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Before Adam Scott came to the Champaign-Urbana area, he went to film school and worked on such memorable projects as Super Sucker, 13 Conversations About One Thing, and Strangers with Candy. He grew up in California and currently teaches English at Parkland College. He is working on a novel about the 1000th suicide off the Golden Gate Bridge.
I was lured to Crazy Buffet in the North Prospect Big Box Retail District the other night on the recommendation of a friend who told me that this place was “better than the others.” By the others, I’m assuming he meant Chinatown Buffet, the now defunct Four Seasons House and Eastern Taste down in Savoy (conveniently located next to Friar Tuck). Of course, my excitement at eating at Crazy Buffet was fueled by the fact that I hadn’t eaten much all day and, aside from its abundance and variety, it dished up food that looked and smelled good. Yet, on finishing my third plate, I looked down at the substantial leftovers (bits of this or that I didn’t feel like eating) and thought to myself: Nothing here was really very good.
There’s no way else to say it: The Chinese buffets here in town aren’t anything special. Believe me, nobody wants them to be great more than me. When I lived in San Francisco my coworkers and I would take the streetcar down to an all-you-can-eat buffet that sold some of the best shaomai I’ve ever tasted, not to mention an overwhelming array of salty, yummy, greasy goodness, fresh and piping hot, dishes as good as any restaurant in Chinatown could make. My stomach would growl at the mere thought of eating there.
But — and here’s what the Chinese buffets operating in our area should realize — every item, from the California rolls on the sushi buffet to the sticky sweet General Tso’s chicken, should taste as good and as fresh as if it was made to order.
That said, I have to think that most people who patronize buffets realize they’re getting inferior stuff and they don’t really care. Eating at a buffet — excluding those rare bastions of quality — is more about value and variety than satisfying our inner epicure.
Of course, it’s possible that eating at any buffet requires more sampling to find the hidden culinary treasures than I’ve been willing to put in. Though both Japanese restaurants in town, Kamakura or Sushi Kame, serve better sushi, Crazy Buffet’s rolls had actual fish in them (not just tofu and imitation crab meat) and their nigiri had sizable chunks of raw salmon — not bad for a run-of-the-mill buffet, though the chalky wasabi left me disappointed.
Feng Liu, a graduate student in the School of Molecular and Cellular Biology at the University of Illinois and a native of China, lends some support to my claim: “The buffets in town just aren’t good,” he says. “The food is better at other places like Mandarin Wok on Green Street or The Wok in Mahomet…. But if you’re hungry,” Liu admits. “Buffets can be good.”
And this seems to get at the heart of it. If you’re hungry and you want to eat lots of different kinds of food and you want as many calories as you can possibly consume for your dollar, then mediocre Chinese buffets are your best bet. And lucky for the hungry among us, there are a number of them here in town.
Comments (5)
Thursday, May 15, 2008 12:24 PM
I love Chinese buffets. Just not any of the ones here. But even that doesn't stop me from going forward most times. Just the thought of a limitless, greasy Lo Mein is enough to get me to plunk down a tenner for the opportunity.
In fact, I look forward to the moments where my fiancee tells me to eat alone that night -- so I can sneak away and indulge.
But none of them are very good in C-U. And it hurts after you eat. And the toilet becomes a homie.
I walked into Crazy Buffet, and in a rare moment of rationale regarding food, I turned around and went home to make a salad.
It was one moment that I can look back on and say, "I make good choices... sometimes."
Great article.
Thursday, May 15, 2008 12:49 PM
In talking to a co-worker about the lack buffets, we decided that people around campus anyone don't want buffets due to subsisting on the dorms for a year or two. I personally had my fill of them for awhile after the dorms, they just get old.
I also have NEVER been to a good Chineese Buffet, but wish we at least had a decent Indian Buffet. At least with Indian food, you know it will work well as a buffet because most of the food are stews.
Sunday, May 18, 2008 4:09 PM
Well, I'll add to your thoughts by noting that many of the restaurants in Central Illinois are "turn key" operations by Fujinese, thus all the sameness--even down to the printed menus they use.
Monday, May 19, 2008 12:38 AM
As a personal view from an Asian, Crazy Buffet is by far the best Asian buffet in the area, at least for the people who love sashimi and sushi. I do agree that its "shu mai" (this is how I call it) is not so impressive, it is better than Chinatown Buffet's. And although Eastern Taste might offer better "shu mai", I would prefer going to Chicago if I really want to have terrific "dim sum".
Before this, I have to visit Chicago's Todai for having all-you-can-eat sashimi and it cost $25++ (dinner). I don't even want to visit Todai again since I can just pay $12++ (Friday dinner) here in Champaign.
Moreover, their Chinese dishes are not bad at all. If you have a chance, try beef ribs and grilled octopus.
PS. Don't expect that its sashimi will be at same level of (fine) Japanese restaurants (in this town) which you pay $3-5 for few pieces. It's, however, good enough to try.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008 1:19 PM
I ate at Crazy Buffet for the first time yesterday - enticed primarily by the name - and was mostly pleased.
While the standard array of meat-covered-in-corn-starch-and-sugar items were okay, I was most fond of the pork in honey sauce. The house chicken, although a little fatty, was also enjoyable. My fiancee tells me she was pleasantly surprised by the seafood offerings, but I'll have to take her word for it as that's not my thing.
I should mention I was there between 2-3pm on a Sunday - not the best buffet hours. I'm planning to go back sometime during lunch or dinner when the restaurant will be more busy and the food more fresh.