Golden Palace Buffet — Restaurant in Livonia

Golden Palace is the third Chinese buffet to hold this location in the last five years. Golden Palace is certainly a step up from the Fire Buffet that previously was here.

(First Visit) I visited on a Wednesday night. The restaurant has quite a feel occupied tables. The owners have returned some of the Chinese architectural elements, which I do like to see. The staff was friendly and attentive.

Now let's talk about the food. I started off with a plate of sushi and some soup. The sushi was okay. I would have liked to see a bit more variety, and I would have liked to see sushi that hadn't been out as long as it had been. Some of the sushi had a dry, harder, rice in the outside while the interior rice was fine. This only happens if the sushi has been sitting out for awhile. I'll chock this up to a weekday evening and I believe a prime time dining evening like a Friday or Saturday evening would be better. The wonton soup was good, no complaints there. I do wish they had larger bowls. After that I tried a number of dishes. The General Tsos chicken was fair. The fried squid was nice, though the coating was thicker and more akin to an onion ring than I'd expect to find in most Chinese cooking. The chicken with broccoli was just okay. I found the broccoli to be mushy and the chicken to be a little overcooked. Many of the dishes like pepper steak, or pork with mushrooms had only a little meat in them. Again, middle of the week, and other guests probably fished out most of the meat already... The dishes were tasty though. I saw signs for dishes like Mapo Tofu, but they weren't available when I was there. I was happy to see that they offered some of the classic true Chinese dishes and not just the Americanized Chinese standards. It's a shame that wasn't available when I was there.

Now, on to the price and value. My visit for dinner and a soda, was $28. Yes, food prices have gone up. Yes there is inflation. Yes they do offer a large variety of food. Yes they offer crab legs, which I never like to see just sitting in a tub of water on a buffet. I just didn't find the value vs the cost though. I want to find it though. I want to come back on a Friday or Saturday evening, or a Sunday lunch when they're at their peak. I'm hoping to see their best dishes at their best quality. If I see that, and get that, then yeah it's worth it. Maybe I was there on an off night... Not sure. So, for now, 3 stars. Three stars is good. It's a passing grade. They didn't wow me, but I will be going back to try them again.

(Second Visit) I went on a Sunday. The food was definitely better. The broccoli was crisp. The meat to veggies ratio was what it ought to. The sushi was fresh, though they had less variety than they had on my first visit.. a few things I was disappointed by though. 1. The crab legs: while there were enough of them to not be sitting in water for hours, I found them to be overly salty. The sweetness of crab meat was lost to the saltiness... 2. The "Mapo Tofu": Mapo Tofu is supposed to be a spicy dish that is loaded with flavor. What they had here was a pale excuse for that famed Chinese dish. My local Chinese takeout place does a better job. Heck the package of Mapo Tofu sauce I can buy at the grocery store is better. 3. The walnut shrimp: walnut shrimp has a light crispy egg white and starch, deep fried coating. It is then lightly coated in a sweetened mayo based sauce. It's a hard dish to pull off for a buffet. Most buffets that do use a denser batter and less mayo in the sauce. The walnut shrimp here.. the mayo sauce had broken. The oil sat in a pool at the bottom and had caused the light coating to slough off the shrimp and become an oil soaked mess. It still tasted good though. I'll give them that. 4. The service was lacking this time... When I go to a buffet it's a leisurely meal for me. I bring a book, or my kindle, and I eat and read. So I'm there for awhile. On my first visit was constantly asked if I needed a refill on my drink. I sat for an hour with an empty glass, while I had a plate of food...

Update to Previous Review:

This serves as a follow-up to my prior critique regarding the blatantly unwelcoming behavior of a specific waitress at this establishment. Months ago, I highlighted her hostile demeanor—snide remarks, glaring stares, and overt disdain directed at patrons who dared to order more crab legs. Ownership responded by dismissing these concerns, so I reluctantly gave this restaurant another chance. Unsurprisingly, nothing has changed.

Let me be unequivocally clear: This is not about "all staff." It is about one individual whose contempt for customers is palpable. Her attitude deteriorates further with each additional order of crab legs, culminating in passive-aggressive comments, audible muttering in her native language (clearly about patrons), and a demeanor that screams resentment. This is not speculation—it was openly discussed by multiple families in our section, all of whom experienced the same treatment.

Ownership’s failure to address this issue is staggering. If you cannot fulfill the "all-you-can-eat" promise without belittling customers, stop offering it. Do not take patrons’ hard-earned money only to subject them to hostility and judgment. I will not tolerate being shamed for ordering menu items I’ve paid for, nor will I support a business that enables such unprofessionalism.

To potential customers: Proceed with caution. Observe how this server’s tone shifts as you order more. To ownership: You know exactly who this is. Either train your staff to respect patrons or remove the menu items you clearly resent serving. Until then, my money—and that of countless others—will go to establishments that value their clientele.

This pattern-documented in past reviews and ongoing today-reflects a systemic failure. I will not spend another dollar where staff are permitted to mock, judge, or alienate guests. Potential patrons: Proceed with caution. Observe how quickly service sours once you dare to order "too much." Until ownership prioritizes accountability over excuses, take your money elsewhere-to establishments that value customers rather than...

We went here to celebrate my stepdad’s 70th birthday because he wanted the all you could eat crab legs. Do NOT waste your money on the crab legs. They were cold, dripping with cold water, barely had any meat in them, and were pretty much flavorless. Be aware that even if only one person wants all you can eat crab legs EVERYONE at the table gets charged for the all you can eat crab legs, regardless if they want them or eat them. There were 10 people in our party and they gave us two shell crackers. With only two crackers, the cold meat simply became even colder. I had to ask for more and they gave them to me but explained that unfortunately people steal them. We had to ask a few times for more napkins. This is a must if eating crab from the shell. We were in a back room, which was fine; however, the tables had so little space between them that after they seated the table behind us the backs of their chairs touched ours. If you wanted out everyone at the table had to slide sideways and get out of their chair and push them in. The sushi did not look fresh at all. Too scary looking to try. The three food items that were good were the hibachi grill, the chicken on a stick, and the white rice. Not worth the money at all. The floors were disgustingly covered with grease and you felt like you were going to slip and fall at any moment. Not ideal for a buffet style restaurant. The women’s bathroom door handle was broken. The large bathroom stall toilet did not work/flush, yet people kept using it. The positive was that the workers were polite. Would we possibly give them a second chance, maybe, but only for the buffet items, which includes the hibachi grill; however, it is doubtful and would only do so if we couldn’t find anything else. Hopefully other people will have a better experience, but it definitely was not worth $400+ for us to eat and not have quality food, clean floors, and maintained facilities. This place needs a deep cleaning of their floors to remove the grease and some simple maintenance. We read several positive reviews before going, but our experience fell very short...