Bountiful buffets
DGJan09
Bountiful buffets
Helping yourself to a feast of palate-pleasers
Although it’s not even noon yet on this Sunday morning, patrons have already begun to assemble for lunch at the SeaSide buffet.
It’s a mismatched bunch waiting in line—high school students and their teachers, churchgoers wearing their Sunday best, tourists wearing flip-flops and flashy shirts.
This 300-seat restaurant, located just off the casino lobby of the Wyndham Nassau Resort & Crystal Palace Casino on Cable Beach, is a hot spot for visitors and Bahamians alike, especially on Sundays.
With its bountiful buffet of Bahamian specialities—from baked crab and grouper to yummy guava duff and coconut cake—it’s no wonder that diners come here in droves. Smoked fish, assorted cheeses, bacon, sausages, cold cuts and other light fare are also served on Sundays.
“For $28.18 for adults and $17 for kids, it’s not a bad deal for my family,” says 32-year-old Jessica Broxton, a Kentucky native vacationing in The Bahamas with her husband and kids. “At five and eight years old my daughters are very choosy eaters. This way if they don’t like something, we can always sample something else. Besides, we weren’t sure what we wanted for lunch. Here we get to have a little bit of everything.”
Aside from offering a 10 per cent discount to senior citizens, the SeaSide buffet has a special school group rate of $15.50 per student in uniform. Deals like these, says Executive Chef Edwin Johnson, make the restaurant a top pick for special occasions.
Hot foods are offered in smaller portions at this all-you-can eat buffet. “We do it that way so it turns over quickly and is nice and fresh,” Johnson explains. “We offer fresher and more wholesome foods, which makes us unique.”
They serve three meals daily. Breakfast prevails from 7am-11am, offering everything from cereal to Danish pastries to omelettes made to order. Featured are Bahamian breakfast specialities such as chicken or sheep tongue souse and “fire engine,” the Bahamian name for shredded corned beef and grits.
Breakfast is $20.70 for adults and $10 for kids, including free soft drink refills and gratuity.
At lunch, running from 12 noon to 5pm, a number of Bahamian specialities like grouper, peas ’n rice and baked macaroni are featured alongside classic American fare. A pasta station offers various made-to-order dishes, and a daily speciality item is served hot from the griddle.
A variety of salads, vegetables, desserts and two soups of the day—one of them always conch chowder—are available at lunch and dinner. Except for Sundays, lunch is $24.15 for adults and $13 for kids.
The dinner buffet, served from 6-10:30pm, has pasta and carved meat stations and includes tempting seafood, poultry, lamb and beef dishes. It’s $34.50 for adults and $21 for kids.
Paradise Island elegance
Another prominent buffet restaurant is Mosaic at The Cove Atlantis, the newest hotel tower at the megaresort.
The Cove offers guests an upscale vacation experience, so diners at Mosaic expect nothing but the best. And they aren’t disappointed, according to Mosaic’s general manager, Dorothy Thompson.
“What makes Mosaic different is our service,” she says, “which is very personal. It’s not just a buffet where you pick up a plate and help yourself. The employees here take time not only to speak to the guests but to be attentive to their needs.”
Overlooking two magnificent beaches, the Mediterranean-influenced restaurant offers a sweeping ocean view. With its water wall of stone and glass and polished chrome and wenge wood accents, the airy dining room is contemporary and chic. Chefs man action cooking stations, where they whip up made-to-order dishes such as chocolate chip pancakes.
The breakfast buffet delivers a little bit of everything—French toast and waffles made to order; hash brown potatoes; fresh fruits and homemade granola; a yoghurt and cottage cheese section; omelette and eggs Benedict stations; and all kinds of breakfast meats. Native dishes like chicken souse and boil’ fish are served, as well.
Breakfast hours are from 7-11am. The tab is $32.20 per adult and $18.40 for children, including a beverage and gratuity.
For lunch Mosaic offers soups, salads, flat-bread pizzas, grilled cheese sandwiches, steamed vegetables, frice, pasta made to order and a variety of meats like chicken, lamb, beef, pork and fish. Desserts include miniature pastries, cheesecake, muffins, croissants, cookies and custard. The lunch buffet runs from 12 noon to 2pm and costs $41.40 per adult and $20.70 per child.
If that sounds fabulous, the dinner menu is even more extensive. Besides the same variety of meats offered at lunch, guests can enjoy sushi, a huge salad bar and conch and seafood salads.
The dinner buffet also features a Japanese noodle station, seafood, soup and pasta stations and a roasting/grilling section where lamb, steak and pork are cooked to order. Two or three different types of seafood such as tuna, salmon and shrimp are available, too. An extensive list of fine wines is available.
Desserts include various cakes, chocolates, cookies and crêpes made to order. The culinary extravaganza also includes fresh fruit, a variety of cheeses, puddings and ice cream.
The evening buffet starts at 5:30, and the last seating is at 10pm. The cost is $67.85 per adult and $26.45 per child, gratuity and soft drinks included. Alcoholic beverages are extra.
