Golden Corral Buffet & Grill — Restaurant in Jacksonville

I grew up coming to this GC. Haven't been in years, finally introduced my girls to the universality of eating at one while in Tucson. Came back to NC and we were all jonesing for some GC comfort food. Man, what a disappointment. First, the remodel is awful. The stark white and black, the presentation of the food, the lack of cozy and welcome atmosphere is missed. The building itself is drab, falling apart, and unclean. All but 1 toilet was a "hover" situation. Toilet paper, paper towels were strewn everywhere. We came for lunch, and they weren't short staffed. There is no excuse for the inattentiveness. Most of the plates and bowls I picked up were dirty, water sitting in them. A patron next to me at the salad line had to get to a fourth bowl before finding a clean one. Speaking of salad, ALL of the produce looked wilted, browned, mushy, slimy, or turned. I rarely get to have a salad and I couldn't trust eating one today. The famous yeast rolls were HARD!! Flavor was spot on like always but like chewing leather. The quality and selection of the remainder of what was offered is not what I have had in the past, even 6 months ago at another location. Feeling like we got spoiled there, when I thought is was like that everywhere. Macaroni and cheese is still the best thing there. The ONLY bright spots to our late afternoon lunch were our servers. Cindy got us started, but she left during our meal, and Lori took over. To say Lori hustles is an understatement. She came over so often to check on us, remove plates, fill drinks I thought it was almost too much attention. Tables that emptied she cleared, cleaned, and set within record time. She was earnest, sweet, and genuine. Everything you want when someone is taking care of you at a restaurant. Breaks my heart that a table of 8 marines next to us left without leaving her a single dime for a tip. She totally earned not just a tip but a 20% tip. Shame on you Mr. Pinks. I really hope this location gets it's act together before the summer...

To be completely honest and up front I believe that my experience exceeded my expectations. Our waitress Terri was extremely professional and came to our table to offer us refills before we even realized that we needed them. I noticed that the food was constantly being refilled and the prices were extremely cheap. The bathrooms and plates and all around buffet was extremely clean. The cleanliness had exceeded our expectations and had met the Covid guidelines, if not exceeded those as well. The desserts were exceptional and so was the all-around food. It may need a few more vegetarian, vegan and dietary options though. My cousin who is a vegetarian and is lactose intolerant didn’t have many options while eating here but the things that she did have were in her words, “exquisite”. The steak was absolutely phenomenal and the review I read saying otherwise was written by a person with no taste. The steak may have been the tiniest bit fatty but otherwise was extremely good, It was cooked in front of us so we were able to watch him make it fresh and we were able to pick how it would be cooked (with sauces and the tender feel). It was extremely juicy, smelled amazing, and looked very appealing. In conclusion my visit to the Golden corral buffet and in Jacksonville North Carolina was absolutely phenomenal. The food was delicious and so was the service. My waitress Terri was extremely professional, kind, and kid friendly. I suggest asking for Terri if you ever come to this golden corral. I’m extremely happy I went with my family because we all had an amazing time. I am extremely impressed with how we were treated and our all around service, I am also extremely hungry right now after talking about this good food. We will definitely be coming again....

My sister in law, her husband and mine, father in law, and I, went to this restaurant tonight and had one of the worst experiences we have ever had here. Upon our arrival, my sister in law was over charged by at least $10, then went to try to correct it and they refused because she had also bought a rubber ducky on the same ticket. Then, my father in law got his coffee, but it took the server, who was working a graduation party in one room and the side room we were in, ALONE, another 10 mins, if not longer to get my sister in law a cup of coffee. Then, my husband, who normally drinks like 3 glasses of soda before he is done with the first plate of food, only got 2 refills, but it took 15 mins for him to get the second refill. My sister in law, who normally gets 4 cups of coffee, but couldn't because again, the waitress was no where to be found. Although, the worst thing of all is, the BBQ chicken was still bloody on the inside. The manager that was confronted about this insisted that it was cooked then grilled, but no chicken cooked that way still has blood on the bone and pink throughout. The manager admitted that they have had many complaints on how the BBQ chicken is cooked arguing with my sister in law, who also works in food services at Denny's in West Virginia. I'm posting the pictures that were taken below, but it was so disgusting that it made my sister in law nauseous and she couldn't...