The Mongolian Grill Buffet

It was Saturday Night and we decided that it was time to experience the newly opened Mongolian Buffet located at 121 Cox Creek Parkway in the Florence Square Shopping Center, across from the Cracker Barrel in Florence, Alabama.


But before I get into our experience let me ask you, do you know what the word Buffet means, or even how it even got started as a way to serve a large amount of people?

I didn’t think so and you probably really don’t have a real key interest in knowing, but if I am going to go and do all this research on Buffets, I am going to let you know what I found. This makes me feel like I have not wasted my time, so bear with me here.

According to my research, France developed not only excellent cheeses, wines and the guillotine, but in the 18th Century came up with the Buffet system of serving meals. This was where the food is placed in a public area and the diners generally serve themselves, but not always.

If you're older than 50, chances are you at one time or the other heard the term Side boards used. This was back in the days when coal was young and Side Board was the word to describe what we now call the Buffet.

Then you have the wheeled trolley that filled dishes that circulates for the patrons to pick from. Good Calorie saver there, no having to walk around and get the food, it comes to you. All you have to do is stand and dip.

Then along came the system where you pick your food and pay at the register for the items you chose, sort of like a cafeteria style buffet but self served. Then you have the combination style where you pick up some and some are served to you in portions. Then along came the Salad Bar in which you fill the plate and pay by the weight. Now that will get you thinking about your portions and develop that wallet counter instinct.

Now that you have become a master of buffet history let's step inside. As you walk through the entrance the first thing your eye will catch is the very elegant lighting system built into the ceiling and the open design layout of the place.

We were met immediately and taken to a table located directly in front of and beside the waitress station which also contained a large Ice Machine. The reason I mention the Ice Machine is you cannot fail to notice it is there, as it continuously sounds like rocks falling around you as it makes ice.

Our drink order was taken and then we were on our way to see what new items we would find on the buffet that you don’t already find at the other local established Chinese Buffets. At the first food bar you will find assorted fruits and other cold salad items, one of which was a large bowl of marinated baby octopus. Hey! Wait a minute, don’t shy away from these for in reality they were quite tasty even though a little spongy. So when you are there give them a try you may be surprised that you may be going back for more just as I did.

You are going to find the usual fare of what you expected to see on a Asian Buffet spread, but there are some exceptions that I will cover here.

Lightly Fried Frog Legs - we found these to very tender and not over cooked as you sometimes find them on buffets of this type. If you have never tried them you will find they are mild in flavor and have a texture like chicken.

There are various dishes of Steamed Shrimp Dumplings, Butter Shrimp, Pepper Shrimp, boiled Shrimp, Steamed Crab Legs, then different styles of chicken such as Hong Kong Chicken, Chicken Wings, Indian Chicken, and too many others to list.

Then if that is not enough you have the Hong Kong Beef, Strips of tenderized Grilled Steak, Grilled Pork Chops, and other beef dishes that helped you cover the rest of your plate.

Oh! Did I forget the huge slab of Rare Roast Beef that you get to slice just the way you like it. Then before you leave for the table to dig in, you come across a pile of golden lightly fried Calamari . The one thing you will notice about these are the size and just how tender they are. Some cooks have the tendency to over cook them and what you get on your plate is rubbery and leftover plate decoration. We ended up going back for seconds with this item.

We found the flavors of the dishes were very pleasing and exceeded what we have experienced at other local buffets serving similar food to this one.

The one distraction is I am not sure what dining experience they were attempting to give to their patrons. They had a beautiful décor, but then installed TV Flat screens throughout the dining area showing different sports. Then for good measure they added Jazz music. We didn’t know if we should be cheering for a team, swaying to the Jazz or just sitting quietly and enjoying the décor over the falling rock sound of the ice machine.

Summary:

Atmosphere: Casual combination of Asian and Sports Bar

Dress: Casual

Cost: $10.45 a person not including tip

Overall experience: On a scale of 1-10 we would have to say a 3-4 for where we were placed. Taste of food 5 to 6, variety of food 8-9.

Would we return? The answer is yes and we give this place a “Thumbs Up” for casual dining.

Trader