We ate lunch at the recently opened Kouyou Buffet and came away excited to visit again. The food was fresh, plentiful with lots of choices. It is a perfect choice for our family, which includes a vegetarian, a picky 13-year old and two parents with diverse tastes.
The Ambiance
The 5800 square foot Asian buffet occupies the space where the Parrot Cove Island Bar & Grill used to be. It is the centerpiece of a revitalized Carolina Springs Plaza on Sample Road in Margate. It is the latest restaurant owned and managed by the You family. After stripping the space down to studs, they spent over a year completely renovating the space.
We were greeted warmly as soon as we walked into the door. The space is open, modern and welcoming. Unlike some Asian restaurants, the decoration is not overstated. The various food options stretch along the side of one entire wall of the restaurant and included sushi options, a salad bar, a hibachi grill, traditional hot dishes, and a dessert buffet. We felt right at home, sitting in our booth next to a window. It is obvious that every aspect of this restaurant is brand new.
The Food
The challenge with any buffet restaurant is balancing choice with quality. Kouyou tackles this challenge by having specialists in each area. The sushi bar is managed by a master sushi chef, while the hibachi is attended by an executive chef ready to cook to order. We found all of the items fresh and well-stocked.
Sushi
If you enjoy sushi and have a big appetite, this may be the best restaurant in the area. They offer a great variety of rolls, nigiri and sashimi options. The sushi rolls look like works of art. Beautiful, brightly colored and created with obvious care. This is a long way from the typical spicy tuna.
The fish lovers in our group loved the Seared Tuna Tataki, Magic Moon Roll, and Tuna Lover’s Roll. The salmon was fresh-tasting and sweet. They also offered some less-common buffet options like white tuna and yellowtail.
Low-carb dieters will be excited to know that Kouyou offers several rice-free sushi rolls as well. Sushi-lovers could enjoy a wonderful, satisfying meal without ever leaving the sushi area. But, there is much more.
In the evenings, the cold bar includes fancier offering like snow crab legs, oysters, peel and eat shrimp and even more sushi options.
Hibachi
The Hibachi offers steak, chicken & shrimp, along with a variety of traditional vegetables and tofu. They even offer some unusual items like corn on the cob. The chef made my teriyaki chicken with care. It was perfectly seasoned and not too sweet.
The hot food selections are what you would expect from Chinese and Thai cuisine. They include all of our favorites like Szechuan beef, Kung Pao chicking, and Thai coconut shrimp. The dumplings were fresh, which is a tricky thing at a buffet! The salad bar offered a vast choice of vegetables, fruits, and dressings. They even offer pizza and fries for families with picky kids.
The Verdict
Buffet restaurants offer all-you-can-eat quantities and a broad selection of choices. Good buffets offer those choices with a focus on cleanliness and freshness. Great buffets add expensive, sought-after items like snow crab legs, oysters or filet mignon. Based on these criteria, The Kouyou Buffet is a great restaurant. They have a huge variety of tasty food. Our only problem during our visit was overeating.
