Don't expect much. Saw an ad for $7.99 dinner buffet at the hotel next door, and went here for dinner with my family because it was the closest dining option. The Kettle chain was founded in 1968, and this location looked like it hadn't been renovated since it opened. If I could describe it in one sentence, it would probably be: "Luby's after it's been on meth for a year." It's pretty sad looking. As for the dinner buffet, you are better off going to Wack Arnold's. For starters, there was a very meager selection of food. Mystery meatloaf, baked chicken, sausage and bell peppers, or spaghetti casserole. There was a very sad looking "salad bar," which is basically a giant bowl of iceberg lettuce, with old looking cherry tomatoes and dressings which look like they had been sitting there for a week. There were two employees working, and both of them had brought their children to work. As a result, no one came by to ask us if our drinks needed to be refilled or if we wanted our check. When we were ready to leave, we stood around waiting to pay for about 5 minutes. Also the advertised buffet price on the flyer is out of date; it is now $8.49 a person. The waitress started berating the manager when we pointed that out to her. Seems like a change in management is sorely needed. Bottom line: Unless your only other dining option is eating a body part, I would stay far away. read more

We've gone there once a couple years ago during the Tucson Gem and Mineral show. The food was good, service was decent. We will try to go back if we are in the area again. read more

Food was so bad, my friends and I work at the gem show and was in desperate need of food. Our boss told us they have a decent variety so we decided to check it out. Instead, we were stuck paying $17 each for endless about of chewy zucchini, and nasty ass food. All I can say is that my friend had diarrhea , exploded all over the bathroom, my other friend felt nauseas. And I threw up all over the quality inn restroom, anyways Love this place read more

OMG scary! Stopped here for Saturday morning breakfast buffet all you can eat for $8.49. I know I wrote a positive review about the dinner buffet and still believe it but this was horrible. The sausage and bacon looked like it had been sitting there for hours at room temperature or perhaps a bit above. It was all crusty and dry. There was some white toast on the buffet line also that was lukewarm and partially burned. Hash brown potatoes same luke warm and all mixed up instead of nice crispy hashed brown.. There was some extremely cheap looking Danish and various Bakery items. The one area that looked pretty good was the fresh fruit with some watermelon, cantaloupe, grapes, and strawberries looking very nice. I did notice that the owner Sam was not present and may not be involved in the morning meals. I just hope that this doesn't drag down the entire restaurant that does a very nice job at night. Egads! read more

It was my first time eating at this restaurant and it was very good I had the Santa Fe burger. the cheese was melted in with the green chili which made it very good and a very big burger read more

Great atmosphere. Good energy and family oriented. Food is good and hot. Staff very welcoming and friendly. Attentive and prompt. Definitely a place I will be coming back to for our momma and daughter lunches/dinners read more

Family diner. Had the buffet. Eclectic assortment: a large chicken leg, fried jalapeño, tamale, two rolled grape leaves, fresh melon. All good. Lots of Mexican choices there. Also has a menu with breakfast served all day long. Friendly, attentive staff. Good place for a casual relaxed meal with no expectations. Next to the Clarion Hotel. read more

This is a weird one but still has plenty of charm to go along with it. It just feels like a time warp, like it belongs in another century altogether and that's what makes it so dang special. The comfort food choices are familars like pancakes and eggs and burgers and everything is really on point. Maybe one day I'll actually be able to try the lumch buffet, I heard it's actually quite great from a fre people whose opinions I trust. read more

I am rating kettles with 5 stars, as the food, and service were excellent. My catfish dinner was cooked right, and very tasty. The waitress was extremely nice, and very accommodating. I felt like I was family, and I like Kettles very much. I Will love keep coming back. read more

From the looks outside i should have known better but still went in. Place wasn't much better inside. Buffet looked unappetizing so we ordered off menu. Drink came in a dirty cup. Bowl of chili was barely warm, tasted canned too. Burger was okay, fries were not fresh. Only thing that was good was the waitress. She was nice. read more

