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High-End Buffet?

post #1 of 44
2/25/08 at 4:49am
Thread Starter 
Bellagio, the luxury Las Vegas casino, has a high-class buffet service that is a respectable eatery, though in a casual restaurant setting. Do you think a high-end buffet could be replicated and compete against traditional fine dining establishments?
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post #2 of 44
2/25/08 at 5:32am
No, never! Fine dining requires a sommelier, a head waiter, and service you could not get in a buffet. I have been to a buffet at the Wynn and Belagio but can't compare to a real dining experience.
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post #3 of 44
2/25/08 at 5:34am
High-end buffets are all over Vegas (The one at the Wynn is my favourite) so they can obviously be replicated. In terms of quality of food, I do not think they can compete against traditional fine dining establishments.
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post #4 of 44
2/25/08 at 8:52pm
Fine dining is a very special experience if the service, cuisine, ambience, and wine are all top notch. I can't imagine a buffet providing the same experience regardless of the quality and taste of the food.
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post #5 of 44
2/25/08 at 8:53pm
The breakfast buffet at Hillcrest Country Club is nice. Brunch buffets can be excellent, but dinner less so.
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post #6 of 44
2/25/08 at 10:22pm
I agree that a breakfast buffet can be great. The Homestead Resort in the mountains of Virginia has one of the best breakfast buffets I've ever had. However, the experience of dinner is quite different from breakfast. I just can't see a buffet for dinner contributing to a special fine dining experience.
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post #7 of 44
2/25/08 at 11:07pm
Dinner buffets are usually shitty. On the other hand, few things can beat the Clubhouse breakfast buffet at Saratoga Race Track in the middle of July...
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post #8 of 44
2/25/08 at 11:54pm
Buffets work in vegas for some very specific reasons......they could not be replicated elsewhere in the fashion they work in vegas: 1> Hotels have commissaries where supplies are shipped to a central area and the kitchens of the many restaurants share a source for a number of items....when there is surplus, a buffet is a good way to get rid of it. 2> People in vegas spend more than they would normally spend for things because they are on vacation 3> People in vegas want to eat quickly and at odd times because of other activities like gambling, shows, pools, etc. 4> This is changing a lot recently, but vegas buffets were originally designed as loss-leaders to get people in the door and gambling. Most of these aspects cannot be replicated elsewhere.
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post #9 of 44
2/26/08 at 12:24am
Quote:
Originally Posted by ChicagoRon View Post
4> This is changing a lot recently, but vegas buffets were originally designed as loss-leaders to get people in the door and gambling.

+1. Like everything else in Vegas, they take enough of your money at the tables to make a reasonably priced buffet worthwhile.

I guess the moral of the story is to come up with something that brings in tons of revenue, and you could practically give away the high end buffet.
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post #10 of 44
2/26/08 at 1:05am
there are definitely some high end buffets. In the bay area I can think of Brunch at the Ritz Carlton Terrace (its either $75 or $150 and includes a Caviar Bar), and Ritz Carlton Half Moon Bay
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post #11 of 44
2/26/08 at 1:10am
Brunch buffets can be very good, even better than the restaurant's standard offerings. Lacroix in Philadelphia would be the best example I can give.
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post #12 of 44
2/26/08 at 1:13am
"High-end buffet"? Do they only serve oxymoron foods? Jumbo shrimp, flying fish, kosher ham, oven fried chips and dry wine?
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post #13 of 44
2/26/08 at 1:26am
Quote:
Originally Posted by iammatt View Post
The breakfast buffet at Hillcrest Country Club is nice. Brunch buffets can be excellent, but dinner less so.

The one in LA, or is there one up your way? (Common name, I imagine they are all over.)
If the former, had dinner there with friends last week.
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post #14 of 44
2/26/08 at 1:28am
Quote:
Originally Posted by lawyerdad View Post
The one in LA, or is there one up your way? (Common name, I imagine they are all over.) If the former, had dinner there with friends last week.
No, the one in LA. My family is all from down that way.
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post #15 of 44
2/26/08 at 6:27pm
In Toronto we have some amazing ones. They tend to skew Asian. They are more stations then buffet, but still very delicous.
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