Friday, December 4, 2009

Dragon Buffet (Denver, NC)

Next to the Coffeehouse in Denver, NC, are a variety of new restaurants. I've already reviewed Nevole's. So, now I get the chance to review Dragon Buffet.

As you can probably tell by the name, Dragon Buffet is an Asian inspired all-you-can-eat buffet. The food ranges from Chinese to Japanese to a couple other assorted Asian styles.

I walked in for my lunch and was quickly seated. My waitress took the drink order (Pepsi -- they don't offer Coke), and I walked up to the buffet area. It's pretty huge with four food-bar areas, and a separate sushi area, they've got quite the selection from which to choose.

For my first plate I decided on an egg roll, Crab Rangoon, spicy tempura roll, fluorescent red beef, and some Lo Mien. Ahh, the beauty of a buffet -- five completely different types of food on one plate!

I started with the egg roll. Pretty standard. It has the usual fillings of vegetables and shrimp, and was deep-fried to a crisp. The duck sauce (from the sauce section of the bar) was a necessary addition, and gave it a nice sweet flavor. But really, this seemed like the exact same egg roll that I get at most Asian restaurants -- where do they buy them???

The Crab Rangoon was pretty standard as well and consisted of cream cheese and very little (if any) crab. Don't get me wrong, I liked it. A crispy shell fried to a crisp and filled with cheese = YUM! But, I tend to like it even more when I can taste some crab.

Next was the fluorescent red beef. It was different from what I was expecting. Looking at the thickness of the sauce, and the color, I figured it was a type of teriyaki sauce. Instead this beef tasted much more Korean than Japanese, with the emphasis on vinegar and not the teriyaki sweetness. All-in-all, this was probably my favorite food while there.

Then it was time to try the spicy tempura roll. It was good, but thin. so thin that I had to use a fork to scoop it up, instead of chopsticks. It just bent under the pressure of the chopsticks, and was too thin to hold together when held vertically.

The last food left on my plate was the Lo Mien. Unfortunately, I found it lacking. The flavor was really mild, and aside from the very light sesame sauce, there was little flavor. I suppose I could have used a sauce from the sauce selection (which was plentiful), but I wasn't in the mood to get up and try to figure out what sauce was needed.

The restaurant has a nice open feel -- it is one large room. The windows at the front allow light to reach the back, and the color template is warm. The staff were friendly, and my drink was instantly refilled whenever it ran low.

The buffet food is just that -- standard buffet food. Quantity is the focus. And buffets really aren't my favorite. However, it you're a buffet person, you should give this place a try, the price is down right reasonable.

Score:
Atmosphere: 4/5
Food: 2.5/5
Service: 4/5
Total: 10.5/5

Price: $
Kid Friendly: Yes

Conclusion: If you're REALLY hungry and want Asian food, this is your place. In general, I found the food's flavor to be on the lighter side, but that's something I've noticed with many of the Asian restaurants in the area. However, the staff and atmosphere are above the standard buffet.

Restaurant Info:
Dragon Buffet
7260 Hwy 73
Suite 112
Denver, NC 28037

4 comments:

  1. We gave it one shot and probably won't be going back. There was a large selection but we felt the overall quality was the main problem - not price or quantity.

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  2. The food at Dragon Buffet is okay, nothing to brag about. They do have a huge selection and I've tried several items. Nothing outstanding that would make me crave going back. I'd rather go to another Chinese place and pay more for a tasteful plate full of one dish. The only benefit of this place for me is the close proximity to home and my husband likes it pretty well.

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  3. My family and I love this place! My children ask all the time if they can go. Good food. The unlimited amount of Sushi and very yummy and good. Great place.

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  4. One word: EWW! We went there Sunday, Feb 12, 2012 and no one was there except 6 employees sitting at a table right in the center of the restaurant eating. Our waitress couldn't put her food down long enough to check on us. The back of the booth was unstable and the bottom part of the one my children were sitting on flipped up and my son's hand went into his soup. The chicken had a feather on it and all of the food had been sitting out under the lamps for too long. Not to mention the entire rim of my glass was busted up all the way around...do not recommend! We mentioned how awful it was to the lady at the front when we checked out and she said nothing. No apologies, nothing...not one word.

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