30 Horrifying Experiences People Had at All-You-Can-Eat Buffets

‘I saw a chef sneeze on the food’
30 Horrifying Experiences People Had at All-You-Can-Eat Buffets

There are times when we look back on moments in American history, realize how dark things were and reckon with our past as we attempt to forge ahead. 

I am, of course, talking about the proliferation of all-you-can-eat buffets. Before these gut-busting eateries were yoinked from our public consciousness, there were plenty of horrors to be had alongside heaping piles of mashed potatoes and questionable meats. For example, according to these Redditors, there appears to have been some kind of trend that involved licking communal ladles after serving yourself with them. I take no pleasure in informing you of that detail. 

To that end, we’ve gathered some of the most horrifying things people have witnessed at an all-you-can-eat buffet, and I feel confident that the offenders in these stories will face a brutal reckoning at the gates of hell.

TACObracommander 4y Not an employee, but I was standing behind a woman at Hometown Buffet. She was getting some lasagna or something, basically a really cheesy pasta that when you lift the serving utensil, a lot of cheese hangs on. I witnessed her lift her pasta, twirl all the excess cheese that was connected around her index finger (and there was a lot), clip it off with her thumb nail, and then fling it back into the pasta. I knew I shouldn't have been at Hometown Buffet in the first place, but this solidified my stance to never go back.
Vismungcg . 4y Buffet where I live got shut down for serving coyote meat and labeling it as other meats ... 9.1k
IntMainVoidGang . . 4y My aunt once witnessed a guy ladle some melted cheese onto his plate at golden corral then proceed to lick the ladle clean. ... 1
Fangs_McWolf . 4y Customer here, was at a Chinese buffet and saw a woman return to the buffet with a plate she had just eaten off of. ... 2
TennisEnnis19 0 4y First time I went to a Chinese buffet after I moved to a new town I saw the chef sneeze on the food. ... 1
Helmut_Mayo . 4y Phlegm- covered false teeth which were launched from a flu-sufferers mouth by a sneeze. Probably. ... 4
allhailkircules . 4y I was once at an Old Country Buffet, waiting patiently to get some Mac & Cheese. The kid in front of me plied his plate high, and then started tapping the serving spoon to get all of the chessy goodness free from the confines of the spoon. Once he was satisfied with his handiwork, he licked the spoon clean. I didn't have any Mac & Cheese, and haven't been back since ... 14.3k
Margo-ok . 1 10y Don't work at one, but I saw a guy empty all the chicken wings into two plates and take them back to his table, he and his family ate in pure silence. ... 12
Gilgameshk182 . 4y I have an old friend who is a bit of a slob. My friends and I took him to a buffet as a treat and general social time. When he ate, the food fell from his mouth. The food then gathered on the top part of his stomach which protruded out enough to create a flat surface. Не would then periodically eat food from his chest pile like it was no big deal. That was the last time we ate out in public with him. ... 2
darkagl1 . 4y Not an employee or a customer, but we had a Chinese buffet shut down for a health code violation, which was employee was cutting veggies while taking a shit. To this day I still wonder if that means dude brought a bucket into the kitchen or veggies into the shitter and I honestly don't know which is worse. ... 1.6k
cxwash 9y Okay everyone. I worked at a buffet. I have seen people purposely mess shit up. Middle aged woman put a spoonful of Cajun rice in the peach cobbler then walked away like she had just achieved the greatest victory. People grabbing things with their hands and then asking to speak with a manager because they burned themselves. Salads constructed of only ham cubes, croutons, a river of thousand island, and sprinkled with two fist fulls of cheddar cheese. People who make mountains of food instead of sectioning their plates like normal fucking people. it was a dark time
obeyyourbrain . . 4y I had a co-worker that briefly managed a Ryan's buffet. Не said that it was fairly common for people to gorge themselves, then purge in the restroom and start eating again so that they could get their money's worth. ... 21.9k
EmmyTheSweet. 4y Not a worker - but I went to HomeTown Buffet and the kid in front of me was slightly shorter than the buffet bar but had his hands in the yellow jello - just massaging it. Then his mom came by and snatched him away but didn't say anything while a guy came and made himself a bowl of jello. 10 yr-old me was too appalled to say anything. I haven't eaten jello since then.... ... 7.5k
NymmielsMe Зу Worked at Kings Buffet, health board random inspection happened. All was fine in public areas, inspector goes into kitchen, finds a few minor issues that are easy to overlook in day to day operations, and also finds alot of expired meat in the freezer, and all of it has to be tossed out. Nearing the end of my shift I'm lugging a bag of garbage to the dumpster out back, where I see 3 kitchen cooks digging through the garbage to recover the meats. Seeing this I went inside while removing uniform and told the boss I quit.
majikfusion 4y When I was a toddler my parents took me to Las Vegas and in an all you can eat buffet I somehow got my head stuck between two metal poles and in my scared state vomited on the floor Instead of helping me, a load of people walked through my vomit in order to get their desserts ... 1
RoxyFurious . 4y watched a man at the ponderosa walk up to the buffet without a plate, untuck his t-shirt, pull the hem up to form a basket, reach into the steam tray of chicken wings with his bare hand and just load up on hot wings in his makeshift shirtbucket. The woman in the kitchen was like please sir, could you use a plate. Or just tongs? Guy scoffed and looked at her like she'd asked him to don a tuxedo. ... 267
sixpackshaker . 4y My first job was as a dishwasher in an all you can eat fried catfish buffet. People are animals. Especially the ones that get far more food off the buffet than they can eat. Then they take the left overs and pile them on a plate or tray, cover in ketchup and tartar sauce, then pour their iced tea over the top of all that. A lot of people did that got at least two plates like that a night. ... 6.8k
