Originally published December 17, 2015
Decisions, decisions, decisions. That’s the situation that faces diners at the Chumash Casino’s recently renovated, recently reopened, and much-changed casual dining spot, The Buffet.
The Buffet has always been a popular destination for those who want variety and the ability to pile plates high. With the new restaurant, the casino kicked things up a notch. The number of menu choices almost doubled and are awesome.
The Buffet’s big change is in the configuration of both the dining room and the food stations. Whereas before, a buffet-goer likely had to stand and wait in line, plate in hand, while the folks ahead contemplated their options, selections in all areas can now be accessed much quicker. The food stations are arranged in parallel counters so that a diner can wander from one food station to the next without waiting for the person in front to move. There is no designated traffic pattern.
Diners can go from the rotisserie area (for chicken and pork bellies), to the carving station (for roast beef, turkey breast, or brisket of beef), to the seafood station (for salmon, swordfish, shrimp, and crab legs), to the Asian station (for orange chicken, fried rice, sushi, and spring rolls), to the Mexican station (for stuffed poblano peppers, tacos, refried beans, and rice), to the Italian station (for pizza, spaghetti with giant meatballs, lasagna, and manicotti). All items, except crab legs, are available during both lunch and dinner. Crab legs are served only after 4 p.m., on the dinner menu.
In addition to the above, there is a respectable selection of vegetables. And talk about potatoes. You have your choice of scalloped, mashed, roasted, and sweet.
Some dishes are made in full view of the customer. At the Asian counter, foods are prepared in woks while diners watch. The rotisserie and pizza oven are also in full view. You can see the pizza being put in and taken out of the oven.
The food items listed above are by no means the only items available at the various stations. There is a soup bar (two choices), a salad bar (four choices—you don’t get to design your own as you could before) with fruit plates, and a charcuterie for deli delights like salami.
There are several kinds of salsa and several kinds of meat and seafood accouterments—like au jus, drawn butter, and cocktail sauce.
The dessert case dazzles with a wide assortment of pastries associated with high-end bakeries. The selection here varies from day to day, but among the possibilities are key lime tarts and salted caramel tarts with thin, crackly shells, and gelato, as well as cream puffs, coconut macaroons, pecan bars, bread pudding, and cannoli. Sugar-free desserts, popular in the old buffet, are also available.
The second floor—where The Buffet, The Willows, and the bar are located—was closed off in March and reopened the week before Thanksgiving. The escalators to the second floor are now running. Correction: The up escalator runs. The elevator takes you down.
Between March and November, the construction crews brought about a startling transformation. The second floor was imbued with a sleek, stylish new look.
When you first view the aesthetically pleasing interior, you may experience a feeling of excitement and a sense of occasion. The modern, contemporary design involved updated carpeting, light fixtures, china, flatware, and glassware. There are also new seating arrangements. The four-person booths have been replaced with many banquettes (padded seats set against a wall).
The seating capacity is roughly the same as before, but as Bill Cheek, executive director of Casino Hospitality, said in a phone interview, “The new arrangements give us great versatility in accommodating large groups.”
The Buffet serves many parties and tour groups. Cheek also said that eliminating the need for customers to stand in line while choosing food items is perhaps one of the most popular aspects of the new setup.
The old Buffet was a horseshoe design that started with the popular, but unwieldy, make-your-own-salad bar. Right at the starting gate, there was congestion.
In the new buffet-line design, traffic can flow freely from area to area without being clogged at any one point slowing down the whole line. Queuing up for food when you’re hungry isn’t fun.
The casino is, as is widely known, undergoing expansion and updating. While The Buffet was closed for business, hungry casino patrons could go to the first floor food outlets like the Chumash Café and the Grab n Go Bar. To provide additional food service while The Buffet was closed, the casino opened a panini eatery toward the front of the casino on the first floor.
The Bingo Bar in the Samala Showroom (right next to the bingo room) was also available for hamburgers, hot dogs, french fries, onion rings, and the like. The Bingo Bar is no longer in service—that space has been turned into an actual bar serving wine and beer.
With the opening of The Buffet, the casino closed the first floor Chumash Café and Grab n Go Bar immediately adjacent to the Café. These food service areas are now undergoing their own makeovers and will reopen in due time.
In the meantime, the enhanced Buffet is a feast for both the eyes and the palate.
Contact contributor Helen Ann Thomas at helenthom232@yahoo.com.
This article appears in Dec 17-24, 2015.