I want an all you can eat Breakfast Bar!

Ever since "Shoney's" went out of business here I want a all you can eat breakfast bar near West Palm Beach, FL. There's plenty of "brunches" on weekends but I want down home cooking .. sausage and biscuits, not caviar!

I feel for Ya Brother.....Same out here in LA. And for the money they charge for "Brunch" it just seems a little to much for me.

We have several mediocre ones here in Fresno you can partake of..the worst is probably Bob's Big Boy, followed closely by Hometown Buffet and Golden Corral. Take your pick.

East of California there is a Shoney's in St George Utah, and Albuquerque. Then near the interstates as you go east as far as Kentucky/Indiana. It used to be a big deal to load up on the meats off the bar!! The business is still there, but we have moved to a lighter stop for breakfast to avoid morning naps on the road.

Don't a lot of hotels that cater to business travellers (like Hilton, Sheraton, etc) have all-u-can-eat breakfast things? The selection is kind of limited, but I have been able to get a month's worth of bacon, eggs, sausage links, biscuits and gravy there.

Fortunately, we have several Shoneys in Knoxville and they are voted best breakfast bar each year. I always get their grits, sauteed mushrooms, chicken fried steak and gravy every time I do the breakfast bar. They also do a pretty good country ham.

They vary their menu by region. I was in New orleans a few weeks ago and had their breakfast bar and they had several cajun/creole dishes on the bar such as dirty rice and some other rice concoction that had all kinds of peppers in it.

We also have a Golden Corral which does the breakfast bar on week-ends. They seem to be a more of a hit and miss deal.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

Cheap breakfast of any kind is becoming a rarity. The reason, there is no money to be made. People do not drink with breakfast=low check average. Generally they leave mediocre tips, so no one wants to work the floor. Most cooks do not want the shift, the ones that do are sometimes severly addicted to substances.
I love a good breakfast but I once watched a friend's sister eat 27 sausages on 3 visits to the food bar amongst other things. I wasn't the same for days.

If you all could design the perfect breakfast bar, what items would you feature?

I stay at the Courtyard by Marriott a lot (105 times in 2002). They always have a buffet breakfast which is consistently mediocre. They have typical breakfast meats, breakfast potatoes, scrambled eggs, grits, oats, breads, fruits etc.

They are not in the Shoney's category but any port in a storm works here.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

My ideal breakfast bar would require a well trained chef working four pans simultaneously, making omelets to order.
And there would be at least a dozen omelets to choose from...
Including one I learned to love in Ocean City , MD: stuffed with cream cheese, fresh strawberries, and topped with fresh strawberries and a dollop of whipped cream.
And an endless supply of fresh strong high end coffee.

The Clarion/Comfort Inn chain has a free breakfast. Some can just be rolls, cold ceral, etc. but I have been to a few that have a full breakfast bar with hot foods. Don't be so hard on cheap breakfasts rumbelly! There are 3 places in my little area that are only open from 6-2 and all of them are always packed, you leave full and you can walk out paying around $7 for 2! I do, however always over tip at breakfast (at least $2) because I feel they deserve it for getting up early and being so perky!

Not "RoadFood", but worth noting: For the most memorable breakfast buffet in my experience, I highly recommend the breakfast at The Carolina Dining Room (http://www.pinehurst.com/amenities/dining.asp) at the Pinehurst Resort in the Village of Pinehurst, N.C. If you have an opportunity to visit the area for golfing/shopping, it's worth the expense for the breakfast experience (service/ambience) and great(!) food - even if you're not lodging there.

As for West Palm Beach, are any of these Golden Corral(http://www.goldencorralrest.com/location.asp?State=FL) locations within a reasonable driving distance for you? Maybe Boynton Beach? Like Jennifer 4 & Sundancer7, they're the only AUCE breakfast buffet (http://www.goldencorralrest.com/PromoSpec.htm#Breakfast) - other than the few remaining east coast Shoney's - I can think of ... and only on weekends around here.

I don't do any sort of buffet. I've seen too many people sticking their hands in to grab food, including some who put things back. And, they don't call those things sneeze guards for nothing.

quote:

Originally posted by Michael Hoffman

I don't do any sort of buffet. I've seen too many people sticking their hands in to grab food, including some who put things back. And, they don't call those things sneeze guards for nothing.

