Same. Even though I go light on naan and rice, it’s strictly a lazy Sunday afternoon experience for me, just in case!
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When Indian foods were new to me about 30 years ago, an Aussie friend with an Indian wife took me to a buffet and showed me the ropes and explained stuff. He and I were coworkers and we’d take lunch out fairly often and at least twice a month I’d say “let’s get Indian”.
It was like a culinary wonderland to me, being able to try everything they had available at the one, then trying another with different styles and dishes, etc., and then another, and all so new to me then. I kept thinking, “Why haven’t I tried this before?”
Yowza. There’s nowhere to go but down after this… That looks amazing and for $75pp?
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As I get older, I find I cannot adequately take advantage of an AYCE place to a degree that makes it worthwhile. My exception to this rule is Rei Do Gado in San Diego. We have been dinner guests there for several years now. For $60 (not including beverages), you get the never ending parade of meats, plus the hot and cold buffets. Even the Brazilian place in my town now is pay by the weight of each plate you take (which, to be fair, is generally more than enough). I can’t express how much I look forward to our yearly visit. I found it to be far better than Fogo de Chao (to be fair, I’ve only been to the Boston one). The meats were fresher and more likely to have a range of doneness to choose from.
For a while, we had an AYCE sushi place we used to be able to walk to for about $25/person. It closed and turned into a dumpling/noodle place. AYCE sushi is a young person’s game. The rice just gets on top of me now.
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I’d love to know where. We were in JH last week and couldn’t find Indian food we wanted to eat.
There was Jackson Diner, still going, but I haven’t eaten there in 20 years probably, and a small place on the road behind (37th Ave).
The rest were Nepali, Tibetan, or Bangladeshi.
We concluded that for Indian food we likely need to venture to Jersey City or Edison next time, which is unfortunately twice or more the distance from Manhattan.
We had a great Indian place near one of my offices office that did a really good buffet.
If we were planning to eat in, it could only ever be on a Friday, when it was okay to be in a food coma the rest of the afternoon.
However they also did a takeout box, which was a great deal in itself. You could fill up a large, divided, circular container from the buffet, and they’d give you fresh naan and rice to go separately. Many of my younger colleagues would strategically fill the box to provide both lunch and dinner for the bargain price of the buffet — better value and more productivity than stuffing their faces at a single meal 
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The Ritz in Philly used to have a ridiculous Sunday brunch buffet that we’d splurge on every so often.
In nyc, Churrascaria Plataforma for rodizio and the “salad” bar which is so much more than that.
In Turkey, every hotel breakfast buffet seemed like a bonanza.
“Five star” hotel buffets in India are a whole thing. Pretty fantastic in quality, range, and value for what’s on offer if you pick the right ones.
Sadly, it’s been years since I can do “justice” to anything AYCE, so I don’t seek them out, or even try to get “value for money” when I find myself at one.
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mccabes, manning nc
in photo:
fried chicken
purlau
hash
pulled pork
collard greens
hushpuppies
cole slaw
not in photo:
string beans with ham hock
candied yams
cabbage
sweet tea
price: $15
I feel blessed that I don’t like their hushpuppies as I’ve been known to eat two plates of them before dinner. everything else is wonderful
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<usd$150 all in for the both of us. All you can eat. All you can drink. Caveat: 3 hour time limit. 
Unbelievable meal. Airfare at the time was about $750 r/t. Chengdu a totally enjoyable town, highly recommended a visit.
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I just checked and my pre-Covid go-to, Indian Taj, is now closed. Huge bummer. My other old favorite, Mumbai Grill, closed shortly before we left Queens and was replaced by a very mediocre joint that also quickly closed - I kept hoping they’d reopen elsewhere but no such luck.
Anyway, I haven’t been back to the neighborhood since before Covid and sadly, it looks like most of the Indian places on the strip are now gone. I have never been a big fan of Jackson Diner, so I honestly have no idea where to find good Indian food there now. Feels weird.
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