The M.L. Guide to Beating the All You Can Eat Chinese Food Buffet
I fully admit that I am not a food expert. I’ve never been to culinary school, my palate isn’t particularly advanced and I probably have no business writing about any kind of food (even if it is crappy carts and dives in Midtown). But if there is one thing I could be considered an expert on, it’s Chinese Buffets. I am a huge fan of the All of You Can Eat Chinese food buffet (emphasis on the huge). The concept of all-you-can-eat is brilliant on its own, but once you throw in one of my all time favorite foods (Chinese), you’ve got one of the greatest inventions of all time.
In fact, it is a personal goal of mine to eat at a Chinese buffet in every state in the country. Here are the states I’ve tackled so far:
- California
- Connecticut
- Florida
- Louisiana
- Massachusetts
- New Mexico
- New York (Just recently… and the inspiration for this post.)
- Nevada (Obviously)
- Pennsylvania
- Texas (A great buffet just outside of Houston that had fried frogs legs. Delicious!)
- Tennessee (Terrible. My wife will never let me live that one down.)
It’s clearly a work in progress, but I take my work very seriously. I really love Chinese Buffets. And it is not just the fact that you get to stuff your face (something I enjoy doing very much). It’s also the no waiting (you start eating right after you sit down), the variety (it’s the spice of life!) and of course, the competition. That’s right… the competition. You vs. the Buffet. The price is really just a dare. A sign that says “All-U-Can-Eat for $14.50”, might as well just say “I dare you to eat more than $14.50 worth of food. Signed – The Buffet.”
Basically, your goal from the moment you walk into the buffet should be “Win the Game”. And the game is to eat so much food that the restaurant loses money. You want to eat so much that when they see you come back the next time, they get scared. You want them to worry that if you eat at their buffet too often, they might have to close it down. But before you can learn how to beat your enemy, you must KNOW your enemy.
The three kinds of Chinese buffets, PLUS my tips to winning the game (and more buffet porn)- after the jump… Read more »
Posted by Zach Brooks at 9:16 am, March 7th, 2007 under Blogroll, Buffet, All You Can Eat.
Ever since the $8.99 
City 75 is not usually the type of place I eat at (or write about), but after last week’s 
Now, before you email me with “I’m a woman, and I eat at the ‘Man Bar’!!!”, I want to say this- I’m sure a lot of you women eat at the “Man Bar” in City 75- but you also read this blog… and those two things put you in the minority of Midtown Lunching Women (When I say “most women”, I’m talking about your annoying co-workers. If they are not reading this blog, they clearly have no taste in food). The simple fact is this… if the “Man Bar” wasn’t there, most men would not set foot into City 75 (it’s way too fancy, and expensive). And if the rest of the place disappeared, and City 75 was only the “Man Bar”, and nothing else, most Midtown Lunch’ing women wouldn’t eat there. It’s the perfect blending of the two that makes a nicely dressed business woman (with every intention of eating a salad) willing to eat a steak and cheese sandwich, and a guy like me willing to eat at a place like City 75.
I finally made it down to the brand new Popeyes 
Fried chicken is a whole different ball game. I don’t care what kind of prejudice you have against fast food places, I’m telling you, Popeyes is frickin good. If you want delicious fried chicken, you will be hard pressed to find some that tastes better than the spicy chicken at Popeyes. Sure, your extra money might buy you better side dishes, a fancier atmosphere and organic chickens that were treated very nicely before they were dipped in batter and fried up crispy… but in the end, when you are just talking about taste- Popeyes can hold its own with the best of them.
There seems to be a new trend emerging in Midtown. Korean food is taking over! It seems as if everywhere you go, someone is serving Korean food in an unlikely place. It is almost as if the Korean restaurant owners in Midtown have realized, “We don’t have have to serve Mexican food and Sushi! Our food is delicious, and people will eat it!” Sure, a lot of people still don’t know what Bulgogi is (it is Korean BBQ’d beef by the way), and Bi Bim Bap sounds like weird Jazz… but it doesn’t change the fact that if you like Asian food, you should not be afraid of Korean. It’s delicious, and this is a welcome trend. 
For me, the whole thing started with 
Pro Hot Bagel, a deli on 56th btw. 5+6th has been taken over by Korean & Japanese food. It started slow when a few months ago they added a small sushi bar to their mammoth list of sandwiches (and bagels). But recently they have gone all out, adding a Udon/Soba station, that also serves Bento Boxes, Bulgogi Boxes & Bi Bim Bap.
Every day I have to think about what defines a Midtown Lunch. There are definitely rules that I have set up for myself, but not all places fit exactly into the guidelines. I don’t usually eat at fast food chains, but my love of New Orleans gives me a soft spot for Popeyes. I almost never write about delis, but if there is one that is willing to stuff a burrito with fried plantains, then I’m there. All my lunches are under $10, but for good ramen, or an all you can eat buffet I’ve been known to go up to $12.
But that is just one end of the spectrum. The other end is the place that fits every rule. Weighing the positives and negatives isn’t necessary, because it is the perfect Midtown Lunch spot. El Rincon del Sabor is one of those places. Cheap. Check. Something different (it’s Ecuadorian food). Check. Authentic. Check. Homemade. Check. Not a chain (owned by real people). Check. Hidden (it’s on the fourth floor of a Diamond District building with a paper sign that you wouldn’t notice unless you were looking for it). Check. And best of all, it’s got history. 
El Rincon del Sabor has spent the past 12 years dishing out delicious Ecuadorian food on 46th St. btw. 5th & 6th. A few months ago, they moved to a new location (47th St. btw. 5th & 6th), but the food is still the same. There is a rotating menu of dishes every single day, and even though there is a printed menu a breakdown of the week, it doesn’t always match exactly. The best way to find out what’s being served is to give them a call. I went last Wednesday with 3 co-workers and we sampled four of the 10 or so dishes they had available.
