Have You Experienced a Worse Buffet than the Boardwalk's Surf Spread?

I remember the old Boardwalk Casino as having the worst buffet in Vegas. People paid to eat at the Surf Buffet and when they got in and saw the food on display, they just walked out, sometimes not even bothering to ask for their money back. Has anyone on the LVA staff experienced a buffet worse than that?

The Surf Buffet, on the second floor of the Boardwalk (which was replaced by City Center) was an experience, all right.

It was a long-time go-to for the cheapest buffet in town and was remodeled in 2003, when it also went to 24 hours with the low low price of $5.95. Fairly large, the new room boasted nearly 400 seats, proving that optimism knows no bounds.

Despite its convenient hours and ridiculously cheap AYCE price, the Surf Buffet was one of the worst in Las Vegas, if not the worst. It was infamous for its poor food quality and preparation — overcooked, undercooked, bland, stale after sitting out in steam-table pans under heat lamps for hours, and a pretty foul smell to the room upon entering; apropos to the buffet's name, it was almost like low tide on the mud flats. And that was under the best of circumstances. We remember walking in once late at night (probably around 1 a.m.) and the place was thick with smoke from the steaks they were grilling; one thin piece of charred beef that could’ve doubled for a piece of carbon paper came with the meal. The joke that went around in those days was that the best thing about the buffet was its proximity to the bathrooms.

We remember trying to compare the food, by look and taste, with the cards on the sneeze guard that purported to identify it — without much luck. It turned into a surreal exercise: As one wag put it, the whole point of the spread was to heckle your meal.

To us, it seemed like the Surf was where food went to die, but salt, MSG, and preservatives were keeping it on life support.

The clientele was also of a piece with the victuals, especially late at night when the drunks showed up.

We do remember some good experiences there. The omelet station was decent and you could count on the salad bar for something fresh (by the Surf’s standards). So it wasn’t all bad. Only 98% of it.

As for worse buffets, the answer is yes. We took a quick poll and here are the responses.

Max Rubin: The worst buffet ever was, luckily for the public, not for the public. It was the employee feeding trough at the Riviera in the 1970s. Affectionately known as the Sump, that rhymed with the Lump, which is what all the food there, no matter what you ate, turned into as it made its way to the toilet, where it belonged.

Deke Castleman: I experienced worse at a Chinese buffet in Fairbanks, Alaska, in 1989, an Indian lunch buffet in the lobby of a dive motel in Elko, Nevada, in 1988, and the OG, my first buffet experience at a Mexican cafeteria in Denver in 1968. Though nearly 60 years ago, that one especially resonates in my memory. It was my first experience with south-of-the-border cuisine: refried beans, creamed corn, masa, cheese enchiladas, ground beef and chile, all gloppy and gluey and running together like goo on the plate, bringing tears to my eyes and killing my taste for Mexican food for a decade.

Anthony Curtis: I can barely remember it. But I think the title in our review was "The Serf Buffet," which pretty much summed it up. In reality, though, with an omelet station and a salad bar, it was a value at that price.

But that’s just us. We’re sure plenty of youse’ve had worse than the Surf. How about some of your experiences?

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Comments

thebeachbum Dec-11-2024

Imperial Palace

I didn’t think it could get worse.  But, maybe, Surf Buffet is the winner.

Edso Dec-11-2024

Chinese Buffet

I never did try the Surf Buffet, but for me, the worst Buffet in Las Vegas, hands down was the little Chinese Buffet that was in the strip mall area just south of the Riviera, when it was still around.  Can't remember the name of the place, it was so forgettable. This was back on Super Bowl Saturday in 2009. My brother and I stopped there on our way back from the Wynn, headed to the Westgate.  Neither of us finished even our first plate of food.

David Tschappat Dec-11-2024

Agolfer

Yes the food was about as bland as it could be but for the price you could do well with salad, fruit, and whatever was just brought out was usually OK as well as vegetables. Omelet station and breakfast was likely the best options though. Once per vacation was limit.

Joseph Dec-11-2024

Sockeye

The worst buffet was in Vegas Vacation… “I’ll have some of the yellow, and don’t be cheap.”

King of the Bovines Dec-11-2024

Best and worst

Strangely, the best and worst buffets I've been to were in Iowa.

The best one was at the old Harvey's in Council Bluffs.  Never knew how good I had it.  When Harrah's bought the place, they put the quality down like you would to Ol' Yeller.

The worst one was the breakfast buffet on the other side of the state in the Quad Cities.  (Forget if it was in Bettendorf or Davenport.)

A close second was the one in Tama, Iowa - poker players would get a food comp, and nobody took the buffet comp mpre than once.  Always the snack bar.

