Luxe Buffet

Good food, good service, decent price. Definitely worth a try or two, or ten lol!!! Seriously come try it out. My favorite are the spring rolls … Oh my GOODness! They know what they’re doing.

It was my dad’s idea to come here for lunch this past Saturday. Apparently, this buffet was recently remodeled and the prices went up too.
At first sight, it does look very clean & bright. The selections were plentiful but flavors were just meh. Service was OK, nothing special. It’s an Asian buffet after all, I didn’t really have high hopes.

Once in a blue moon I come eat at a buffet, but I like the idea of all you can eat for a fair price. Since this place a fairly renovated I think the prices are a bit extreme especially on the weekends. I came on their Valentine Special so they might of had different food options. My first time experience was good. Our waitress was sweet and she made sure everyone in her section was pleased. She was quick to pick up plates and refill our drinks. The food was good too! The sushi was fresh and they even had a Mongolian BBQ section if you rather have your food made hot and fresh. They had a lot of seafood options. As my hunny and I were eating, the staff came around with bunches of rose and giving them out to every table. I thought that was really sweet/​romantic lol. I was satisfied with my experience and for sure stuffed, but I’m not sure if I’ll be back.

I was skeptical about this place… And any buffets in general! But I was impressed! Why? Well for starters as you walk in you see the beautifully displayed sushi rolls! And not your typical california rolls, but amazing super creative and fresh sushi rolls! The Ahi tuna –my favorite, is fresh and delish! The service is excellent, the hot food section is also very nicely put together and exquisite! You get stir fried noodles done in front of you, they have a chocolate fountain and endless ice cream which the kids enjoyed! I am giving this place a 5 out of 5 stars for freshness and food quality, a 5 for customer service, a 5 for creative sushi rolls, a 5+ for the ahi tuna and a 5++ for having such a over the top waiter/​bussboy tall young guy named Cody– going by the name displayed on his name tag! Owners, if you are reading this you must know that the hole hour that I’ve been sitting here this boy you have employed has been non stop working from one table to the next! Taking initiative to pick up all not one or 2 or 3 tables, but ALL the tables and with a smile on his face! Good job in hiring him! Good job in opening this place! Keep up the excellent service!

As far as comparing to other Chinese Buffet’s in the area I would certainly place this one in the top quarter. It has a relatively large selection and the food quality is beyond what I would have expected from a buffet. Desserts are nice, wontons wonderful and the meet is well prepared. Try the coconut ice cream, YUM! A decent selection of sushi, but could use a little string flavoring. Nevertheless, if it’s a buffet your searching for; come here. If it’s sushi your searching for; go sushi dining.
My only complaint of the place really, is in part with the service. Whatever you do, don’t ask a non-​waiter/​waitress to refill your drink. Bussers are only bussers here; nothing else. Remember this when dining. My wife asked Me. Miguel to refill her water and received an unwelcoming scowl. As he brought the water back, she said «thank you» (not condescendingly) to which she was ignored. Miguel singlehandedly subtracts a star from the review. Cheer up Charlie.

This has to be the best buffet I have ever been to! Fresh sushi, crab legs, amazing meats, oh my eat here.

Been multiple times and every time it was bomb. Michelle was an absolutely stunning waitress, as well.
Sashimi, Sushi, Mongolian BBQ, Frog Legs and more… Definitely worth it if you’re a carnivore.

I gave Luxe Buffet a second chance. Very disappointed! The food is not quality Chinese and the food is still as bad as West Buffet. The hot dishes were room temperature and a breeding ground to get food poison. As a mater of fact, some people have expressed in their Unilocal review that they got sick: (
I think that West Buffet had more hot dishes to select from. The meat at the meat carving station was dried out just sitting there. The guy who cooks the Mangolian BBQ was on break so customers had to wait 10 minutes for him to get back to cooking.
The desert had the same selections that West Buffet had but Luxe Buffet put each piece of desert in tiny dishes. Most of the desert were frozen from just coming out of the freezer. The only good thing at the restaurant was the gelato.
Bottom line. I CANNOT RECOMMEND this restaurant. It is OVERPRICED for the quality of food plus you are taking a chance you could get food poisoning.

Honestly, the overall experience was okay. The food was exceptional, the staff was constantly picking up plates and serving drinks. The atmosphere of the restaurant wasn’t that impressive. they had the news on near our table and it was very distracting and loud. This restaurant felt like a cafeteria with nice decorations. The bill came out to be $ 45 for me and my husband on a Monday afternoon. which is outrageously expensive…
Word of Advice: Eat as much food as you can to make it worth that price. Go big or Go home right?

