Garden Court — Restaurant in Las Vegas

Stayed at Main Street Station weekend of Aug 24, 2019. Will write a separate review, but it's a great low-key place. This review is for Prime Rib/Scampi buffet of Aug 24th. Arrive about 615pm and were seated by 630pm. Not bad at all. Table attendant was great, and had our beverages very quickly. Room is very nice looking with intricate ceiling, clean tile floor, clean buffet and booths and tables. Overall, I really liked the staff and the room.

My only issue this night was with the features of the Prime Rib and Scampi. Prime Rib line had about 4-5 people in it, not too bad. The carver did not really know how to work her station however, took her very long to carve up servings and knife work took her a long time. There was some lukewarm au jus, and a couple of different horseradish sauces if you choose nearby. The meat quality was not great this night, the cut was not very warm, it wasn't carved well and it was rubbery. Prime Rib does have some fat on it, but my cuts were over-the-top fatty and the meat just was not cooked long enough, it was cool and tough to chew by the time I was eating it. It needed more time cooking, more seasoning, more rest time, and a carver who knows the skill a bit more.

The scampi container was near empty on my trips, by the time I got there it was an unappealing bin of a couple of fairly small shrimp floating in butter and garlic soup bin. Not appetizing at all, and not what I would call a "scampi feature", it was just a bin of near empty shrimp covered in yellow sauce. Very unattractive and disheartening presentation even for a buffet. If its "featured" on the dining card then it should be "featured" at the buffet and not just there and forgotten, in my opinion.

My second plate through I tried the Mexican and Asian/Hawaiian options on the rear side buffet line which were much better than the featured items. The enchiladas, tacitos, chow mein and Hawaiian specialties were good to great for buffet food.

I sampled two different pies for desert, one the lime pie. The filling was good, could have used a bit more "tart" lime flavor, but it was good. The crust was good, very slightly under-baked on bottom, but flaky and was a real pie crust. I also sampled a slice of cheesecake which was perfectly fine.

I finished the deserts with a couple of cups of black coffee, which was hot, fresh, and tasted great.

Overall I like the buffet, I like the room, the service, and layout. But I read the placards all day that were featuring Prime Rib and Scampi. The features of the night were poor to disappointing the night I was there. As stated above, if it's "featured" then I think it should be the stand out item, and these just were not the night I was there. They were there, but were certainly nothing to advertise and set expectations on.

I do realize this buffet is generally in the "budget" buffet category and I'm certainly not expecting steak house quality items. But I do feel even for a lower cost buffet these could have been done better.

It is a place I would try again. Once again: clean, attractive, friendly staff, good options all around. I think I was just there on an off hour or night, and the two features I was looking forward to did not live up to...

Listen up, Vegas buffet warriors, Garden Court Buffet at Main Street Station is a wild ride, and I’m tossing it 5 stars for three shining beacons in a sea of meh: the omelette station, the carving station, and the dessert bar. The rest? Oh boy, it’s like they invited every cuisine in the world to a party and forgot to season the invites. I tried a bit of everything—and I mean EVERYTHING—because the spread is so massive it could have its own zip code. But most of it? Bland as a tax form. Some dishes were edible but tasted like they were cooked by a robot with no taste buds, and others were straight-up “why is this allowed to exist?” unappetizing mush. Soggy textures, zero flavor—my taste buds were staging a protest. BUT HOLD UP. The omelette station? Insert chef’s kiss so big it blocks the sun. These omelettes were so mind-blowingly good, my fat ass waddled back THREE times, piling on every topping like I was building a breakfast empire. I’m still dreaming about that fluffy, cheesy perfection. Tip those omelette wizards—they’re out here saving lives! The carving station? Solid gold. Prime rib, ham, grilled chicken, sausage links, smoked sausage—all juicy, flavorful, and carved with love. It’s like the meats were whispering, “We got you, fam.” Then, the dessert bar—holy sugar rush, Batman! Cakes, pies, every flavor you can dream of, stacked like a dessert skyscraper. I lost count of my slices (let’s just say if I was at a blackjack table, my plate count would’ve hit 21 for sure). The veggies and sides? Don’t bother. They’re straight outta a can, dumped with zero care—green beans so sad they need therapy. I took tiny bites just to confirm they were as bad as they looked, and spoiler: they were. Save your plate space and stomach real estate for the omelettes, meats, and desserts. Load up, tip the omelette crew, and waddle out happy. Garden Court, you’re a hot mess, but those three stations make you a 5-star chaotic...

Place used to have some of the best food around in Vegas, however they got rid of the Chinese station (it's completely sectioned off!), they switched mashed potatoes to instant, got rid of half the deserts, and much of the selection. The buffet concept is NOT dead, it's a great concept but whoever owns this establishment is letting it go and only focused on the bottom line. They charge $26 for lunch (then have the balls to ask for a tip on top). It used to be $13 just a few years ago and the quality was FAR better. From what I have read it sounds like the management is intentionally letting this place fail so they can go and claim it was because of COVID and the death of the "buffet concept" which is totally false. It doesn't cost that much to just use real potatoes or add guacamole to the taco bar. Instead they just removed sections and it makes everything look cheap. It's embarrassing. I really used to love this place so it is particularly sad to me.

They seem to spend more on having a bunch of servers doing almost nothing but controlling what table you sit at while the quality of food suffers. It is a management disaster and I hope the owner of Boyd casinos sees this because I love this casino. It's their last buffet in Vegas but they really do not seem to care about its survival. If they think the buffet is bad for their bottom line, they will realize (hopefully soon enough) that people like me who do change the casino they go to based on the buffet offering, will be lost to competitors. Look at the full...