy brown sauce.  The crab meat was real-not imitation- and the sauce was a perfect blend of light and spicy.  Also available to add to a stir fry are chicken, shrimp, beef, broccoli, rice, and various other vegetables.

Now, although I  tried a wide selection of dishes, there were still loads of items on the buffet that I didn't sample.  You can choose items from the full salad bar, try one of the several other types of seafood, stir fry, or vegetables, select from a wide array of desserts, and there is almost enough American fare to classify as its own buffet (huge pieces of fried chicken, pizza, potatoes, and corn dogs to name a few).  Also available are a multitude of desserts, including: cream puffs, lemon bars, doughnuts and more, as well as several hard-serve ice creams and a soft-serve ice cream machine (with various toppings, of course).

Being a buffet, this was the perfect place for us to come at lunch time; our drinks were refilled several times while we ate, and once we were finished a waitress came immediately with our bill and fortune cookies.  We were able to be seated, make three trips to the buffet, and fit in a a stop at the hibachi, all in less than 40 minutes.  As far as the cost goes, this is definitely well worth it at only $6.50 per person during lunch hours.  Although drinks are $1.49 extra, the fact that I could have eaten 50 pieces of sushi (had I wanted to) made up for the small added cost, by far.

In all, we believe that the Royal Buffet will definitely give the Hong Kong Buffet down the road a run for its money.  With similarly priced buffets, but Royal Buffet boasting a slightly wider selection, it will be interesting to see if Findlay is big enough for more than one Asian-themed buffet restaurant.

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Royal Buffet is located at 2551 Tiffin Ave. (across from the old Wal-Mart and next to Applebee's).  They are open Sunday-Thursday from 11am-10pm and Friday-Saturday from 11am-10:30pm.  They can be reached for large-party reservations at 419-420-088, and you can view their website at www.royalbuffetfindlay.com.