I was exited when hear that new China buffet going open. And rush with two my friends visit it we paid for 3 persons $ 80! I never seen so much expensive buffet.
Really is it 5* restaurant or buffet? Well that was The worst China buffet ever in my life I been. Super expensive prices same buffet nothing special.
Will never go that place again

Luxe buffet has a great selection of food for the the affordable price! Much better than the previous West Buffet.
They offer lobster, varieties of sushi, clams, dimsum, crab, oysters, a Mongolian grill station, and much more food! The food was all seasoned well.
For dessert, they have a gelato rotating machine!
Will come back again :)

Got food borne illness? Well, this place is a disaster waiting to happen… and you may get it!
I’m writing his review as I’m at the restaurant. I got a plate of food right when they opened at 11:05am. That being said, you’d think the food would be to temperature. WRONG. Beef and broccoli? Pieces of the beef were cool to the touch. Greens beans with some garlic. Not cool, but COLD!!!
Your only way to avoid food borne illness is to get your own ingredients as the stir fry station. I chose noodles, chicken, bean sprouts, water chestnuts.
The man cooking came by after another employee rang the bell for me near the station. The sign was covered by the paper towels so I missed it. The older man came by and took my plate. I said hello and asked what kind of sauces he had. I’m not sure if he heard me or not, but he didn’t respond and proceeded to pour a little of each of them over my plate of food. I smiled and said thank you and wondered around until it was cooked a few minutes later. The temperature was piping HOT! So at least I knew it was cooked. However, it was way too oily. It would be nice if we could choose our own sauces or at least have an option to choose them.
One unsightly thing I saw: an employee cleaning the glass above food. No offense, but cleaning products are not exactly something I want in my food. That should be done before the food is in the station or after ONLY.
Disgusting thing that happened to me: TWO trips to the bathroom!
Best part about this place: the fondu station.
I’m a huge fan of Chinese food, but I must say, I’ll be avoiding this place like the plague. I’d advise you to, as well.

After countless invites to Luxe buffet from the family I finally agreed to come. I’ve been seeing mixed reviews here on Unilocal so I had my doubts but I had to try it myself.
Minus the bright Las Vegas lighting and mismatched carpeting throughout the restaurant I’ll have to admit that as far as the food is concerned, I can’t complain. Buffet quality food at its finest.
I dined here on a Saturday night and luckily for me they served lobster. The only thing is you can only grab one at a time, but if you’re quick like this certain family sitting right next to us you can definitely get your money’s worth and take advantage of the good olé «all you can eat» slogan. They do offer a variety of food here-​sushi, dim sum, seafood, fried, steamed, grilled, sweets and my favorite the Mongolian BBQ! Though I didn’t try it tonight the ingredients all looked fresh-I’m sure I’ll be back to try that next time.
The staff is pretty friendly here, they’re quick at bussing tables and refilling the drinks. Our waitress, Joyce was extremely sweet and soft spoken too. Bryan, had great customer service as well-​he took a minute to talk to our table which was great. (He oversees everything here and is doing a great job-​things seem to be running much more smoothly now)
Give it a try. It’s not so bad.

My mom wanted to take my grandparents here to try out the new buffet. I, on the other hand, wanted to go to Pala’s lobster buffet.
I’m not a huge fan of buffets like these. My coworker raved about this place to my mom, which is why we came. It was OKAY though and not memorable. It seems like West buffet just got a face lift. It looks a lot fancier than before.
Luxe buffet has replaced the West buffet. The food was meh, but I really love how the interior (the food area) looks now. Also I really like how they serve gelato. I think that was one of the things I enjoyed the most. Maybe some of the sushi too. They also have a chocolate fountain now, BUT they only had marshmallows. Not sure if they serve strawberries other times? But strawberries and chocolate = love.
Oh another reason why I’m not too fond of buffets is because sanitary reasons. As I was getting soup, I found a long piece of hair on the handle of the scooper.

Luxe buffet is so much better than the previous (West) buffet located here, hands down, and is probably the best buffet in the area! Everything was updated on the interior including the menu. The atmosphere is bright and there’s no more deep fryer smell when you walk in. (Thank god)
We came on a weekday around 1pm and again over the weekend for dinner. The staff are friendly and the service received both visits was excellent.
This place gets super busy on weekends and during the lunch/​dinner rush but my drinks were always full and plates cleared from the table which is huge for me… No one likes being thirsty haha. Personally I don’t mind paying a bit more than what West buffet charged because the food is definitely better quality than what it was. I really liked the sushi bar, S&P calamari, baked salmon, soup, crab legs and ice cream to name a few items served.
If you’re hungry and in the area, I definitely recommend giving Luxe a shot!!! You won’t find a better all you can eat lunch deal ($ 13?) in north county!

