Kings Buffet

[MsMe]

I saw the sign for Kings Buffet will be opening in the near future at the Centennial and Barton Plaza, same plaza as Food Basics. This is a chinese food restaurant.

[raisethehammer]

is it a chain or a new place??

[MsMe]

Looks like a chain. Here is a link on other locations.

http://www.kingsbuffet.com/main_frame.html

[DC83]

This is a chain! It's moving from Stoney Creek Hwy8 & Dewitt area.

I ate there once. My highlight was that Pigskin Pete was also eating there. Yes... that was the highlight, NOT the food :s

I suggest one sticks with Mandarin!

[MsMe]

I still miss the Ricksha restaurant. I liked their food.

[raisethehammer]

Originally Posted by DC83

This is a chain! It's moving from Stoney Creek Hwy8 & Dewitt area.

I ate there once. My highlight was that Pigskin Pete was also eating there. Yes... that was the highlight, NOT the food :s

I suggest one sticks with Mandarin!

Mandarin is horrible.
Stick with any of the Chinese Restaurants downtown - Harvest Moon, Jade Garden, Forbidden City, Crystal Dynasty etc.....

[rousseau]

You have to go to the GTA for good Chinese buffet restaurants. Seriously, there are places that bang a gong for frest lobster every 15 minutes, and have Peking Duck and all kinds of other goodies. Nothing Chinese in Hamilton holds a candle to them (never mind the non-buffet restaurants, which of course are out of this world). Don't eat the day you want to go. They are worth it.*

King's Buffet is utter shite. Only go if you want to load up on dry roast beef and lukewarm mashed potatoes. We have one in Stratford. Ack.




*It's been a while, so the places I used to go to are no longer there. I can't make any recommendations for buffets, unfortunately.

[MsMe]

Their site didn't look very impressive to me.

[DC83]

Originally Posted by raisethehammer

Mandarin is horrible.
Stick with any of the Chinese Restaurants downtown - Harvest Moon, Jade Garden, Forbidden City, Crystal Dynasty etc.....

Oh ya, I agree 110%. I meant for Buffets -- Mandarin over King's.

Pagoda is still my fave. The view from their dining room during the evening is just unreal. Plus I love my crazy old asian lady friend!

Edit: re: Peiking Duck. Has anyone had it from the asian place at the N/W corner of Cannon & McNab? NOT B&T, the lil eatery across the street. I see the ducks hanging in the window all the time and it always looks so good.

[fastcarsfreedom]

Quote
This is a chain!

That's very emphatic--it's amazing how quickly being "found out" as a dreaded chain will sink your fortunes around these parts. Never been to Kings, doubt I'll ever go--my understanding of their business is they tend to slip into markets a bit smaller than the ones Mandarin goes into--not the case in Hamilton of course, just their overall niche.

What I actually don't understand is the lack of non-Asian buffets around. Aside from the Casino buffet locally -- we have nothing but Chinese places. With very few exceptions every Asian buffet I've been to has been at best mediocre - luke warm food, outlandish soft drink prices and the same pink and black furniture that decorates every other Chinese buffet. The lone exception was a lunch buffet I went to at some small place near the Pen Centre in St. Catherines in the late 90s...everything else left me wanting my $ back.

Pagoda--there's a place I haven't been to in years. My folks' used to take me there years back - in the 1980s when it was far more authentic than it is today...it used to be spartan with 1950s era window blinds and outstanding food. My mother first discovered the place while working downtown in the 60s--and it became a family tradition of sorts for us (the best dry garlic ribs I've ever had...). I remember being 6 or 7 and seeing some drunk-ass cat fall down the stairs with his takeout order and barely spill anything. Sometimes in the late 80s the place was sold by it's original owners and got a style makeover that coincided with a noticable drop in the quality of the food. We never went back. That being said, last I knew of, the original ownership still retained the take-out only location on Concession Street (which kept the full legal name Pagoda Chop Suey House) and the food was as good as ever - in fact, my parents still get takeout there - and they live in Flamborough.

[rousseau]

Originally Posted by DC83

Edit: re: Peiking Duck. Has anyone had it from the asian place at the N/W corner of Cannon & McNab? NOT B&T, the lil eatery across the street. I see the ducks hanging in the window all the time and it always looks so good.

I haven't been there in a while, but that's not Peking Duck. It's either regular Chinese-style roast duck, or, more likely, chicken.

[markbarbera]

Originally Posted by fastcarsfreedom

Quote
This is a chain!

That's very emphatic--it's amazing how quickly being "found out" as a dreaded chain will sink your fortunes around these parts.

[rousseau]

I haven't eaten Chinese in Hamilton in four years now, but in 2003 the best Chinese food was Old Szechuan at the corner of James and Rebecca (it was a Turkish restaurant before that, which wasn't bad, either).

Old Szechuan was run by people from the province of Sichuan (old English spelling: Szechuan), and had all the great spicy delicacies like mapo tofu, authentic kung pao chicken and "husband-wife lung slices." That last dish isn't lung at all, but beef and tripe in chillies. It was delicious. I miss it.

[fastcarsfreedom]

Szechuan crispy beef and hot and sour soup. Yum.

[raisethehammer]

Originally Posted by rousseau

I haven't eaten Chinese in Hamilton in four years now, but in 2003 the best Chinese food was Old Szechuan at the corner of James and Rebecca (it was a Turkish restaurant before that, which wasn't bad, either).

Old Szechuan was run by people from the province of Sichuan (old English spelling: Szechuan), and had all the great spicy delicacies like mapo tofu, authentic kung pao chicken and "husband-wife lung slices." That last dish isn't lung at all, but beef and tripe in chillies. It was delicious. I miss it.

I've been told that the new Chinese place that replaced Old Szechuan is really good.
But yea, I miss that place. The soup was killer....send me scrambling for kleenex everytime.
The lunch specials were awesome too.
I haven't had the Pagoda in years...I seem to recall it being sub-par. Is it as good as Crystal Dynasty or Forbidden City??
We always take our kids downtown for the Christmas tree lighting ceremony each year and have dinner at the Forbidden City. What a difference that King St window makes. I always hate it when restaurants have their windows blocked up.

[fastcarsfreedom]

Forbidden City put in a window - say it isn't so! While I agree most places look better with windows - I've always enjoyed dining in the unusual places that don't -- and one of those was Forbidden City. Not that there's anything wrong with King E - I just liked the atmosphere beforehand -- it was unique.

[raisethehammer]

yea, a nice big window facing King.
Their own stats show an almost immediate increase in business after they put it in.

Also, fastcars, for what it's worth, I do like A chain.
I'd LOVE to see a REAL Mongolian Grill come to Cannon St. Mmmm, love that place!
Ottawa has a garbage knock-off version, but TO has a good one by the Science Centre.

[fastcarsfreedom]

Seriously RTH? You like Mongolian? Interesting--I've been to one of the ones in Ottawa (I think the one I was at was actually in Nepean), and believe it or not, there is one here in Tecumseh--does a very brisk business --I've never seen the appeal myself, but people sure seem to love it.

[raisethehammer]

it has to be the real deal though. Portland had a couple. The one you refer to in Ottawa was crap IMO. I've never found one in Canada as good as in Portland, but the one by the Science Centre is pretty close.

[jeremy_haak]

I hate Mongolian Grill - the food is only as good as you are at making it.