You know when someone dares you to do something, and you know it's a bad idea to try it but you do it anyway? That was kind of the feeling I got when I decided to eat here. Clearly there's no shortage of horrible reviews and that was part of the apprehension before my meal. But, as someone who's visited countless casinos and eaten at a long list of buffets, I had to check it out. The verdict? Well, in summation this place is an odd mix of aspiration and execution. In many ways, it's kind of endearing to see people here work SO hard busting tables, making conversation with guests and trying to do their best to replicate a casino buffet experience. On the other hand, it's clear this place is simply not up to the task in terms of execution due to various reasons. Is it inexperience? Is it lack of professional management? Is it lack of a good chef or seasoned cooks? Who knows. But it's clear they don't have the capacity to execute this level of dining operation. Now, you're probably wondering, how was the food? Well, most of the food was terrible. I mentioned during my dinner that this feels like an elementary school hot lunch buffet from the 1980's. A lot of the food reminded me of the stuff I used to eat in public school in NYC during that time. The pizza literally tasted like the pizza I used to get when I was in school, which honestly I wouldn't ever pay real money for now. The salad bar was generally flaccid like a 80 year old man desperately in need of Viagra. While there was a reasonable amount of offerings, none of the ingredients were of decent quality which is surprising given the great local produce in the Saratoga area. The Asian section was incredibly poor, though the lo mein was okay. The cook in charge of the area at least took a lot of time making sure the food was always properly stocked. The Italian section was greasy and featured some limp looking meatballs and overly creamy (and oddly tasteless) pasta. Even the American/entree section somehow managed to make items like mashed potatoes and corn taste extremely bland. I do agree with a previous reviewer that for $16 you shouldn't come in expecting a culinary revelation, but I also think for basics like mashed potatoes you can still make it taste better than what you'd get from a Hungry Man frozen dinner meal. One other note - stay away from the fried shrimp. It was laughably bad. The breading was not only tasteless but so thick that you'd think it was a fried sock that you were eating. The one saving grace of the whole experience was that I managed to go on Friday night, which means it's steak night! The cook was busting his ass cooking tons of sirloin steaks (some to order) and keeping the steak area fully stocked. That was great because the other meats they featured that night, including the pork loin, tasted like dried leather. Fortunately the steaks were not nearly as horrible and actually tasted like those steaks we used to get at Sizzler. Now Sizzler steaks aren't exactly top notch steaks, but it's a heck of a lot better than the other stuff they had that night. I also give credit to the staff for being energetic and really working hard to keep the steaks coming because clearly that's what most people were having that evening. The desserts were extremely mediocre. Only the whoopie pie was decent. The key lime tart was notably bad and tasted as bad as it looked. The fruits there were okay, but the oranges they had were a sad lot. At least the strawberries were somewhat okay, especially if you douse it in cream since they weren't particularly sweet. Our waiter was also fantastic. He was diligent and made sure to check on us frequently and kept our drinks topped off at all times. He definitely deserved the nice tip we left him. In many ways, his efforts were symbolic of the whole experience. This place aims to try and do what the guys in Vegas (or to a limited degree Atlantic City) do. But it's clear they have a ton of work to do because if not for the passable steaks they served on that special Friday promotion ... there literally is nothing there to eat that is worth paying $16 for. You're better off driving to town and eating from any of the countless good restaurants on the main drag. However, despite the 1 star for the food ... I definitely give props to the service which was 2 stars ... giving this place a middling 3 starts overall. read more

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It appears that this buffet is heading downhill fast! They are charging $34 for 2 of us and we were really disappointed in the selection and quality of the food! They did have peel and eat shrimp which were good. Tonight there was a catfish dish available, jalapeño and corn bread coated... terrible idea, stick to the Simple Cajun seasoning and it would be passable. I tried the fried calamari and it was very rubbery. There was a top round offered, and that with the real mashed potatoes was good. The selections for Asian foods were horrible and everything tasted the same. My wife had the Split Pea Soup, one of our favorite soups and she said it was good. The desert selection was good, and the few items I tried were good. I know buffets aren't the culinary delight for many people. I enjoy buffets because of the selections available, I never know exactly what is going to get my taste buds going. For a Friday night the restaurant was empty, almost immediately seating and the casino had a fair sized crowd. I remember going years ago and you'd wait on line to be seated and the food was tasty. I've been to Fortunes upstairs and that is in a class by itself.... always good.... but it was closed because of a private party.... Darn..... BTW, the service was good! read more

Okay so, If you're looking for a quick & inexpensive bite. Then this place is good. With a players card, the lunch price came to $8 each, but each guest must show a card. I would say it's a steal. (We came for lunch) If you're looking to feast at a buffet, eh , I would say go else where. read more

Typical Casino buffet. It is a tad on the small side but the selection was good and the food was fresh and tasty. Italian, American, Asian, Salad Bar and desert. No kids allowed because it's located inside a casino. Ample parking, great wait staff and reasonably priced. read more

Garden Buffet - a plate of chinese food on a table - Buffets Near Me - Saratoga Springs, New York

