Review: Vikings - The Best Buffet in Town (?)

I've been out of circulation for almost 2 years. Being pregnant and having a newborn have reduced my mobility to a 3 mile radius. So when a friend turned the big 3-0 last July and asked me to join them for dinner, I grabbed the opportunity.

I wasn't expecting much since I haven't really heard of Vikings (not within the radar of my 3 mile radius life) so you can say I was extremely surprised to find out it has more variety than your usual Shabu-Shabu and Yakimix deal. I was expecting close to 30 or so dishes, a few maki/sushi/sashimi on a side, a soup and a salad and a couple of desserts enough to say you've eaten at a buffet.

Well, to start of, there were 30 dessers, not dishes. Plus a few more you won't find at your regular buffet restos like lambchops, all sorts of steaks, lobsters, pinoy cakes and kakanins. It's the first time I've been at one place with that much food variety.

I had steak, lobsters (on the smallish side really), maki/sushi, all sorts of seafoods and of course TONS of desserts. Just being able to eat puto bumbong and bibingka on a July evening was soooooo well worth (my fave kase). And there were so much more I haven't even had the chance to try - the dimsum, the hotpot, the crepes....AHHHHHH~

So, was the P1088/head + 5% service fee worth it? Yes.

For the variety of food and dessert you can try in a day it sure is worth it. The taste and quality of ingredients are comparable to a mid-range resto. I wouldn't say it's gastronomically palatable but it's good enough to say it's been cooked nicely. Again, between a regular mid-range resto where a meal would cost around 300-700/head and Vikings, I'd definitely choose Vikings! Just bit more and I can gobble up twice as much and taste more than enough kinds of dishes, side dishes, desserts and whatnot.

The interiors are still quite new, no smelly seat cover or discolorations on the wall. The utensils being used are of good quality. Cleanliness is also A-ok. The set-up may be a bit cramped on some parts where people just tend to gravitate towards like the steak area and the dessert area -- always hard to pass by there. Everyone seems to stop for a second or two (then again, can't blame them). The seats and tables are well kept, no wiggly hinges here.

Oh, and one thing our group really liked about Vikings is the ability of their staff of just pass by and carry off your dirty plates without you even noticing -- its that or we're just totally engrossed with our kwentuhans.

My personal verdict - it's not the best buffet in town BUT its the perfect place to go on a food trip if you can't afford the 5-star hotels :))

Quality/Taste of Food - 3 out of 5
Ambiance - 4 out of 5
Cleanliness and Appearance - 4 out of 5
Staff - 4 out of 5
Price - 5 out of 5