This place is one of the better Chinese buffets I’ve been. From sushi to Mongolian bbq to gelato the food tastes great overall. Especially the fresh sushi and crab legs, lobster ! For the price the food is definitely worth it. Must try! I will revisit.

Like a Phoenix rising from the West Buffet ashes, Luxe buffet is apparently targeting the upscale crowd that is craving Chinese buffet (is that a real market segment?). They’ve taken the tried and true Chinese buffet wig a splash of sushi formula and added huge, ostentatious chandeliers that are nearly buckling the ceiling with their weight. And that’s about it. ITS LIKE YOU’RE IN VEGAS! (not really).
The food is fine with not many standouts to note at lunch. They offer a sparse selection of Krab based sushi and a token salmon nigiri. There is a Mongolian stir fry station, chicken tenders, fries, and some gloopy «Chinese» chicken dishes. The crab ran goons were good, the Thai spicy chicken was above average, and the beef with broccoli was well executed. The dim sum was gloopy, the majority of Cinese dishes were over sugared and picked over. I’ve heard dinner features crab legs and lobster halves, but of course you pay quite a bit extra.
And that brings us to the value proposition. Is it worth $ 17 for lunch and a soda for mediocre food featuring a giant chandelier? Probably not.

This renovation is certainly a step up – miles nicer than the old West Buffet (even if the new décor is tacky and Vegas-​y). However, they’re obviously trying to get their money back from construction, so expect higher prices (~$ 22/​person on dinner).
The seafood is right in the middle of it all, and this time you can finally identify the rolls! The main draw is likely the lobster tails and crab legs during dinner hours, but don’t expect them to be ‘large’.
There’s also this neato spinning ice cream thing where the desserts are, a larger variety of flavors a than last time! (Before they had milky «vanilla», stale chocolate chip, and vague strawberry). And, instead of using a seldom-​washed scooper in a cup of stillwater, you have a nice person to do the scooping! This is PHENOMENAL.
Best of all, there is no longer a strange bathroom odor in the middle of the buffet area anymore! WORTH IT.

The Luxe Buffet is very elegant and impressive including the food, décor, and employees who all do a great job. Nevertheless, when I ate there for my very first time on their third day of being open, I asked a professional looking Anglo man who was very dressed up, appeared to be a regional manager of some sort, and who seemed to be in charge at the opening, «Could you tell me which foods have MSG in them?» He said, «It’s in everything.» I told him that I found that to be impossible. He checked with the host from the old West Buffet who told him that MSG wasn’t in anything. I was a little confused but trusted that she knew what she was talking about.
PROS:
1. Everything is very clean looking.
2. The food is delicious (let’s hope it’s not because there is MSG in their food).
3. There are 148 different items including lots veggies in order to make healthy choices.
4. There are 12 flavors of ice cream and sherbet.
5. The staff does a fantastic job of busing the tables.
CONS:
1. Remodel needed for the bathroom to match the Luxe theme. It appears to be the same bathroom as West buffet which does not fit into the classy theme in the rest of the Luxe Buffet.
2. They said they put real BUTTER on the salmon. Butter is concentrated animal fat that clogs the arteries of the pancreas and puts consumers at a higher risk for prediabetes, and butter is also loaded with salt. Salmon is normally delicious without putting salt or ANYTHING on it. For a vegetarian who might eat fish once in a while. They just ruined the salmon with the butter.
They are turning their healthy salmon into heart attack salmon. They are already seasoning it with seasoning salt, then they add salty quadruple bypass butter and destroy all the healthy benefits of salmon that would normally LOWER ones cholesterol.
I can’t believe anyone would ruin all the health benefits of salmon by putting butter on it. Who would do that? That is almost as bad as Pan Asia putting CHEESE on their salmon. Cheese is nine times concentrated dairy so that is 9X as much unhealthy animal fat. Who needs that much unhealthy fat added to the healthiest fish in the world? Butter or cheese, both are disgusting on salmon unless you’re a junk food junkie and don’t care about being healthy. :(
3. There is NO Wi-​Fi. A classy buffet like the Luxe Buffet and NO Wi-​Fi? Ouch!
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UPDATE 12/​09/​2015: I was told there was NO MSG in any of their food the first time I ate there. I’m not totally sure about that just yet and more research will be needed in order to determine if that is accurate. I hope it is accurate as I really like the Luxe Buffet.
Many Chinese buffet suppliers put MSG in sauces and other food to enhance flavor. The Luxe claim they buy from NO suppliers who use MSG in their products. When I consume MSG, I get Vertigo with dizziness, nausea, light headedness, and paresthesia (pins and needles) that lasts for two weeks. MSG also causes cancer so I’m being very careful now when eating Chinese food. If there is NO MSG in any of their food, they need a sign when you walk in saying, «NO MSG.»
What you need to know about Monosodium Glutamate (MSG)

