Red Palace Valley View — Restaurant in Roanoke

I rarely write reviews on restaurants unless they just knock my socks off or after eating I feel like I should punch myself in the face...in this case, a good head bashing against a brick wall would fit the bill! Keep in mind I am very particular about Chinese food buffets...so if you don't mind slamming down any old pile of mystery meat, then my opinions won't mean much. The decor was very nice, not even coming close to matching with the quality of the food. Every dish with beef in it was so overcooked I almost couldn't eat it. The chicken dishes were extremely bland and tasted like they all came out of the same soup pot. Kung Pao and General Tso are suppose to have some spice to it right? I think a 2 year old could eat those dishes and not blink an eye! Speaking of soup, even the egg drop soup tasted burnt! And speaking of chicken, this was the first buffet I ever ate at that did not have Chicken & Broccoli. They did have an assortment of fried foods including fried shrimp and Sweet & Sour Chicken. I thought to myself there is no way you can mess that up. But, I have to admit that the Red Palace cooks must all have PhD's because they have figured a way to do just that! Oh...they say you should always find at least 1 positive thing to say about anything...I have to admit the tapioca pudding wasn't too bad... Overall, it was an experience that can only be summed up in one word: ...

$11.95 (dinner, excluding tax and tip) for a moderate sized selection of great food!

When I first walked into this restaurant I thought, this place had to offer great food but seemed expensive. The food was definitely great and the prices were just right. I got seated to a table where one of the staff members was still sweeping the ground under my table. At least the restaurant was trying to impress me in the sanitation department. Speaking of staff, they spoke English well so that was a bonus point for them. The place itself was pretty clean. I didn't see or notice any health concerns. There was not even random decorations to fill empty spaces. Overall, this place felt tidy and had a consistent theme to boost its atmosphere. The colors in this restaurant played nicely together. Food labels above items were labeled correctly as well.

This buffet did not use the standard red Coca-cola cups but a bit more fancier Coca-cola cups! Food selection was great! There were enough choices to make me feel I had choices but was not overwhelmed. The food never looked dry in the trays while waiting to be eaten. And when they were eaten, they did not fail. Everything I had tasted fresh and well cooked. I wanted to force myself to eat more after I ate too much. The food was tasty for sure.

Staff was standard. Nothing too outstanding or bad about them. My waiter was pretty happy though so...

My family and I have been regular customers for some years now, and the food and service have been top notch the whole time. The staff always knew who we were, what we wanted to drink before we even told them, and were always sweet to our kids. But this one particular time we dined there, our server went behind myself and my husband's back and asked our 8 year old (while he was getting his food at the buffet) if he was really 8...really? Who does that? When my son said yes, he replied, "oh, ok." and walked away. So not only was this man calling me and my husband liars, he had the audacity to ask my son anything behind our backs which is a big no no. I don't need to lie about how old my kids are just to save $2! The fact that we ate there at least once a week should've suggested that we are ok in the money department, and don't have to lie to save money. I was very angry and disappointed that they don't value their regular customers who have spent a fortune in their reataurant better than that. We have not been back since that day and plan to never return...