Ponderosa

I drove past this billboard everyday with high hopes of some home recipes there for the Pickens, but now I drive past it with the memory of lack luster food and a sad buffet. We went and got the tri-tip+buffet combo for the price of about $15 a person. The price was low for that and I'll say you get what you pay for. I ordered a med rare steak it was under seasoned as in none at all and there were parts that were still had a heartbeat. The buffet was only called that by standards of it had "food" to choose from. The love and home recipes I was hoping for were the recipes you can read on the back of the can you get from the store. The only reason a second star is here is because the desserts were actually okay warm,fluffy,and had flavor the cobbler tasted as it did when I was little. Overall I'd say stay away unless you're allergic to flavor and you like canned vegetables. Skip this just go to Golden Corral if you want a buffet.

Arrived at 3:57 PM. The cashier made a welcoming gesture and informed us that "dinner prices" automatically went into effect at 4:00 o'clock (automated on computer). She completed the transaction just in time to save us $! Tables were clean. The buffet has a limited selection, but the staff kept the food fresh and well stocked. Our waiter kept our beverages topped off and the table clutter free. I was excitedly telling my husband about a video of the Miami Hurricanes 8 lateral play in the last seconds of a game to beat Duke University (6 years ago). With my usual grace, I managed to whack a full glass of ice water all over myself and flooded our table. A very sweet waitress immediately appeared with a hand full of napkins. She said she recognized the "crash" and knew someone needed assistance. The staff here were exceptionally friendly and accommodating. This restaurant has the caring appeal of a local family owned establishment. It has a very casual atmosphere. The dining room was filled with the sound of families' chatter and laughter.

Normally buffets are either a hit or miss. I wasn't expecting much coming here. Husband and I opted for the New York Strip steak with a side. Our youngest was delighted with the buffet portions with what it had to offer. Our steak was cooked right the first time. We enjoy our steaks cooked 60 seconds each side and we were very pleased and surprised that it was cooked to our desire the first time. Now, my husband isn't too keen on buffets. But I knew he was impressed to tell me we will frequent this establishment. If I would give a higher rating, I would.

This place is traumatizing. Upon arrival, my friends and I saw a man walking out with a dish full of food, and being the optimist that I am, I figured that the food awaiting us must be so good that he had to take some leftovers. That was a fatal mistake on my part. When we entered the establishment, there was a line at the cash register that took about 7 1/2 minutes. (7 1/2 minutes too long in my opinion.) While waiting for our turn, a weird middle aged man started chatting us up and asking us if we were “playing hooky!” We were not playing hooky. Of course this interaction can’t be blamed on the restaurant, but the high price for a cup of soda can be! When we finally sat down at a recently cleaned table (cleaned only with water, water that would later cause me great injury) we found that the place was filled with old people. Is it because only the elderly could enjoy a restaurant such as this one? Their taste buds are aged so I imagine the repulsive food doesn’t have quite the same affect that it has on a group of youngsters like us. We decided our plan of action would be to grab a plate of food while waiting for our overpriced drinks to be served, so we slipped on some cheap plastic gloves and made our way to the buffet. If you like runny mac and cheese and (presumably) store bought pizza this is the place for you! If not, I don’t know what to tell ya because that’s exactly what you’re getting from this place. The mac and cheese was so cold I think I walked out of there frost bitten. But that’s not the worst of it oh no. The worst of it was when my friend found a single black hair hidden underneath her pile of red jell-o. Now if I had known that our meals would come with some free extensions maybe I wouldn’t have ridiculed the prices. But seriously, it was horrifying. (And yet we still stuck around for desert!) After finally finishing our food, we stopped in the restroom. That is where I received a third degree burn on my left hand, caused by the boiling hot sink water. I should have sued. My burnt and crispy hand was the last straw and we made our escape. Long story short, we’re never coming back to PonderGROSSa.

I am giving the owner this one star. Went there on a Saturday and my wife and son, their steaks was over cooked. Justin refused to have them re-made and said he will just give us a refund for the steaks. We didn't ask for the refund. All we wanted was the steaks to be made the way they was asked to be cooked. Justin said he was not going to have his cooks remake them because they was to busy making other food orders and he didn't want to keep remaking the steaks. We didn't have any other steaks remade. He continued to say that they where cooked beautifully. My wife ordered hers medium-well, a little pink in the middle, and it came out well done, no pink what so ever. He has no customer service what so ever! I would avoid this place unless you don't mind being told that you can't have something they wzy you want it cooked.

If you've ever been to a Ponderosa or Bonanza, back in the day, you've been here. The food is OK, but nothing was great. They were constantly out of chicken on the buffet, which was a little annoying. $13+ per person without a drink is a little high priced for what was available in my opinion. Cleanliness was also less that what I liked. If you like buffets, I'd recommend Golden Corral instead.