Many hotels and restaurants in Sri Lanka feature buffets for all meals, with the Sunday Buffet Lunch (or Brunch) being especially popular. By request, here are our suggestions for buffet behaviour so you get the best value for your rupees.
Confronted with an amazing array of good things to eat, the novice buffet customer will “go for it” with a vengeance: piling as much as possible on the plate. Don’t be ashamed, we’ve all done that, sometimes with gut-wrenching results. But better buffet behaviour is advisable in order to benefit properly from a buffet spread.
It’s difficult to retain decorum when, for one known price, you can “eat all you want.” Our advice is to take a deep breath before you plunge in…and exercise a little restraint. These ten tips will help you make the most of the buffet experience.
- Check the price first. Is it Nett? In Sri Lanka, that means government tax and service charge are included. If not, you’ll have to budget for government tax and 10% service charge on top of the food price
- Take a leisurely stroll (without a plate in your hand) the length of the buffet counters, from salads to desserts, before you start tucking in so you can decide what you really want.
- Eschew soup; it will fill the tummy space that you’ll need for more exciting items. And fight the temptation of having those delicious bread rolls (and butter).
- Start with a starter. Choose the daintiest items, not all of them: such as a couple of prawns, some sashimi, a quail egg topped with caviar, a touch of salad. Make your plate look beautiful.
- Eat slowly so you digest everything calmly. Why hurry? The buffet’s not going to close without warning.
- Return to the counter, take a fresh plate, and consider your next course carefully: some fish, smoked meat, spinach roulade? Just a small sample is enough.
- Pause before your next sortie: the main event. Take a fresh plate and concentrate on what you really want to eat instead of piling your plate with all that’s on offer, making an unappetising mess. Don’t mix seafood or fish with meat. Limit your portions of vegetables.
- Passionate about desserts? So leave enough space for them, or eat dessert first.
- If you’re having the buffet because it’s inexpensive, do not order wine. Sri Lankan restaurants charge a high mark-up on wines (which are already highly taxed) and a bottle will probably cost more than the buffet.
- Even though you’ve served yourself, remember the staff. Tip generously from your heart in cash, even if the price is nett.
