I was skeptical about this place but decided to give it a shot. I remember when this place was still Jeem's restaurant -- the restaurant was older, not well kept, a bit on the dirty side so I wasn't sure what to expect with this new Chinese restaurant.
I was pleasantly surprised just walking in the front doors -- new decor, lots of open space, many buffet tables in the center of the restaurant easily accessible to all tables, bright lighting and ... clean!
We sat down and was instantly served glasses of water and asked if we wanted anything else to drink. Great service throughout the meal. Our plates were always cleared and our utensils were always left behind (other buffet places don't pay attention to this and then when you come back to your table you have request for new utensils).
The food variety was impressive. they had steamed fish, variety of sushi, including tempura, some western food (fries, pizza) and the usual chinese food (fried rice, broccoli and beef, sesame chicken, hot and sour soup, spring rolls ,etc) as well as mongolian grill (you select ingredients into a bowl and a chef will cook it for you on a hot plate before your eyes!), dessert, fruit and salad bar.
The food was tastey and there was never a short supply of anything. Again great service here.
LUnch didn't seem to get too full on weekdays like Jeem's used to. This is probably because they opened up the side of the restaurant with extra seating.
I'd come out to this buffet again for lunch. It was $8.99 which was also a great price for what you get in terms of restaurant environment and food choice \ quality \ taste.
Compared to CheungDu across the street (another chinese buffet), whose price is around $6.50, I'd go with Mandarin hands down!
more