Restaurant #15: The Buffet, Sapporo

On Tuesday, I met my friend at Daimaru department store. Ha ha, yes I went there again! This department store is my favorite place these days. I’ve known this friend since I was in college. I used to work at a movie theater as a part time job. She was one of the part-time workers like me.

My friend told me that she had never tried this buffet restaurant, called “The Buffet”, located on eighth floor of Daimaru. I’ve been there several times. The price is attractive; all you can eat for lunch (90 minutes) is 1490 yen. Their food choice is various, and the taste is not bad. So we decided to have lunch here.

We came here after we had some snacks and coffee, but we were already hungry. We came here at around 1:30. I recommend you to come here either early (11:30) or late like us, otherwise you need to wait for a while on the long line. The décor was simple, but huge! And you can see the view of beautiful Sapporo downtown. Lunch view is nice, but dinner view would be much better and romantic. The regular all-you-can-eat course does not come with drinks, so we added drinks (210 yen).

Pasta Plate

I liked their pasta. I chose three different tastes of pasta; clockwise from right, Karasumi Spaghetti (カラスミのパスタ), Carbonara (カルボナーラ), and Tomato Spaghetti with mushroom and squid (きのこと烏賊のトマトパスタ). There was another one with Kimchi, but I didn’t try it this time… Carbonara was the best among these three.

Chinese Plate

The plate in the front was my choice. From the top; Squid and Eggplant with Chinese sauce (烏賊と茄子の油淋ソース掛け), Shrimp with Sauce Aurore (海老のオーロラソース), Stewed Tofu Nuggets in Cream sauce (豆腐ナゲットのクリーム煮), Shumai (焼売), and Spinach Dumpling (ホウレン草餃子). All-you-can-eat I tried last time was at Grand Park Otaru. Their food choice was less than here, yet, to be honest, the quality was better over there, especially their Chinese dishes. My friend didn’t like most of Chinese dishes in here. I understand… For me, it was okay. I finished everything anyway. Unfortunately, most of Chinese dishes were already cold. It has to be hot…

Main Dishes

Their main dishes were better than last time. I prefer, however, Terrace Brasserie at Otaru. Sorry… The plate in the front is mine. From the top right; Coleslaw with Broccoli (コールスロー), Tofu Salad with Rock Laver and Shrimp (岩のりと小海老の豆腐サラダ), Organic Millet Rice Salad (16穀米のサラダ), Grilled Salmon with Yuzu Mustard Sauce (サーモンソテー柚子とマスタードのソース), Potato Croquette, French Fries and Chicken Chasseur (ポテトコロッケ, フライドポテトとチキンシャスール), and Fritto di Samma with Genovese Sauce (秋刀魚のフリットジェノバソース). Among those, my favorite was Salmon. Salmon was warm enough and perfectly salty. It came with Mizuna, which gave the freshness into my mouth. Chicken Chasseur was appropriately tender and a bit sweet because of the fresh tomatoes. Good! Tofu salad was one of healthy items they had, and I liked it. But tofu is not special, so please don’t expect too much.

Last Plate

This was my last plate, because it passed 90 min already! Too fast! We talked too much! We should’ve concentrate on eating more… My last plate was my favorite items of the day, and added sliced pizza with ham and tuna, and petite donut in the middle. Donut was still warm and was not that sweet. It was my taste.

I really should’ve tried more items… But no time... I couldn't eat desserts...

Overall, their food choice was various enough, and I enjoyed their dishes. If you care about the quality, you should pay more and go to a hotel buffet. If you want to eat different dishes and eat a lot, The Buffet is a good place to try. I really think they should allow people more time to enjoy lunch. How about 120 min instead of 90 min?

Total: 3400 yen (for 2 people)

The Buffet
8F, Daimaru Department Store Sapporo
7, Kita 5-jou Nishi 4-chome, Chuo-ku
Sapporo
011-828-1263
http://www.buffet.jp/the/index.html