10 Budget-Friendly Buffets To Check Out From $18 Per Pax
Self-service buffets are back, and here are some options that won’t break the bank.
After two years of battling the Covid-19 pandemic, buffet restaurants have finally resumed self-service spreads. With the lifting of dining restrictions from April 30, customers can now help themselves to free-flow food instead of ordering from servers.
But there are still certain measures in place to ensure hygiene, like having to wear disposable gloves or use hand sanitiser before loading up your plate. We are still hyped, though. Who doesn’t love a good buffet? After all, we have waited two long years to enjoy the pleasure of being spoiled for choice again – seeing dishes laid out for our picking and returning to our tables with fully stacked plates to feast on.
What’s even better is when the buffet bill doesn’t eat up your bank account. Which is why we have compiled some options for you, priced from $18 per head, so you can gorge to your heart’s content and not feel the pinch of global inflation.
Captain Kim Korean BBQ & Hotpot Buffet
Captain Kim serves army stew hotpot, but it’s also well-known for its Korean barbecue with over 60 buffet ingredients for you to choose from, including marinated meats and sides such as mushroom soup. Beverages are also free-flow. The restaurant is under parent company Kingdom Food Group, which also runs eateries like GoroGoro Steamboat & Korean Buffet and One Sushi.
Prices:
[Lunch] Mon to Sun/ PH: $18.90 (Adults)/ $15.90 (Student/ Senior Citizen)/ $9.90 (Child)
Fri to Sun/ Eve/ PH: $26.90 (Adults)/ $24.90 (Student/ Senior Citizen)/ $15.90 (Child)
[Dinner] Mon to Thu: $28.90 (Adults)/ $26.90 (Student/ Senior Citizen)/ $15.90 (Child)
Fri to Sun/ Eve/ PH: $29.90 (Adults)/ $27.90 (Student/ Senior Citizen)/ $15.90 (Child)
#01-06 NTUC Income Tampines Junction, 300 Tampines Ave 5 S529653. Tel: 6260-4247. Open Mon-Thu 11.30am–3.30pm; 5.30pm – 10.00pm, Fri-Sun / PH Eve / PH 11.30am–3.30pm; 5.30pm–10.30pm. More info via Facebook or website.
GoroGoro Steamboat & Korean Buffet
Owned by the same folks behind Captain Kim’s buffet restaurant, GoroGoro’s prices are similar to its sister brand's. But instead of Korean barbecue, they offer K-style steamboat with seven soup choices including Pepper Bak Kut Teh, Ginseng, Beauty Collagen Soup and Mala. There are over 70 ingredients like meat, veggies and sides such as japchae and candied sweet potatoes to go with your meal.
Prices:
[Lunch] Mon to Fri: $17.90 (Adults)/ $15.90 (Student/ Senior Citizen)/ $9.90 (Child)
Sat to Sun/ PH: $27.90 (Adults)/ $24.90 (Student/ Senior Citizen)/ $16.90 (Child)
[Dinner] Mon to Thu: $27.90 (Adults)/ $24.90 (Student/ Senior Citizen)/ $16.90 (Child)
Fri to Sun/ Eve/ PH: $29.90 (Adults)/ $26.90 (Student/ Senior Citizen)/ $16.90 (Child)
#03-43 The Centrepoint, 176 Orchard Rd S238843. Tel: 6385-7854. Open Mon-Thu 11.30am–3.30pm; 5.30pm–10.00pm (last order at 2.30pm & 9pm), Fri-Sun / PH Eve / PH 11.30am–3.30pm; 5.30pm–10.30pm (last order at 2.30pm & 9.30pm). More info via Facebook or website.
Holiday Inn Buffet (Atrium Restaurant)
Holiday Inn’s Atrium Restaurant offers a halal-certified buffet spread with an international and local menu. This includes nosh like Beef Rendang, Roasted Spring Chicken and Mutton Keema Briyani, along with a “Korean Food Corner” serving K-food like Ginseng Chicken Soup, Spicy Seafood Stew, Beef Brisket Soybean Paste Stew and Mango Bingsu. From now till May 31, 2022, the restaurant is offering 50 per cent off every paying adult, which means you pay less than $50 per head for the buffet.
Prices:
[Lunch] Mon to Fri: $82 (Adults)/ $25 (Child)
Sat to Sun: $86 (Adults)/ $25 (Child)
[Dinner] Sun to Thu: $94 (Adults)/ $30 (Child)
Atrium Restaurant at Holiday Inn, 317 Outram Rd, S169075. Tel: 6733-0188. Tel: 6733-0188. Open daily 12pm-3pm (last order 2.30pm); 5.30pm-9.30pm (last order 9pm). More info via Facebook or website.
Seoul Garden
Popular halal-certified hotpot restaurant is Seoul Garden also relaunches its wallet-friendly self-service buffet, with Korean-style barbecue cooked on smokeless grills. Ingredients include Korean marinated meats like bulgogi chicken as well as other picks like black pepper beef and salmon fillet. Banchan (Korean side dishes) are also available.
