Back a few months ago, I did a blog post on the grand opening of Mandarin Asian Bistro on Market street in Lowell and it was just okay. The Mo and I walked by the restaurant on a warm Spring day in April with the pups and saw a sign on the window for "All you can eat lunch buffet 7 days a week" for only $9.99 and it intrigued us and made a mental note to visit again.
We arrived at noon on a Sunday and we were the only ones there. "Where's the buffet station?" I thought to myself. Apparently, the "all you can eat buffet" is ordered a la carte from the menu and is made to order. On the bright side, everything is fresh but it was not what I was expecting.
The buffet menu was very limited only a SMALL fraction of what other similar restaurants like Nana's 7 and Foody Goody offer for their made to order buffets.
For apps, we went with Peking ravioli, chicken teriyaki and crab rangoons. We asked for small portions in fear that we wouldn't finish it all.
The Mo went with hot and sour soup and I went with the wonton soup. My soup was very bland.
There was a VERY LIMITED selection of maki rolls to choose from. I was so disappointed that there was no Unagi (eel), spicy tuna or Philadelphia roll. The server suggested that I get the Salmon roll and add cream cheese for a 50 cent up charge, so that is what I did. The plate wasn't garnished or presented well. I definitely had the "You get what you pay for" feeling.
For entrees, we went with the vegetable lo mein and general gau chicken. The lo mein was greasy but the chicken was tasty.
Dessert is included in the lunch buffet price so we opted for fried tempura banana and ice cream. I thought it was weird that they served coffee ice cream in lieu of something more Asian like green tea, coconut or red bean.
The buffet was just OK and I think $9.99 is a good price but you can definitely get a better deal at the real lunch buffet at Feng Shui in Chelmford for only a couple bucks more.
*Photos in this blog post taken with Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge
We arrived at noon on a Sunday and we were the only ones there. "Where's the buffet station?" I thought to myself. Apparently, the "all you can eat buffet" is ordered a la carte from the menu and is made to order. On the bright side, everything is fresh but it was not what I was expecting.
The buffet menu was very limited only a SMALL fraction of what other similar restaurants like Nana's 7 and Foody Goody offer for their made to order buffets.
For apps, we went with Peking ravioli, chicken teriyaki and crab rangoons. We asked for small portions in fear that we wouldn't finish it all.
The Mo went with hot and sour soup and I went with the wonton soup. My soup was very bland.
There was a VERY LIMITED selection of maki rolls to choose from. I was so disappointed that there was no Unagi (eel), spicy tuna or Philadelphia roll. The server suggested that I get the Salmon roll and add cream cheese for a 50 cent up charge, so that is what I did. The plate wasn't garnished or presented well. I definitely had the "You get what you pay for" feeling.
For entrees, we went with the vegetable lo mein and general gau chicken. The lo mein was greasy but the chicken was tasty.
Dessert is included in the lunch buffet price so we opted for fried tempura banana and ice cream. I thought it was weird that they served coffee ice cream in lieu of something more Asian like green tea, coconut or red bean.
The buffet was just OK and I think $9.99 is a good price but you can definitely get a better deal at the real lunch buffet at Feng Shui in Chelmford for only a couple bucks more.
*Photos in this blog post taken with Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge
24 Market Street
Lowell, MA 01852
978-677-6777