Michael I agree with you Mostly. I stay at the Courtyard by Marriott many nights annually. You can pick and choose. My health standards are pretty high and I hate the huge buffets offered by many chains. I see kids picking and putting back. Turns me off and I hate it. If you travel a lot, pretty soon you learn how to take your chances. I do not want SARS, colds, flu, poisoned food, etc. I pretty much take food that I feel is safe. You never know what is going on in the kitchen, but at least your problems are limited.

I did the Shoney's buffet on Mothers Day. Sometimes it is best if you do not look. fortunately, I have only had a few incidents of food poisoning on the road and each incidence it was at a non buffet restaurant.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

This doesn't have to do with breakfast but buffets in general. I had a miserable case of food poisoning at Easter after going to a Chinese buffet the night before. I agree that we have to be more careful about what and were we eat, I have become much more observant about how a place looks, are the floors clean? Have the utensils been sitting out? And I refuse to use any plastic utensils that are not sealed in plastic wrap or straws that aren't wrapped in plastic or paper.

Dearfolk,
We still have a Shoney's (with breakfast bar) on the east side of town here, but it's too far for me to drive when I'm hungry. If I wanted a breakfast buffet, I would saunter over to Plantation Buffet on M. L. K. Blvd. (where it becomes Commerce Road): they even have streak o'lean, fried chicken, and old-fashioned tenderloin on their line, and probably for a buck or two less than Shoney's charges!
Their lunches are good as well, especially on Tuesdays, when they have barbecued goat: that day, quite a few Mexicans eat their almuerzo there. And the mashed potatoes always contain those telltale lumps. No instant anything at the Plantation, folks, except a welcome!
Wishfully, Ort. Carlton in Athens, Georgia.

Normally would never recommend Casino buffets but if you happen to be driving on I-15 in or out of Las Vegas, I do like breakfast at the CASA BLANCA Resort in Mesquite, NV. Very large with the obvious usual breakfast fare and also some Mexican flair common to the Southwest. A large selection of fruit and a cook to order egg, pancake and waffel station. Very good and very filling for the price and a nice stop in the desert after a long hot drive.

MOBOB,
Is that the newer place out on the west(south) end of town? We used to stop at the Peppermill/Oasis after skipping any breaks in Vegas as we came thru. Nice little town, but growing way to fast now.

quote:

Originally posted by Al-The Mayor-Bowen

MOBOB,
Is that the newer place out on the west(south) end of town? We used to stop at the Peppermill/Oasis after skipping any breaks in Vegas as we came thru. Nice little town, but growing way to fast now.

Funny, I've eaten there too, and I get the feeling I'm much less well-travelled than most of the people on this forum. One of the better breakfasts I had in casino-land as I remember; well, maybe one of the only ones, my buddy and I were up awfully late most nights and probably didn't make it up for breakfast more than a couple of times in a week. Ridiculously cheap, of course, I think it was maybe $6-7 for a pretty high quality all-you-can eat. I loved casinos when they were only in Nevada and those of us who liked to gamble, say, once a decade could just avoid them. Now they're everywhere!

quote:

Originally posted by Al-The Mayor-Bowen

MOBOB,
Is that the newer place out on the west(south) end of town? We used to stop at the Peppermill/Oasis after skipping any breaks in Vegas as we came thru. Nice little town, but growing way to fast now.

Your correct on all counts Your Honor. It is the new place (not so new anymore) and Mesquite is getting to be quite a Metropolis. My Mom lives there now and I spend quite a bit of time there. Although I enjoy it for all the golf courses these days, I do still remember the little one horse stop it used to be years ago and yes then a stop at the old Peppermill. It still kept it's flavor for a long time but is changed a bit now.
I like thinking about the place because just outside the entrance to the restaurant was the last place I saw my Dad.

When we first started planning retirement St George Utah was one of our choices. Mesquite is less than 30 minutes from there and we looked into some of the newer homes there. That was ten years ago, and I am glad we didn't buy there, due to the overly rapid expansion of the town.
I like the glasswork in the Peppermill/Oasis Buffet, the water and mirrors do a great job of dividing the room into smaller dining areas.

quote:

Originally posted by Jennifer_4

If you all could design the perfect breakfast bar, what items would you feature?