Prices:
Weekday Lunch Buffet, Regular Tier: $19.90 (Adult)/ $16.90 (Student/ Senior Citizen)/ $9.95 (5-12 years old)
Weekday Lunch Buffet, Premium tier: $29.90 (Adult), $25.90 (Student/ Senior Citizen)/ $14.95 (5-12 years old)
Weekday Dinner & Weekend Buffet, Regular tier: $29.90 (Adult)/ $14.95 (5-12years old)
Weekday Dinner & Weekend Buffet, Premium tier: $36.90 (Adult)/ $18.45 (5-12 years old)
Weekday Dinner & Weekend Buffet, Supreme tier: $46.90 (Adult)/ $23.45 (5-12 years old)
Seven outlets islandwide. Open daily 11.30am-10.30pm. More info via Facebook or website.
Gangnam Story Korean Steamboat & BBQ Buffet
Located at Orchard Central, Gangnam Story offers an all-you-can-eat buffet with premium seafood like mud crabs, scallops and salmon. There are also meat options like smoked duck, sesame chicken and bulgogi pork. You also get your choice of two free soup bases from a selection, like Collagen and Kimchi Seaweed.
Prices:
Weekday lunch pricing (11:30am-5pm) $24.90 (Adult)/ $21.90 (Students & Senior citizens)/ $12.90 (Child)
Weekday dinner pricing (5pm-11pm) $29.90 (Adult)/ $26.90 (Students & Senior citizens)/ $15.90 (Child)
Weekend lunch pricing (11.30am-5pm) $27.90 (Adults)/ $24.90 (Students & Senior citizens)/ $15.90 (Child)
Weekend dinner pricing (5pm-11pm) $32.90 (Adult)/ $29.90 (Students & Senior citizens)/ $18.90 (Child)
#08-04/05, Orchard Central, 181 Orchard Rd, S23889. Tel: 8799-6061. Open daily from 11.30pm-10.30pm. More info via Facebook.
Buffet Paradise
Newish Tai Seng buffet joint Buffet Paradise has over 40 types of seafood, meat and ingredients to choose from for its mookata-style barbecue. Prices include drinks and ice cream for dessert, though you can also top up $15 for a free-flow "beer buffet".
Prices:
Mon to Thu: $29.90 (Adult)/ $19.90 (Child)
Fri to Sun/ PH: $32.90 (Adult)/ $19.90 (Child)
28 Tai Seng St, S534106. Tel: 9726-1853. Open daily 5pm-11pm. More info via Facebook.
Vienna International Seafood & Teppanyaki Buffet
The old-school Vienna buffet restaurant has been around since 2002 offering a self-service buffet. There's a seafood spread with choices like lobsters, oysters and prawns, and teppanyaki dishes cooked a la minute by chefs at a live station (you can choose your own meat and veggies and hand them to the chefs). There's also sushi and a variety of all-you-can-eat desserts.
Happy Joy Restaurant
The restaurant serves classic Cantonese dishes such as Peking duck, Thai Sauce Whole Abalone, and Braised Shark’s Fin Soup, though these premium dishes are limited to one round of ordering per table, with portions limited to the number of pax dining (for instance, a table of three wouldn't get a whole Peking duck). There are also free-flow appetisers, a boiled soup of the day as well as zi char main courses like coffee pork ribs and desserts. There are also new additions to the menu like German Pork Knuckles and Duck Meat with Plum Sauce.
Makan @ Jen
Hotel Jen Orchard Gateway's in-house restaurant serves a la carte and buffet menus with a variety of local, Asian and international dishes. Their lunch buffet menu includes Laksa Fried Rice with Grilled River Prawns, Pan-fried Salmon Steak and Wagyu Meatball Pasta. On weekends, the restaurant offers a more elaborate spread with sous vide beef, roasted mala lamb leg and sashimi platters. On Fridays, Saturdays and eve of public holidays, you can also go for the Seafood & Friends Buffet Dinner ($78 per adult) with options like sambal cream Boston lobsters, teriyaki seabass and deep-fried soft shell crabs.
Prices:
[Semi-Buffet Lunch/ Dinner per pax] $17.90/ 1-course, $20.90/ 2-course (main course + salad or dessert), $26.90/ 3-course (main course + salad and dessert)
Seafood & Friends Buffet Dinner (Fri, Sat & Eve of PH): $78 per pax
Chillout Weekend Buffet Lunch (Sat, Sun & PH): $48 per pax
#10-01 Hotel Jen Orchard Gateway, 277 Orchard Rd, S238858. Tel: 6708-8899. Open daily 7.30am-9.30pm. More info via website.
Suki-Ya
For those who prefer hotpot-style meals, Suki-Ya offers communal shabu-shabu pots with free-flow shabu meat including wagyu beef and veggies.
Prices:
Quality Meats menu: [Lunch] $19.90 (Adult)/ $15.90 (Child)
[Dinner] $25.90 (Adults)/ $18.90 (Child)
Premium Meats menu: [Lunch] $30.80 (Adult)/ $15.90 (Child 5-7years old)/ $26.80 (Child 8-12 years old)
[Dinner] $36.80 (Adult)/ / $18.90 (Child 5-7years old)/ $29.80 (Child 8-12 years old)
*Additional $3 for Fri, Sat Sun, PH and PH eve.
Seven outlets islandwide. More info via Facebook or website.
