My husband and I finally found time to check out the new buffet restaurant that just opened in Sacramento. The World Seafood & Sushi Buffet is located south of Land Park, past Fruitridge on the east side of Freeport near Claudia. It's a non-descript building. We showed up for lunch last Wednesday around 1 PM, and the place was practically deserted, so I don't know how many customers were actually there around noon. Without customers in the room, the air was chilly.
It's a huge dining space, filled with lots of empty tables, so we received superior service from the staff -- most likely because there were few customers to fawn over. Although, our server did forget to bring our hot tea until we reminded him. About 1/3 of the space on one end is devoted to cafeteria-style food selections, set up in a square with a few counters off to the sides. Unlike China Buffet on Broadway, navigating the maize was a bit confusing.
I suspect the owners of World Seafood were trying to diligently follow city health codes. For example, the sushi was set on ice. I'm not certain if the rice was rolled too tightly or it simply froze while sitting on the ice, but I probably could have done serious damage to my toes if I had dropped a piece on my foot. While wasabi was available, there were no bowls or small trays set out to mix it with soy sauce, so I had to grab a soup bowl from the other side of the room for that purpose.
Since I desperately needed some warmth, I headed back to the soup selections. They all looked delicious and steaming hot. I tried a bowl of beef and barley, which was flavorable and fabulous.
Our server saw me smiling and asked if we would like to sample some freshly prepared hot and sour soup from the kitchen, and he brought us out two bowls. My husband asked our server to identify the type of vinegar, and our server ran back to the kitchen to get the answer. It was white Chinese vinegar, which blended nicely with hot pepper. The won ton soup was simmered in a rich broth, which was equally delightful.
World Seafood says in its advertising that it boasts an unforgettable culinary experience, featuring international foods from the Mediterranean, Latin America, Asia and, of course, America, with more than 150 dishes. The French-fried onion rings were cold and soggy. The Italian pesto pasta was also cold. I passed over the snails, with their chewy little bodies protruding from the shells. The sign said the snails were prepared in an English style, which I later found out from a resident blogger, that British agent Sheldon Neal, meant they were cooked with herbs instead of garlic. French snails are simply a delivery system for butter and garlic.
The best pasta was shrimp, even though it wasn't as warm as it could have been. Much as I love shrimp, though, I passed over the Indonesian fried shrimp because I dislike having to pull off the heads. Most people, I understand, eat the heads, but just thinking about the crunchy sensation on my teeth was enough to say no.
My husband said the beef stroganoff was very good, the pasta cooked al dente and the beef, moist. The dim sum offerings were slim, maybe 5 or 6 different dishes were available. We tried something that was smushed into bamboo shoot halves that melted in our mouths; it seemed to be shrimp-based. They also had the usual selections of steamed sticky rice wrapped in seaweed, pot stickers, pork buns and pork suimai.
By the time we considered dessert, I was really too satiated. There was a sign by the ice cream that said due to health regulations, customers could no longer scoop their own ice cream and are required to ask a server for assistance. I chose a small square of chocolate cake layered with chocolate mousse and an icing that tasted like creme brulee. It was the best chocolate dessert ever. I would go back to World Seafood and Sushi buffet just for that dessert alone. It was incredible.
World Seafood and Sushi Buffet is located at 5675 Freeport Boulevard. Phone: 916.392.8889. Lunch is $7.95 and dinner is $11.99. But ask for a 50% off-coupon during the Grand Opening celebration, which lets you buy one adult buffet and gives you half-off on the second order.
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Photos: Big Stock Photo
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