Le Buffet (Parisian Macao)

Okay, I realize there are more interesting things to eat in Macao other than a hotel buffet, but really, how could I resist?  Unlike the one in the Paris resort in Vegas, Le Buffet in the Parisian seems to focus on seafood a whole lot more than French cuisine.  I guess it suits the Asian clientele...  Whatever the case, we were already staying at the Parisian and without transportation for the night, we decided to take it easy and do the convenient thing by walking downstairs for food.

As per usual, I skipped the salads and went straight for some seafood including Crab Legs, Conch and Clams.  Served cold, the conch was sweet and a bit seafoody.  Texturally, I thought they were just right being chewy while still tender.  As for the crab legs, they were a bit scrawny, but the meat was not overdone.  They were also sweet with some natural saltiness.  The clams were served hot thought, cooked in a sake broth that was flavourful with the alcohol completely cooked down.  Hence, the natural sweetness of the clam juice as well as the brininess came through.  The clams themselves were buttery and plump.

The seafood continued with large Shrimp and Lobster being cooked on the flattop.  They were basted in garlic butter and the aromatics were intoxicating.  I found the lobsters overdone though. Right next to it, I tried some of the cooked items that consisted of Stewed Ham Hocks, Braised Chicken with cream sauce, Slow Cooked Salmon in dill sauce, Sauteed Green Beans and Potatoes.  Of the bunch, I was most impressed with the salmon as it was soft and moist, despite sitting in a chaffing tray.  The sauce was buttery with only a touch of dill.  We found the chicken to be lackluster though as it wasn't interesting.  At least it wasn't overdone.  I also like the stewed pork as it was purposefully salty and super tender.

There was a requisite Sushi station consisting of Nigiri, Maki Sushi and Sashimi.  As expected, the sushi rice was rather dry and chewy, but it wasn't too bad.  The fish on top was a bit inconsistent.  I found the red tuna to be the best as it wasn't too soft nor too bland.  However, the salmon sashimi was not very good as it lacked any texture being too soft.  It was not very sweet either.  There was a small selection of rolls and nigiri which were a bit too rice-heavy.  They were constructed in an average manner where they were tight enough that the rolls didn't fall apart, but at the same time, they were too dense.  I guess that is what we would've expected anyways.

Despite not wanting to try it, I had to get a plate of the Chinese Food for research purposes.  Turns out that Sweet & Sour Chicken was actually quite good with large chunks of tender chicken bathed in a balanced sauce.  The steamed fish (not even sure what kind of fish it was) turned out to be decent as well being moist and only lightly seasoned.  I really couldn't stand the Peking Duck Wrap as the whole thing was stone cold.  Even though the crepe was thin and dried out, it was was stiff from being cold.  Inside, the duck was not warm either and the skin was not at all crispy.

As you can clearly see, there wasn't much in the way of French food at the buffet despite the hotel's theme.  However, the Dessert section made up for it.  The picture only shows one section as on the other side, there was fresh fruit, hard ice cream, jello, layer cake and strawberry shortcake.  In the refrigerated display, there was various cakes.  To be frank, nothing was outstanding, but the selection was extensive.  Overall, Le Buffet is a serviceable option for those looking for a hotel all-you-can-eat.  It's really nothing special, but does offer a good amount of seafood.

The Good:
- Nice selection of seafood
- Lots of desserts
- Okay sashimi

The Bad:
- Lack of French food
- Chinese food was subpar