Crystal Garden — Restaurant in Town of Riverhead

You have to know how places work to enjoy them best. I've rea the negative reviews for this place and it puts my positive experience in perspective.

My advice? Lunch is great, dinner is great. Don't come too close to that boundary. I arrived here at 2:15 pm and there were no problems.

All the food was fresh. Not dry from sitting in the heat for too long. Not overcooked. I've been to buffets an hour away from dinner and all the food is old. That Isn't the case Here and I'm happy with that.

All the flavors? Very well done. Tender juicy meats, every dish had a little something unexpected and delicious (except maybe the mixed vegetables which was exactly what you expect with no frills but no problems). I like the seasonings here. Don't come without salt, pepper or your favorite hot sauce if you enjoy very spicy ethnic food. That isn't what they serve here.

Their dessert selection? What you'd expect and then some. They put effort into adding extra options like homemade rice crispies, and a twist to old favorites like banana pudding (nice big banana chunks and cookies) and yogurt (rainbow layers). I love the effort to set their food apart here.

I say go here if you like buffets. I say it's clean, simple and has a good selection despite their smaller buffet size. I think you'll enjoy everything you try.

Someone mentioned being sick with food poisoning moments after having the food. That wasn't my experience and I tried Everything. However, a quick google search informed me that it's actually not possible to experience food poisoning symptoms until at least 30 minutes after eating. I suspect that guy is saying all that in anger at being snubbed for coming at lunch and expecting dinner. I think he is correct to be offended by that behavior but that is very common with buffets. Buffets should just let that slide and let people on the edge eat...

I review alot of places and you can see under my name. I have never been treated like an animal before until coming to this establishment. Let me start from the top. The owner didn't even say hello when we walked not even a smile - just a price came from his lips and then pointed to the dinning area. I asked if we sit anywhere to which the response was wait for him-pointing to the waiter; whom also did not utter a word besides "what to drink?" no reply to our "thank you." He threw the silverware onto the table without any placement whatsoever. As soon as we finished eating our first plates the waiter brought us a small plate that read thank you with 3 fortune cookies. Not a single plate was cleaned from our table during the hour we were there. There was even a "clean" plate with fortune cookie wrappers when i turned it around. At one point I asked for refills for my family of 3 to which the waiter brought back 1 refill -just over half full - and they do walk around, but ignore you when you ask for something. Only a simple bye on the way out. This is the first time in my life I have met extremely rude Asian people-especially at a dining establishment. Please stay away from this terrible restaurant. I hate to admit but I agree with the first review posting even though I originally decided to visit the place disregarding it. I'm much better off ordering $50 worth of food from a good Chinese take-out....

I don't often write reviews, but just felt the need to say that this was the worst food at any Chinese place I have ever been to. And I've been to many! No wonder they make you pay when you walk in the door. My girlfriend and I walked in for lunch. There were maybe three other tables seated at the time. I could not believe how cold and/or dried out nearly every item was. She could not even take a bite. I tried my two mainstays, the sweet and sour chicken and boneless spare ribs, and literally almost lost a tooth. The ribs were super dry and hard, and the sweet and sour chicken was cold and shriveled down to nothing. It was horrible, and I'm not being dramatic... We got up after 5 minutes. When I complained to the cashier, he said he couldn't do anything. "The food is fresh." After I made more of a stink I got half of our money back. What a waste of $14. I'm sorry to say this about a business, but if you want edible Chinese food, or edible food in general, please do yourself a favor and...