Panda Buffet — Restaurant in Worcester

📍 Location & Atmosphere Panda Buffet brings back the nostalgic charm of the classic “Super Chinese Buffet” experience many locals remember. During our visit on a Saturday afternoon around 2:30 PM, the restaurant was clearly popular—there was a line out the door. Thankfully, the wait time was short (approximately 10 minutes), and the staff managed the flow efficiently. The interior is spacious with plenty of seating that wraps around the restaurant, and there’s even a small bar area, which adds a nice touch.

🍽️ Food & Drinks The buffet operates in a traditional self-serve style: guests are seated, order drinks from a server, and then are free to explore the food stations at their own pace. For $15 at lunchtime, the price point is reasonable and reflects the value offering.

The food quality is a mixed bag. Some basic items—like rice and a few proteins—lacked seasoning and flavor. Surprisingly, the sushi and seafood stood out as decent options, though most of the sushi rolls are filled with cream cheese and a bit of sauce, nothing too complex or adventurous. The dessert selection was also enjoyable.

It’s worth noting that certain items, like crawfish, are only available during dinner service, so lunchtime visitors won’t find the full range of options. While the restaurant has plenty of seating, the actual variety of food is somewhat limited, with one main circular buffet station for entrees and a smaller dessert and fruit section.

👨‍🍳 Service & Hospitality Service was efficient, with staff promptly seating guests and clearing plates. While the service wasn’t especially personal, it suited the casual, fast-paced buffet environment.

💡 Unique Selling Point Panda Buffet’s appeal lies in its nostalgic atmosphere and affordable pricing, making it a solid choice for those seeking a casual, budget-friendly...

Me and my boyfriend ate here today, and I was not impressed. The food looked good when we first walked in, and it smelled good, but looks and smells are often quite deceiving. The food's quality was rather lackluster, and disappointing, most of it was too dry, or too salty. We were expecting a pleasant experience, but what we walked away with was regret in a deep desire to have stayed home and ordered from some place like Lucky Gourmet instead. The final bill was about $60 including the tip, which is a bit steep when we could have saved money just ordering out. This place used to be Zorba's tavern, which was one of our favorite restaurants, and we were very sad when it closed. That being said, we held out hope that this place would become our new favorite restaurant, but our hopes were sadly dashed upon the rocks. The staff seemed to struggle with the simplest of drink orders. I ordered an old fashioned and my boyfriend ordered a Shirley Temple. Both are very simple drinks to make. A Shirley Temple is just sprite and cherry juice... And I'm 100% sure they have that at the bar. They gave him a glass of Pepsi instead. When we asked why the bartender didn't know how to make a Shirley Temple, their response was he was 15. I'm no expert on the laws regarding bartenders in Massachusetts, but I have a feeling 15 is too young to be a bartender. I assume the bare minimum is 18. I do not recommend eating here unless you're really hungry, want subpar Chinese food, and don't really have any...

It looks amazing, but they didn’t deliver on food and service. The service was not great. We got settled and waited for someone to ask us what we wanted to drink. We were able to get food and started eating before we got a drink. And we had to wait for the bill. The food was not flavorful. And there was not a lot of offerings because the sushi station half empty was taken up space that could have been used for more selections. I went on a Saturday afternoon during lunch prices and also got to see dinner switched over. I was seated next to the buffet itself and facing towards the kitchen area, and could see the entrance to the restroom. I used the restroom it was clean although no hand soap. They did have sanitizer next to the sushi station. Now saying that I watched a worker wear gloves to go to the bathroom and had the same gloves on after, and still served the food to the buffet. After that my wife and I stopped eating, paid our bill and left. I seen mixed reviews about them and still went still tried them. Super disappointed...