I'd be mighty partial to a multi-bar breakfast:
- a smoothie & juice station;
- a hooch bar (I'd much rather have a Screwdriver or Margarita than a Mimosa with my breakfast - but to each their own...)
- a hot drinks bar (incl. Mexican hot chocolate, atole, chai, along with all the standard coffee & tea drinks);
- a burrito & quesadilla station* (in addition to chorizo & the rest of the pork contingent, I'd want good vegi fillings [like rajas {grilled chiles with onions and/or cheese}, grilled mushrooms or eggplant or zucchini, etc.] AND a good sagey sausage gravy - sublime over 'taters, eggs & sausage in a grilled tortilla!);
- a pancake, crepe, & waffle station (w/ a carousel of syrups & toppings);
- a breakfast soup station (menudo, pozole, birria, jook, etc.);
- an omlette station [back-to-back with the burrito station];
- a hot cereal station (grits, oatmeal, Malt-o-Meal, polenta, etc.);
- a cold cereal & granola bar;
- continents of fresh fruit;
- a dairy bar; and finally,
- a grill for all the stuff that is normally found at the steam table [in most places] not already mentioned above.
Did I miss anything obvious?
Now I need a biz plan,
Richard
Berkeley/SF, CA

*maybe even breakfast pizzas & tamales at this station?

Richard, whenever you open your breakfast bar, let me know! We have a pretty good weekend buffet in Great Falls VA called The Tavern. Nice sort of lunchy brunchy stuff. Great cheese grits, made to order omelettes, roast beef and salad. (Oh and a full bar).

Richard,
You forgot the "made to order" Bisquits & Gravy Station!!

This place has a pretty decent all you can eat breakfast.
The Samoa cookhouse,just outside of Euerka,CA
http://www.humboldtdining.com/cookhouse/
http://www.roadtripamerica.com/eats/samoa.htm

quote:

Originally posted by Al-The Mayor-Bowen

When we first started planning retirement St George Utah was one of our choices. Mesquite is less than 30 minutes from there and we looked into some of the newer homes there. That was ten years ago, and I am glad we didn't buy there, due to the overly rapid expansion of the town.
I like the glasswork in the Peppermill/Oasis Buffet, the water and mirrors do a great job of dividing the room into smaller dining areas.

This is off topic, but doesn't the drive from St. George to Mesquite look like the scene from all the Roadrunner/Coyote cartoons?

Going through Arizona with no exits in Arizona except a rest area.

From an Easterner's perspective it is really pretty and very different from where I am from.

quote:

Originally posted by peppertree

quote:

Originally posted by Al-The Mayor-Bowen

When we first started planning retirement St George Utah was one of our choices. Mesquite is less than 30 minutes from there and we looked into some of the newer homes there. That was ten years ago, and I am glad we didn't buy there, due to the overly rapid expansion of the town.
I like the glasswork in the Peppermill/Oasis Buffet, the water and mirrors do a great job of dividing the room into smaller dining areas.

This is off topic, but doesn't the drive from St. George to Mesquite look like the scene from all the Roadrunner/Coyote cartoons?

Going through Arizona with no exits in Arizona except a rest area.

From an Easterner's perspective it is really pretty and very different from where I am from.

Yes it does kinda.
you should go to Monument Valley,near Kayenta,AZ highway 163 on the Arizona-Utah border.
That IS where they made the Roadrunner cartoons

Wow! It all sounds scrumplicious!

For a fun and excellent alternative, I present "The Asian Breakfast Bar"

One station for noodles in broth with choices of spicy Tom Yam soup, Pho broth, Hainanese fish broth

One station for savoury rices with all sorts of sambals and curries

One station for Indian breads with accompanying lentil curry sauce etc

One station for quintessential Asian drinks such as Indian yoghurt drinks, Southeast Asian sweet hot tea, sugar cane water etc

One station for fresh tropical fruit with different Asian sauces and dressings to go with them

One station for Asian steamed and/or baked sweetmeats made from palm sugar, coconut milk, pandanus leaves and different types of flour

One station of noodles with different sauces or stir-fried to order with a selection of stir-fry ingredients including shrimp, cockles, eggs, chinese greens, pork slivers etc

Probably might not suit many in the USA but that would be the ideal Asian breakfast bar

I think that the all-you-can-eat breakfast bars are not as exciting as they once were. They're more popular at casinos, not at a restaurant-type setting. Sometimes the food isn't as hot. I have tasted a cold feel in the food. Shoney's had the best one, but I think they were outselling the menu food so much that they turned their attention back to the original entrees. And I've noticed that a lot of Shoney's have closed in NC, SC, GA, and TX, sometimes if they're across from a Cracker Barrel restaurant at some interstate exits. The splurge factor pulled people to breakfast buffets; now in light of healthier fare, people are scaling down on going to buffets. I think once every 30 days is when some of us should go to a buffet, not every day.

Millers in Lancaster, Pa., has a fabulous breakfast buffet. They make omelettes and pancakes to order and all the side dishes you could ever want.