Golden Dragon Buffet — Restaurant in Springdale

So this is a tough one for me to score. I'm not a fan of buffet style restaurants. I prefer ordering off a menu and being waited on. However, my 92-year old relative only eats at buffets. So lately, I've sampled many buffets in northwest Arkansas.

For a buffet style restaurant, a four star rating is the highest I give out. The Golden Dragon staff honored my request to be seated close to the buffet tables. Staff was friendly and courteous despite the late hour and special seating request.

We arrived at 8 pm on Sunday night. . Generally a big no-no for buffets, because foods tends to be stale, so close to closing. Not so here. Nice variety of Chinese dishes. Food was fresh. Buffett tables and restaurant was clean.

The food is fresh because, it is served in nice white serving dishes under warming lamps, rather than industrial size metal steam trays.

I had fried, breaded crab chunks that were very flavorful. (Think potato wedges for size.) Cheese wonton with sweet and sour sauce which was fine. Lo mein that was very tasty. Mushrooms in a brown sauce that had great flavor.

I also had their made-to-order grill. It was very flavorful, and tasty. I chose, chicken, noodles, onions, cabbage, mushrooms, broccoli, and an egg. I requested mine to be a little spicy. The cook sauteed everything perfectly, veggies were still a little crunchy and chicken was tender. It had just a little heat, so that was great too. A little surprising was the fact the egg was fried separately and placed on the side. I had expected it to be mixed in, but no big deal. I cut it up and ate it with the rest. While I didn't try them, I also had the choice of beef and shrimp.

While I didn't eat any dessert, they offered the usual Chinese restaurant fare, and serve yourself, hand dipped ice cream.

Just to be clear, the buffet offers many choices. I'm not a big eater, so I sampled only a few to leave room for the grill.

My relatives sampled many dishes and said it was very good. Even the picky eater in the group (which isn't me) found plenty of food to eat...

I told myself if I was still thinking about my experience at this establishment in a month I would write a review. It’s been a month and I’m still shocked by not only the food but the service and disrespect displayed on my visit. Being someone in the restaurant industry for a decade I love a good buffet and can appreciate/ understand how a buffet “works”. In no exaggeration I mean it when I say I have never been treated so poorly. My first plate of food was rice noodles and a couple different chickens. I was really unhappy with the quality of everything except the rice. I set my plate aside and for my 2nd plate I got 3 new items. I was not happy to find all three items cold but I was pleased with the taste of the cheese wonton, I saw a man bring a fresh order of beef and broccoli out and with who I am I decided to give this place the benefit of the doubt. Maybe it was slow, maybe they are fixing to change over to dinner, I am an empath and will always make excuses for people. My 3rd plate was beef and broccoli that was “too fresh” it needed to either be steamed longer or sit under on the bar another couple hours before indulging. At this point I asked for the manager and I won’t get into specifics but she was really rude, like I said being in the restaurant business I know when someone is displaying concern and a solution and when someone is just being rude. I wasn’t even asking for a refund I explained I’m not that type of person but maybe this can be a learning experience for you and your crew. She waved me out laughing. I paid full price for two buffets and left a decent tip. I’m 25 years old and I have had customers scream in my face over something much more minor then the problems I was having, I wasn’t handled with the same professionalism I displayed and I 10/10 do NOT recommend this...

The soup, noodles, and fried rice were the only items that were hot. Most items from the egg/spring rolls were way over cooked and dry. The snow crab was served cold with melted margarine. No clarified butter available. Children were supervising younger children at the hot, cold, sushi bar and desserts. I witnessed one child who was maybe 7 lick the ice cream scooper repeatedly. I notifed one of the employees that the entire utility holder with the water in it was contaminated. Cross contamination was occurring everywhere from stirring multiple buffet items with the same utensil to using the same tongs to pick up raw beef, chicken, shrimp, and vegetables to put on the grill. If you have food allergies, none of the food there would be safe. Last but absolutely not least, the ladies' restroom was filthy. The handicapped bars appeared to be showing rust spots, but upon further inspection, they were just spots of brown sludge. Floor to ceiling issues with lack of maintenance and cleaning. After seeing all that, we didn't eat another thing. Went to the cashier, and for the first time, someone asked how everything was? I proceeded to share my thoughts and observations. After he had already run my card, the young man said he would get the "person" in charge. We stood there for 15 minutes, and no one returned to the cashiers desk. We decided to use this forum to warn others of the conditions at this restaurant. I would give zero stars if was an option. Eat here at your own risk. Who and when is this place ever getting inspected by the state? I witnessed many critical issues without ever leaving the customer area. I can't imagine it improved behind the...