Pachamami Sabor Latino

As much as some parts of Surrey are pretty homogenous in terms of food diversity (see: Scott Road), King George Highway is another story. From one end in South Surrey all the way into Whalley terminating at the Patullo Bridge, almost every cuisine is represented. Mixed amongst every conceivable chain restaurant, one would find Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Greek, Italian, Mexican, Thai, Korean and of course Indian cuisine. However, we can add one more -Spanish. Honestly, I wasn't expecting a place such as Pachamami Sabor Latino opening up shop on KGH near 80th Ave. Furthermore, I was taken aback when they were offering a lunch buffet for $7.99.

As always... a buffet would never be the best way to experience the food, but for the price, I was game. As I walked into the brand new restaurant, I noticed it was clean, tastefully appointed and welcoming.  Similar to Sunny Noodle House, the chef did the cooking, cleaned the tables, served the customers, made coffee (which is included) and tended the till.  Maybe it was a good idea to have the buffet after all...  The first thing I tried was the Chicken Quinoa Soup.  Well, it was basically a chicken soup with lots of celery and chicken.  Flavours were mild and slightly sweet.  As for the main part of the buffet, it featured items such as Green Salad, Pasta Salad, Onion & Tomato Salad, Picante de Gallina (Spicy Chicken), Saice (Ground Beef), Rice, Majau (Rice with Shredded Beef), Black Beans and Chancho al Horno (Roast Pork).

The one thing that stood out was the Chancho al Horno.  It was moist and fatty with a nice bark.  There was a mild roasted flavour with only a subtle hint of seasoning.  I thought the Picante de Gallina was nothing but.  Although the meat was moist and tender (being dark meat), it was pretty bland.  The Majau was not mushy nor hard (even sitting in a chaffing tray) and was flavourful due to the meat. The Saice was pretty much seasoned ground beef.  It went well with the plain white rice.  Lastly, there was some store-bought Coffee Cake for dessert.  It was pretty typical.  As for the rest of the food, most of it was decent with the roast pork being the highlight. Considering the buffet goes for the low price of $7.99, this is a buffet worth trying.

The Good:
- Inexpensive buffet
- Friendly chef/server/barrista/cashier
- Clean and tidy

The Bad:
- Flavours could be more impactful
- Since there is only one person there (at least when I went), service is sparse