This is my favorite buffet in Tucson. While it doesn't offer the largest selection of dishes, what they do have is made with TLC and is always nice and hot. Their food tastes like home made food - not buffet/cafeteria food. My favorites are the baked chicken and barbecue ribs. The fruit bar always has fresh melon and berries and is wonderful. As for ambiance: It feels like a truck stop diner and that is fine with me. Very casual with excellent home-cooked food. The staff is very friendly and warm. Bottom line is delicious food at very reasonable prices in a casual environment with friendly staff. Enjoy! read more

Manager and waitress we're both EXTREMELY friendly and interactive and attentive. Food was miles above what I was expecting me. And the Dolmas, crazy little grape leaf eggroll thingys. Loved them. This is a must try restaurant if you're traveling and need some comfort food. The buffet is VERY well taken care of. Sunshine was an awesome waitress. read more

Best service I have ever received hands down no kidding, great prices and great and clean halal food Honestly meet the owner he will treat u like his life depends on it And they have the sweetest staff very friendly u will feel very comfortable. read more

Atmosphere is lacking but the service was outstanding! Ordered gyro and it was good. Mom ordered blt and it was good. Would return. Not a buffet person but they have one that seemed to be pretty popular. read more

Awesome buffet. The owner and all the staff is so cheerful! Love the food and the large variety in the buffet! Sam and his team does a great job! read more

We have been here many times for breakfast it has always been very good. Today the food was horrible. Gravy had no flavor and big clumps of flour. The chicken nuggets, sausage and bacon were way over cooked. Basically burnt. Said something to the waitress and she basically brushed me away. Didn't care at all read more

The food was great! The breakfast was fantastic, the waiters were all very nice. The owner was also very accommodating. The eggs, hash browns, and turkey bacon meal was delightful and the establishment was very clean. read more

Another surprisingly good breakfast with great, friendly service. Came here the day after paying through the nose for the breakfast buffet up at the JW Marriott Starr Pass resort (over $50 for two). It was just average, with the kind of eggs that are poured from a carton. We were underwhelmed. Forget the decor at the Kettle. Nothing fancy, even downright quirky. Sort of reminded me of a trip back in a wayback machine to a time when people were really friendly to folks from out of town that were just passing through. (We were.) We went for the breakfast buffet. It had fresh melons, fruits, and even grapefruit. It even had some local specialties like a heaping platter of beautiful, freshly roasted jalapeno peppers. The eggs were fresh, hot and genuine. The potatoes were nicely seasoned, with a peppery zing. The food was prepared by someone who cared. Our check was under $15, and we really enjoyed the local flavors and good food. I'm glad we gave this little roadside greasy spoon a chance. Nothing fancy, but a darn good, inexpensive breakfast. Three stars for the food, and an extra for the friendliness and quirkiness. read more

I came here to check out the Wi-Fi for a place to work out of. Not only do they have great Wi-Fi but the choice of food here is incredible. I decided to try out the all you can eat buffets. Wow talk about multitudes of choices! You have a buffet table ful of pastry, a buffet table full of breakfast staples such as scrambled eggs, pancakes, sausage, and of course the famous beacons and a whole lot more. I counted 5 hugh different buffet tables. Starbucks Just lost it's normal customer to something a little more reasonable in cost and the choices of variety of food to be had. If you haven't tried this place yet I urge you so check it out. This place just become you new place to work out of if you work from your laptop, Smartphone and tablet as I do. Plus they do have a few plug-ins something missing from a few other places. You won't regret this choice. The staff was very courtesy. I don't know about those negative review I saw I saw no such thing from my visit. I would now make this my normal place of work and its cost is so much less than Starbucks, that is if you buy the foods and drinks.. read more

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Sunshine hands down is the best server I have ever had...I come here regularly when I'm in town she remembers me and gives me the best service making it very personable like we've been friends forever....There's never a time I show up & the owner isn't there. he also has a wonderful personality and friendly demeanor. read more

