China House Buffet — Restaurant in Saint Charles

Went here tonight with my wife and toddler and for the first time in my life I got up and walked out if the restaurant without paying. We had visited this restaurant many times in the past when we lived close to this location, and though the food was never anything to boast about, (what Chinese buffet really is) it was never bad enough that I wouldn't return. I'm not a picky person, even if the food is just hovering above edible, I'm generally not too dissatisfied. Anyway, for starters, I like to get my sauces first and then get my plate. First complaint, fried shrimp was plentiful, but couldn't find cocktail sauce after about 3 or four passes up and down the isles. Whatever, got ketchup and my sweet and sour sauce. Second, no egg rolls, and not just empty, like non existent, there were garlic flavored spring rolls, which I'm still trying to get the flavor out of my mouth. Third, crab Rangoon was awful, pulled a piece a part and the filling was dried out and looked more like blue cheese crumbles than cream cheese or whatever goes in them. Lo mein tasted like plastic, no joking, like a plastic wrapper had melted in it and coated the noodles, all the types of chicken I put in my plate had that 3 hour old texture, and I'll reheat my Chinese and eat it later so it's not like I'm that picky, but I'm not eating leftovers at a restaurant. And so for the first time ever, I was so displeased with a meal that I told my wife to take our son to the car, I stood up a minute later and made my way to the exit, mind you our plates had barely been touched other than a few bites of rice, and as i was leaving the waitress stopped me to ask if we were done, and i simply said we're not paying for this, it was awful, and left. I obviously will never return, and suggest you stay...

I ordered take out as a walk-in customer here once a few years ago and the general tso chicken was soggy, sweet, and room temperature. I stopped in today between work events and gave them another chance. Their sign advertises lunch buffet prices and times (and at the bottom of the sign it says Sunday is all day dinner price, my mistake!). At least half of their food heating mechanisms are set too low or seem not to work at all, and aside from items that seemed to have a high turn over rate the items offered looked dried out and ancient (especially the fried food section and the sushi bar). I tried the baked chicken (it was mostly warm with a few cool pieces I didn't eat), the broccoli from both the beef and chicken broccoli dishes (the meat looked old and leathery but the broc looked okay; the sauce was akin to cafeteria thanksgiving gravy with a weird after flavor), the lo mein (overcooked and with an odd chicken gravylike flavor to the sauce), two breaded chickens in sauce reminiscent of orange chicken (both were cold/cool and SOGGY), the general tso chicken (warm but soggy), the mushrooms (decent, but again with that weird thanksgiving gravy flavored sauce), and the spare ribs (the meat was tough and powdery as if the ribs were from a senior citizen animal and then dehydrated). I spit the cold and bad food into napkins and just ate the baked chicken and mushrooms and veggies. Paid around $12 for a lot of flavor disappointment. I DO NOT recommend this place.

Also, their bathroom was really dirty, and had a softsoap hand dispenser labeled as some clear handsoap but containing that goopy industrial pink handsoap used by grade schools in the 80s. Go...

Stopped by on a fast trip to store. Only 10:30 a.m. but OPEN sign eas lit up in red so I ran in to see if actually open. Still not sure if was an accident. I was told yes, open....but barely any food on the buffet. I had some fresh fruit and lo mein. Asked for hot tea and glass of water, but didn't get tea until I'd eaten 1st plate and had went up to buffet tables again and filled my plate with a couple new items that had been added. Drank about 1/4 of pot of hot tea, glass of water, and had 6 pcs of cantaloupe, small bowl of egg drop soup, 2 crab rangoons, small scoop of lo mein, and that was it. I was full so that was fine. Then couldn't find single employee around to ask for bill so went to front to wait. Finally a boy came up, but he had to go find out where ticket was. Girl walked up but though looking at me she was speaking in Chinese (?), so had no clue what she was saying. Boy came back still clueless but handed me a fortune cookie. Finally handed girl a $20. Figured buffet was $10.59 and tea $3.29. I got $6 and some change back so with tax I think I figured prices close. Nice and left $3 tip at table. No matter how bad this service was there were exceptions to consider. So still keeping it's stars! Food that was available was yummy!!!

Food was delicious. But wish they would provide a knife, spoon and fork instead of just a fork. Even back with the buffet foods, no spoons are provided to use with the soups. Hard to eat Egg Drop Soup with a fork.

Also, although our waters were refilled, the actual drinks were not. However, was charged for free refillable drinks. It would also be nice if they had more than 3 dishes...