Variations on a theme
Located in Atlantis’ Royal Towers, Marketplace delights guests with its colourful, upbeat atmosphere and enough variety to satisfy even the most choosy diner.
“If people are staying here for more than a week or two, they are not going to go into the Marketplace and find the same thing every night,” says Peter Lahr, Kerzner International’s vice president of food and beverage. “Both Marketplace and Mosaic are very international in their offerings with their Italian, Mediterranean, Caribbean, Bahamian and French influences. Both restaurants are extremely popular.”
Breakfast at the Marketplace includes eggs (any style), omelettes, pastries, waffles and fresh fruit. The buffet is open from 7am-12 noon every day except Sunday, when it ends at 11am. The cost is $28.75 for adults and $14.95 for children 11 and under. Brunch is served only on Sundays from 12 noon-3pm. It costs $33.35 for adults and $15.52 for kids.
At dinnertime, (5:30-10pm) every day, you can help yourself to salads, seafood, pasta made to order, sushi, carved meats, burgers, stir-fry creations, oven-baked pizza and an assortment of luscious desserts. Dinner costs $52.90 for adults and $18.40 for children.
According to Lahr, the nature of buffet dining has changed over the years, because many families wanted an upscale experience much like that of a gourmet restaurant, minus the wait.
“If you go in a restaurant and order lamb, filet mignon or a high-end fish or seafood dish, it’s going to be a two- to three-hour experience,” Lahr explains.
Many visitors don’t want to take that much time for a meal, he said. They want “to be able to eat quickly and leave, because they have their children with them. They’ve usually got a full itinerary during the day, and maybe there’s something they want to get to that evening after dinner, so we try to take that approach in both buffets. You’re still going to get a friendly, full-service experience and food quality that matches a gourmet dining experience, but very quickly.”
Stylish harbourside buffet
At the British Colonial Hilton’s Italian-themed Portofino restaurant (the name means “village by the sea”), the staff excels at making special occasions memorable ones.
“Most of our business is repeat clientele,” says Stephen Nesbitt, who manages the first-floor restaurant and bar at the landmark hotel. “We have a huge local following because we emphasize quality, value and service.”
Nesbitt admits that one of the restaurant’s biggest draws is its prime location downtown, right on the city’s scenic harbour. Lunchtime draws investment bankers, lawyers, insurance executives and officials from nearby government agencies, while the Sunday brunch brings in baby-christening groups, class reunions and awards recipients.
Portofino specializes in breakfast, lunch and dinner buffets. For large groups, a variety of buffets (Spanish, for instance) can be requested. The restaurant typically offers a $26.95 Bahamian/Caribbean buffet on Friday nights from 5:30-10:30pm.
That buffet features an assortment of meats, including tender crack’ conch, finger-licking-good jerk pork and chicken and exquisite pan-fried grouper. They also serve potato salad, Bahamian-style baked macaroni and cheese, vegetables, Bahamian desserts such as coconut cake and guava duff, flambé delights, cakes, pies, torts, fresh fruits, chocolate mousse and fruit cocktail.
On Saturday evenings from 6-10:30pm Portofino presents its lavish seafood buffet ($29.95). This bountiful spread is enough to make any true seafood lover’s eyes pop. It includes lobster bisque, snow crab legs, mussels, clams, conch, sautéed shrimp, salmon and oysters.
The restaurant serves an $18.95 buffet breakfast from 6:30-11am daily and lunch from 12 noon-3pm every day except Saturday. The $13.95 buffet lunch includes all-you-can-eat soup and salad with rolls plus a soft drink. They also have a $16.95 two-course lunch of appetizer, main course and/or dessert and a full lunch buffet with unlimited soft drinks for $24.95.
“People love it,” says Nesbitt. “They keep coming back over and over. That tells us the value is there. The quality is there, and the prices are reasonable. That’s what sets us apart from everyone else.”
Cable Beach smorgasbords
SuperClubs Breezes also offers buffet meals daily in its main dining room. To enjoy meals at this all-inclusive resort, however, visitors have to purchase a $60 day pass or a $75 evening pass.
The hotel’s executive chef, Adrian Rolle, says that the diverse menu changes daily, variously featuring American, Continental, Bahamian and Mexican food, with a seafood extravaganza on Sundays.
“What’s different about Breezes is that we boast one of the largest buffets on the island,” says Rolle. “It’s over 130 feet long and includes three hot stations, a pastry station and a salad bar.”
Breakfast is served from 7:30-11am, lunch from 12:30-2:30pm and dinner from 6:30-10:30pm. A midnight buffet is available from 11:30pm-2am.
Buffet lovers can also enjoy Bimini Market at the Sheraton Nassau Beach Resort. It includes soup and salad bars, hot and cold dishes, carved meat and Asian foods stations and desserts.
Breakfast, served from 6:30-11am, costs $25.85 for adults. Lunch ($30) is served from 12 noon-3pm, and the dinner buffet ($36.80) is from 6-10pm. Children 12 and under eat for half price, while tots four and under eat for free. Gratuity and soft drinks are included.
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