The only thing edible on the buffet are the desserts. The soups had skins on them, the Italian section was dried out, and the Chinese food was overcooked. What a waste of food:( read more

After reading the negative reviews I said to my boyfriend, "This can't be worse than Golden Corral". I was wrong. It is worse than Golden Corral. Went for lunch. Selection was horrible. Pasta, soup, salad bar worse than Ruby Tuesdays, and some nasty looking meat and baked fish with the standard vegetable sides. A dessert section. And a few other things so insignificant I can't remember. Quality was mediocre. Would not go again and would not recommend. Overpriced and not worth half what they charge. read more

The worst buffet I ever been to. I still cant believe it. Yeah it is affordable but I think I can get a better meal at McDonalds than this place. Not one of the things I put in my plate was good. Flavorless food. Not many options, no seafood at all. Not even a damn ice cream machine. Unbelievable that it was a Saturday night and the food was this bad. Don't waste your money here. read more

Hubby and I eat at the buffet all the time. It's normally good, but I do not know who the chef was tonight. Horrible...Turkey was possibly cooked 3 times over, corn on the cob looked like it sat there 8 hours, chicken was dry, BBQ beef was so tuff you couldn't chew it. What gives? Big disappointment , and I would hope that the casino would make good on this. Not cheap to eat there! Husband did complain to the staff, but don't think they really cared. If you bite, I did give it a good review because up until tonight we have not had any complaints here. read more

The buffet is located inside Saratoga Casino Hotel - all the way in the back. My coworkers and I decided to stop by here after going to Roosevelt Spa and checked out the buffet offerings. At $16 per person for dinner, it wasn't a horrible choice and the food was okay. There wasn't a huge variety but to name some of the options: - Italian Station: various pastas, garlic bread and pizza. The pastas were overcooked - Salad station - Asian Station: Veggie gyoza, lo mein, sauteed mixed veggies, teriyaki whitefish, fortune cookies, white rice. The fish was excellent - Dessert Station: Pound cake, various pies, brownies, fruits - Carving Station: Turkey and Beef, on the sides they had mash potato, sweet potato, au jus, pot roast (way to hard/tough), wild rice. The sweet potato mash with marshmallow was really good and not overly sweet, the wild rice was flavorful but on the saltier side. - Soup Station: Chicken noodle, miso, corn and turkey chowder. Corn and turkey was good but really salty. Service was excellent, value was decent. The place itself could use a renovation because it's really dim and colorless inside. read more

Celebrated my 40th birthday here at the casino along with a dinner party of 16! Everything was absolutely perfect! Thank you so much. All had a great time. read more

We just found out that the Garden Buffet is not re-opening, but being replaced with sports betting. I was informed it lost money. I don't think they considered the hundreds of people like myself, that went to the buffet on a weekly basis and then gambled, usually spending a few hundred dollars. Sadly, we will not be returning to the casino. read more

After reading the reviews I was hesitant to go here but what are you complaining about? For $34.13 including tax we had a very nice all you can eat buffet for 2. Was it a culinary discovery? No! The food was hot and tasted good. The selection was impressive for a varied taste. Were there any surprises again no but it was a good buffet especially for the price. The only negative and the only thing I left on my plate was the coconut pyramid, not worth the calories. read more

The worst garbage I have eaten in a long time! Even the fruits were horrible! $30 for two huge waste of money!!! I would've been better off throwing it in the slot machine blindfolded! Run for your life!! Garbage taste better!! read more

The garden buffet used to be a nice place for reasonable price. If you had a Saratoga casino card think the buffet was $9.95. They did away with the discount and the price is $15.50. Not worth your money Golden corral has a much bigger selection. Food is terrible and Service was worse read more

all the negativity i am seeing here is baffling. a friend of ours is a cook of some kind here, and the mgr's. and kitchen staff truly work hard to assure quality production. during current covid crapola, GARDEN BUFFET is one of the places we have been missing, and are looking forward to when it can reopen. not sure what is up with all the persnickety comments from people. just prior to covid, they did away with the player card requirement that enabled the special buffet price. now all one needs is a basic casino gold card, and the discount is immediately applied. this made us happy, as we aren't gamblers, and never acquired accredited "game points", or whatever it is called. the food here is not bland. it is always fresh and well presented. there are plenty of options, and you know, people, not everyone is going to like EVERY SINGLE THING THEY PUT ON THEIR PLATE. the meat slicing station is, to me, the high point of the buffet. just as one hunk of roast beef is almost picked clean and finished, another is just fresh out of the oven to take it's place. same thing with the pizza selection, which is wide, sometimes uniquely tasty, and well worth trying. please don't let the opinions of The Persnickity discourage you from eating here. and remember, this is saratoga, NOT vegas. we are lucky to have GARDEN BUFFET here as an option and alternative to higher priced eateries. read more

Can't even give it one star...I tried to find ANYTHING that even was close to decent food...eggplant parm-nope, peel your own shrimp-no taste, asparagus-limp, Chinese forgettable. Desserts were no better...might have been the poorest dining experience in a long time. Might be worth the $7.00 you pay with a players card, but stay away if your paying full $15. Hit someplace in town...any place. read more