Buffet Dinners - Bangkok - Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit

Orchid Cafe - Buffet Dinner - Sheraton Hotel

The Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit has a number of restaurants but we'll focus on The Orchid Cafe and the buffet dinner that we've just had there. As far as places to eat in Bangkok is concerned, this is worth considering.

The restaurant is set in an open section of the main entrance area of the hotel with a large arc of a window that over looks Bangkok's main road - Sukhumvit.

It is set back from the main lobby area and does not suffer in any way from the coming and going of guests and is set out in such a way as to give you the sense of its being an entirely separate restaurant.

The layout and decor of the restaurant is very appealing and makes for a good ambiance for a pleasant dining experience..

Book This Hotel Here And Save $$$

General Information

The all day dining room is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Lobby Level

Tel: (66) 02 6498355-56 or (66) 02 6498888

E-mail: grande.sukhumvit@luxurycollection.com

Open daily

Dinner: 18:30-22:30 hours

Holiday Brunch International Buffet: 11.30-15.00 hours

Price: Please check for latest prices

The Buffet Dinner

Although the opening time states 6.30 pm it was actually open at 6 pm and so our group was the first to arrive. There were 6 in our group and it was lucky that we'd booked a table as the restaurant was fully booked even though there seemed to be enough seating for around 150 people.

We were shown to our table, offered drinks and then left alone to attack the buffet which was very well laid out in a well organised manner which was both attractive and appealing.

There was the main section consisting of a circular serving area where all the pre-cooked dishes were on offer - both hot and cold dishes. The sea-food / sushi section and then the grill / cook to order section.
The Thais in our group headed for the sea-food / sushi whereas we foreigners headed for the grill where we discovered that there was a good selection of meats to choose from. All we had to do was state what we wanted and it was cooked for us then and there. However, there was also a carvary of roast beef and lamb. Both of which were excellent.

We ordered lamb cutlets and were happy when we were asked "how many". No skimping on the food here.

With our carved meats and rather small cutlets on a good sized plate we looked around for some potatoes and found some sauteed in cream but no other. We could have had pasta or rice but we would have liked to have seen maybe one other type of potato which would have been nice for a buffet dinner of this size.

The Thais seemed happy with their seafood, so no issues there and after 30 minutes of eating we were still the only ones in the restaurant and so getting seconds was easy.

This time we headed for the cold meats and had some salami, parma ham and a very fresh and crisp salad with some french dressing. We added a small beef pie to that and went looking for the bread which we found had been served in a small basket on the table. There was a selection of bread rolls, all fresh and tasty.

The cold meat was very tasty and fresh. The salad was excellent and the beef pie superb and was probably our favourite dish of the whole buffet

Each time we went for a helping, we came back and found our old plates had been cleaned away and our place tidy for our next helping.

There was, over all, a good selection of dishes ranging from Thai to Indian and Western. There is something to cater to all tastes.

The Crowds

Shortly after 6.30 it started to get busy and this could well have had something to do with a promotion that is / was on offer which meant that with a discount coupon, the buffet cost only 650 Baht per person which is a very reasonable price for such a good buffet and 5 star hotel in the center of Bangkok.

When there is a promotion such as this, Thais come out in droves and they bring their children and before you know it, you are dodging kids who don't know how to serve themselves correctly and joining queues for the seafood section.

For a nice meal out, you'd probably dress quite nicely although for a buffet, not in full dinner dress. However, there were a number of people in t-shirts, trainers and whilst not looking scruffy, it dampened the atmosphere a little and therefore it might not be the place for anyone looking for a quiet or romantic dining experience.

The grill area became very busy and we waited quite a while for a simple carbonara. The grill area, whilst not small, is not large and it becomes crowded and receiving your order is not always easy as the center meat display takes up much of the serving area.

With this said, even though it was busy, there was not much difficulty getting something to eat and everything was topped up on a regular basis with the general manager wandering around making sure all was in good working order.

Wine

We had offered to buy a bottle of wine and so asked for the wine menu on arrival. There was a basic selection on a small menu in the center of the table but the full wine menu that was brought to us offered a much wider choice.

Be prepared for a shock. Wine in Thailand is expensive - incredibly expensive and laughable really especially for what is on offer.

We're no wine buffs, but we've been around it long enough to know prices and quality and noticed a bottle of Hardy's, being the cheapest of the Australian reds on offer, was 1,800 Baht which is in the region of 30 GBP which sells in the supermarkets for around 4.50 GBP or 7 GBP if buy one get one free. This is a ridiculous price for such a wine.

Now, because we'd offered, we were stuck with having to buy a bottle and if we were drinking it, we wanted something half decent and so chose a bottle of Tyrell's cabernet merlot (2005) @ 2,500 Baht. This equates to about 45 GBP. The same bottle at home would be roughly 7 GBP. The price is made even worse when the bill comes because you have to add 10% for service and 7% for VAT. That's 17% on top bringing the bottle to 2,900 Baht

There were plenty of other run of the mill wines on offer, all at grossly inflated prices. It's there if you want it, but when a cheap bottle costs 4 times that of the meal, it's time to question the sanity of buying any.

Having said that, the wine was very nice and we savoured every single drop.

Puddings & Sweets

We enjoy our puddings a sweets and were happy to see a good selection on offer and as chocoholics, even happier to see at least 4 chocolate based offerings such as cake, mouse, puddings as well as a small chocolate fountain.

It's not all chocolate. There is plenty on offer to suit all tastes such as creme broulle, puff pastries, jelly and souffles. There's even a decent ice-cream counter (no chocolate though) where you can scoop your own ice-cream or sorbet and have a freshly made crepe to go with it which will certainly keep kids happy.

Will Kids Enjoy It?

Kids are difficult to please, especially Western kids used to sausages, burgers and fries and so going to a buffet can be an issue if you have fussy kids but this buffet should be fine for kids. The food is not too flamboyant and so pleasing them with beef or lamb or even a sausage or two is not an issue. There are no fries or mashed potatoes but there is rice and pasta as well as the creamed sauteed potatoes.

If you have kids, get there early, sort them out first and this should leave you set to look after yourselves with little in the way of complaints from them.

Pros

Very nicely decorated, clean and modern setting with a good selection of food. Tables not too close together, opportunity for couples to sit by a window and be a little quieter than groups. Friendly and swift service.
Well run and maintained.

It's very easy to get there by Skytrain as there is a direct link from the station to the hotel.

Cons

Few to speak of. It was busy but not terrible. Sometimes the staff took plates and cleared the table whilst still eating. They didn't take the food away, just took away knives and forks not being used but it meant disturbing our eating a little.

Waiting time at the grill could be better. If you get there at peak time which was around 7.30, then you'll wait longer than you might like for your freshly grilled steak.

Getting there by car at weekends or week days could be a nightmare. The hotel is on Bangkok's busiest road and traffic can come to a grinding halt. This is made even worse during the rainy season with traffic not moving for long, long periods at a time. Make sure you go there by Skytrain.

Alternative Buffet Dinners In Bangkok

There are many to choose from but some of the best are at the hotels by the river. We suggest trying The Marriott Resort & Spa, The Shangri La, The Peninsula, The Millennium or even The Oriental

Book The Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit Here