Luxe Buffet is a remodel and reopening of the old West Buffet that sits outside of the Carlsbad Mall on El Camino. It’s essentially the same place, just with a fresh coat of paint, some butt-​ugly carpeting, and the gaudiest faux-​crystal chandelier the Sahara Casino in Vegas could sell (well, there was one gaudier, but it was claimed by Liberace’s ghost). The food is pretty much the same; I assume whoever bought the restaurant also had the name of the suppliers thrown in as part of the deal. So, much of this review will just be a rehash with some extra tossed in.
Anyway, buffets are difficult to judge. It’s easy to say they’re disgusting, with rows of heat-​lamped slop for people to graze through like bloated sows gorging at a bottomless trough of food made from the cheapest ingredients to cut down on costs by chefs ‘cooking’ unending amounts of 30+ dishes without even knowing how to make any of them well. I mean, you haven’t lived until you’ve had Sweet and Sour Chicken, Fried Frogs Legs, Imitation Krab Salad, Pizza, Fries, and a little Cheesecake all on the same plate!
And yet, everyone goes to buffets. No matter how gross you think they are, there’s always one or two dishes that you can walk away with and enjoy. You just need to wade though an endless sea of crap to find them. In all honesty, expectations should be low whenever coming to one outside of a 5-​star Vegas hotel. About the most anyone should really hope for are three things:
1) A couple of dishes you find edible.
2) Ample space for patrons to sit in and move about while filling their plates.
3) To not contract gonorrhea.
Well, Luxe (which I think is short for Deluxe) has room to spare. If you go for lunch, typically only half of the dining area (or one side of the restaurant) is full and the buffet itself is located in the center. There are 2 large food islands, a bar alongside one wall, a Mongolian BBQ station, a soup station, a carving station, a sushi bar, and a full dessert area. This place has no dearth of space for food.
And they offer a great variety of things to choose from; common staples like Orange Chicken, Fried Shrimp, Fried Rice, Egg Rolls, Crab Rangoons, Potstickers, Chow Mein, and many others. I personally like the Salt and Peppered Squid and any form of fried shrimp they have on tap. But, everything is kinda salty and doesn’t survive well under the heat lamps; despite the number of diners, nothing seemed to move very quickly, so it all dried out and staled fast. And that is with the most popular of items; less standard fare, like those Fried Frogs Legs and Eggplant Tofu, will rarely be touched, just sit there for hours hardening under those hot lights.
The sushi is pretty awful, though that is to be expected under buffet standards. It is better than the West Buffet before, with a few additional chefs rolling behind the counter, but the ingredients are still subpar, making it all a little dry and mealy. They do take chances with some interesting choices; Squid Nigiri is not something you typically see at a buffet, and they have one Shrimp Tempura Roll that was wrapped in an Imitation Crab Stick … it’s pretty, well done, and doesn’t taste too bad.
Other problems include all of the plates being cold, where some should be warm to keep the hot food items from chilling. The makeover is just skin deep, new carpet and paint and that’s it; the ceiling tiles are still old and moldy, the have the same bathroom fixtures, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the old fish tank is still there hiding behind wallpaper. They have too many food items for too few diners, making it too easy for items to dry out and stale with the low turnover. And one of those gaudy chandeliers is tilting to one side, making it look like it could fall onto unsuspecting patrons at any moment.
But, this is where I have to end with the biggest problem of the meal … the price. As West Buffet, we could come here, gorge on disgusting Chinese Food, and pay less than $ 20, even without a coupon to cushion the blow. Now, as Luxe Buffet, we ended up paying in excess of $ 50 for pretty much the exact same food. Yes, we did this on a Saturday Brunch, instead of the regular weekday, but the prices still differ from the earlier incarnation by a good $ 4-​$ 5 per person. Also, they charged us an additional $ 8 for our two year old son because he fell in their 3′-5′ category for kids.
Yeah, you read that right, they charge for children by the foot. $ 8 so our toddler could have a slice of stale pizza, some cold fries, and milk we brought from home. That was a bit unconscionable and the primary reason I don’t think we will come back ever again. With all that in mind, this place went from a shoulder-​shrugging 2-​stars, down to a head shaking 1.