Odogogod 4y Picked up some fish and chips recently. Saw they had all you can eat on Wednesdays. So I asked What is the most that someone.... 18 pieces of fish and 3 plates (she held up this huge platter) of So he eats that exact order every week? Yes, and he goes to a different 'all you can eat' every day of the week. Не got banned from the Chinese place down the road. ... 35.8k
sasquatchoo . 4y Man im late to the game, but I was in Cherokee North Carolina snd went to this restaurant that supposedly served authentic native american food (what is that even? Corn and venison?) It was the most random hodgepodge of greasy food I had ever seen. There were some kind of cornbread pancake looking things and people were ladeling straight GREASE right on top of it. There was litterally just a container full of grease that the regulars were spooning onto their food. I was disgusted. ... 2
Squidoncrack 4y I was at a Pizza Ranch and I was SUPER full after a full half-hour of eating. But I thought I'd get some dessert. If any of you have ever been to Pizza Ranch you'll know their chocolate pudding is really good. For some reason, however, they don't put it out near the dessert pizzas or ice cream. It's right near the salads and my dumbass thought there was whipped cream next to the pudding. Turns out the whipped cream was just really thin mashed potatoes. Immediately after putting it into my mouth it came right back out.
Valkrine10 4y A woman came in with two of her kids, and had a pretty regular meal. You pay when you leave at our place, and she decided to sneak out with her younger daughter before paying, leaving her underage son alone at the table. We caught on pretty quick and sent someone after her, who found her in her car in the parking garage, waiting for her son to come as well. She refused to come back in and pay, so we had to keep her son 'hostage' until the police came to handle the situation. What some people
ASuitofT51PowerArmor 4y I bus at a slightly nicer resteraunt. On Fridays and Sundays we offer a prime rib and crab leg buffet, among a salad bar, hot and cold entrées, and a desert bar. It's honestly pretty nice and our buffet runner keeps anyone from doing ungodly things to the buffet. But the one incident that will always stand out to me was when this family of five came in. From the moment they came in to the moment they left, they ate as many crab legs as they possibly could. Their server and I were clearing plates off as
lovelyyyrose1993 . 4y Went as a customer to a golden corral. Im walking to the chocolate fountain and 3 little girls step in front of me, and all 3 of them just go hands deep in the fountain. The family was the first table by the fountain and all they did was laugh about how cute it was.. Employees turned it off immediately. ... 11.8k
which_spartacus 4y Years ago, I worked at an all-you-can-eat country buffet in South Carolina. I was a busboy. One day, I went to a table. It was a mess, as per usual. It looked to be a large family/group of families of around 12 people or so. The thing that stuck it in my memory is that whenever they had finished with what they were going to eat, they would scrape their plate and use it again. Scrape their plates... onto the floor next to their chairs. So next to each chair, there was a 6inch to 18 inch pile
CMDRAaron 4y I work at a quick serve restaurant and we have cookies by the register, and chips and shit. Well, some lady came in with her uncontrollable 5 year old son that was grabbing everything in his path. When they were paying I noticed the little boy grab a cookie off the counter and bite it through the saran wrap. The mother took it from him and tried to put it back on the stack. I told her he just had that in his mouth, you're gonna have to pay for it and at that exact moment, the shithead
blooberries1 4y My parents owned an all you can eat buffet and I was there every day of my life from 4-14. My favorite horror story is when a couple came in to eat (obviously). They loveeed the crab legs and every time my mom put some out, they took it ALL. Also, just a reminder, crab legs are expensive! Forget the other customers, they just took it and ate it all. So they're there for maybe 2 hours now and it's getting dark. They've eaten through at least a week's stock of crab legs and my mom finally decides
toomuch-freetime ® 4y Went to a buffet for my dad's birthday one Saturday night. The workers had just brought out the new tray of crab legs and there was a line forming. My family and I waited patiently in line, when the guys in front of us starting arguing because one of them was taking too long to pick which pieces he wanted. Arguing turned into shoving, and then finally one of the guys pushed ahead and stuck his hand into boiling hot water, grabbed a couple crab legs, threw them on his plate and left the line. Pretty sure
Influx_ink 4y My mother insisted on going to Hometown Buffet because she found a coupon in the newspaper. The whole buffet smelled heavily of bleach. All the food tasted like it was trying to die but the preservatives were keeping it on life support far beyond normal reason. I stuck mainly to the salad bar and fruits. I'd been using the small portion plates to make salad with veggies and a little ranch dressing. I went back for a 3rd small plate of salad and veggies. I grabbed the ladle in the ranch dressing tub and poured it over my
samanthastoat 4y One time I went with my parents and some relatives to the Paris buffet in Las Vegas. My dad was starving himself all day so he could fill up on crab legs at the buffet. So anyway, these relatives are just bitter, slow ass people who make the whole day miserable. One of them is a very old woman in a wheelchair that my dad is pushing around all day. Basically he's hot and hungry and miserable, but excited for dinner. Then right when we get to dinner, the old lady throws up all over the table. Stinky,
. 4y People use their hands to take items out. For example, at our buffet we had hard boiled eggs that people would just grab...without tongs ... 2

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