And those were worse than the Boardwalk buffet, and I experienced it back in the early 90's.

The reason the Boardwalk isn't the worse?  I didn't leave hungry from that buffet...

Todd Hart Dec-11-2024

Surf Buffet at night

A friend of mine and I ate at the Surf Buffet late at night/ early morning when it was a breakfast buffet. It was so bad that we still laugh about it today.  I have also eaten at the Imperial Palace, Riviera and the Lady Luck buffets over the years. I guess I’m a glutton for punishment.

[email protected] Dec-11-2024

Bad buffet

Worse buffer was at Tropicana .

Ken Orgera Dec-11-2024

Surf Buffet

Did the buffet have prime rib?

John Foisy Dec-11-2024

Imperial Palace

Just like the buffet in Vegas Vacation. Weird colors on unidentifiable offerings.

steve crouse Dec-11-2024

None

In the twenty years we've been to Vegas, I can't say as we ever had a really bad buffet.We stayed away from the usual suspects like the Surf, and IP, being for-warned.The bottom of the list of our experience was the Maxim, and even that was passable, and with a $5.99 price and 2fer coupons laying around everywhere, a real bargain.

Esloth Dec-11-2024

The Riv

The worst I can recall was a precursor to the Sump in Rubin's choice. I can only imagine how bad it was when the Riviera would take what didn't sell at the $9.95 buffet and give it to the staff.

Donzack Dec-11-2024

Lick the plate clean

I was at a buffet in Laughlin when I saw a woman lick her used plate clean and put it on top of the clean plates.

Jeffrey Small Dec-11-2024

Life Flight Home

I've mentioned it in the comments previously but the list has to include the Circus Circus Buffet.  I represented a pilot who was on a layover in LAS--his Captain wanted to go to the Circus Circus for an inexpensive breakfast.  He got so sick after eating there that he spent several days in the hospital.  The he had to get an air ambulance to fly him back to Pennsylvania.  He had lost a major portion of his body weight!  He thought it was the undercooked eggs but we never figured out what he ate!

Fumb Duck Dec-11-2024

Eastside Cannery

The buffet at the Eastside Cannery on Bolder Highway was pretty tasteless. The salads and deserts were OK. My friend liked it because there were no lines to get in. I said that was because everybody was at the great buffet at Bolder Station

Brent Dec-11-2024

Duffy's in Wichita, Kansas

Went there with my parents and grandmother in the mid-1980s. Grandmother was perhaps the cheapest person who ever walked the Earth, so I'm sure it was very low on the price scale.

The food was so bad that it put me off buffets forever.

Gary Dec-11-2024

Bad Buffets

Poor Buffets: Both Arizona Charlie's, Circus Circus and Boomtown Casino before it became Silverton.

Gene Brown Dec-11-2024

Maxim Casino Buffet

If you go back to twenty five years ago, the Maxim, in my opinion, was the worse one that I ever experienced. It was located where the Westin is located at the corner of Flamingo and Koval.

Michael Kwiatkowski Dec-12-2024

Butterbean

Butterbean the boxer would promote the Surf buffet.  The only way I got my wife to go with me there was to pick it for my birthday meal.  Visited at 3am and it was quite the experience!

Bill DeLozier Dec-12-2024

Nevada Palace anyone?

Looked a lot like the buffet in Vegas Vacation--- and no real walls, only curtained partitions to separate it from one of the smokiest casinos on Boulder Hwy.

Joseph Merritt Dec-12-2024

Gold Strike

Never tried the Surf Buffet.  The worst I ever had was The Bonanza Buffet at The Gold Strike in Jean.   Their late December menu featured a gristly, blue colored beef roast and ham so dry it had to have come from a Christmas buffet in Vegas three days earlier.  The banana pudding desert had a leather skin on top and you had to push thru it to get a spoonful.  Sure miss that place.

DBCtexas2023 Dec-13-2024

Good buffets etc.

Me and my family really enjoyed the Buffet at the Flamingo in the late 80's early 90's.  Also at about the same time we really really liked the breakfast at The Victorian Room inside Barbary Coast.  Present day the best buffet for quality, price and service is Wynn. We also miss the Caribe Cafe inside The Mirage and playing Keno at our table while enjoying our meal.

Chris Dec-13-2024

Sands

Went to the Las Vegas Sands just before it closed in 96.  Barely edible, but we survived

Samuel Shurgott Dec-15-2024

Surf was adequate

The buffet was fine for breakfast, and also for late night dining. Priced right for budget minding vistors needed a quick fix.

Question of the Day - 11 December 2024

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