So this review covers 2 visits... one that was takeout and one that was dine in.
The first visit, the take out, saw The Wife and I getting a few of our usuals to go. This was our first visit to Golden Chef, so we were eager to see how they stacked up against the usuals.
I ordered beef lo mein, and The Wife got chicken chow mein, and pepper beef. The orders arrived pretty quickly, as we were at the tail end of the dinner hour, and maybe only a couple of people were in the place. Staff was polite and courteous, always a plus.
We got back home and unboxed. I found the lo mein to be good and different, in that it wasn't just swimming in the usual oyster/brown sauce that most places seem to feel is the obligatory base for lo mein.... even chicken lo mein. It was probably a little bland for my taste, but I could equally say it was 'light' compared to the usual lo meins you get in take outs. So, overall, I was satisfied with it.
The wife liked her chow mein and pepper beef as well. She wasn't blown away by either, but she did say they were good, and didn't leave a lot behind.
The second visit was a solo lunch trip because (a) nothing in Owasso sounded good, and (b) I suspected that Golden Chef had a little more to offer than what I had on the one takeout experience.
So cut to noon, and there I am.
The place itself is relatively small, maybe seating for 30. High ceilings, and lots of Asian Kitsch is present. The buffet that day had most of the usual Chinese buffet offerings, even though it was relatively scaled down, I'd estimate maybe 16 items in all.
I dished up an egg roll, some lo mein, chicken chow mein, and a couple of other dishes I can't name, but looked pretty good.
First plate was good, in fact better than I expected. The buffet items weren't lacking in flavor at all, and for whatever reason, were better than the takeout items from our previous excursion.
Second plate was also good, and I tried to use it to sample the things I didn't get first round, such as the Honey Chicken and Pork and Cabbage.
Overall, I came away pretty happy, and I'll tell you why....
It's my experience that most buffets these days are pretty much carbon copies of each other. In other words, the chicken chow mein is pretty much identical.
No so with Golden Chef. There is a distinct 'made right here' vibe about the food that I greatly appreciated.
This isn't 5 star, or even 4 star chinese buffet food, but it's pretty darn good for what it is, and that's good enough for me. read more