Say you want to get a bowl of ice cream and a drink to go while you are at the gem show...I mean, it's pretty hard work finding a parking space and navigating booths after booths of gems that smell like a foreign country....literally. Kettle is a little diner that has clocks from food places across the states - for example, it has a clock that tells the time in Strawberry, AZ - cute things like that. A bowl of ice cream (chocolate, strawberry, or vanilla) is two scoops and $1.79. Even a Pepsi is more than that at $1.99. Overall, decent respite from the I-10/22nd/Congress gem/mineral/fossil/jewelry. read more

This place is absolutely gross. They have to serve yesterdays (or last weeks) food reheated in the buffet. How else could you get that texture from food. We went out of convenience because we were in the hotel behind it. Chicken looked like it had been baked chicken warmed up in water. All the other food was overcooked to mush. All that looked safe was the salad, kind of. This place needs to be checked out and managed better. No wonder they had coupons. I made a mistake to stay and overpaid for disgusting food I couldn't even eat. Vegas buffets can charge you $5.99 and your drinks included and they for sure passed the health grade. Don't Go To The Kettle!!! read more

I love coming to the kettle restaurant Sam, his family, and all the staff are so very sweet and friendly. I would consider them family!!

Just bad, just plain bad!!! Will not be going back. Extremely dirty, $3.00 for an OJ and no free refill.

The workers are friendly but they claimed to be serving Mexican food in the buffet section but it was awful!! The beans tasted like it was canned and the enchiladas just looked like they threw it in a microwave. read more

I think everyone's rating is close to the money. We came lured by the 7.99 breakfast buffet and they had a good variety, but we were super disappointed. Everything was cold, some things were very hard and the waffles had a weird after taste. The hash browns had hard instances and my cup was dirty with some goo. I would not recommend this place. Avoid it and go somewhere with quality food. read more

This is my 1st experience here at Kettle. The staff was friendly. The most enjoyable part of our dining experience was Johnny, a prep cook. While looking over the breakfast buffet he appeared & offered to serve eggs the special way my husband likes. Needless to say, he had seconds. Lots of food choices at times it was hard picking. Very satisfied with the food (buffets can be hit or miss) & the prices. Will definitely come back. read more

This is your basic breakfast, lunch and dinner senior style resturant with a buffet. Not impressive but quick service and friendly atmosphere and you can order off the regular menu if you don't want the buffet. read more

I eat at kettles often, and have done so for a long time. Sam, and all his staff are more like family, and provide excellent service to their customers, as the staff here treat you like you are a friend, not a stranger just coming to eat. Sam tries to greet everyone that comes in the door, which is rare for managers to do. The food is excellent, and pricing is good. I found the New York steak, to be of excellent quality, and cooked to order. I love the salad choices in the buffet, and the vegetable soup is delicious. The shrimp is very good, as is the cheese steak sandwich, both are among my favorites. If you want a friendly staff, with excellent food, great service, and good prices, then visit the kettle. read more

I always drive by and wanted to try it and was really surprise when I walk in it was clean and the staff was very friendly. They buffet style for $7.50 + drinks comes to $10.50 per person that was for breakfast. Everything was fresh, I didn't like the Danish it wasn't great but everything was great. will go again and try out there lunches. The other thing I didn't like was the outside of the building was in need of a improvement its a shame, really needs a paint job and the front needs landscaping BIG TIME. read more

Great Food, great service! And BTW the food that is "cold" is actually hot! I recommend you try the Arab meat balls and rice!

This a GREAT place quite with awesome staff .check out the waffle Thang this is tasty ,the lunch Buffet is very good. This is a Tucson Secret must try. read more

Decided to give this place a try as it is close by and it was Easter, we wanted breakfast and we didn't want to "brunch". The food is yummy and generous portions. I loved the corned beef hash it was yummy and the eggs were perfectly cooked. As we were getting ready to leave what I assume was the owner came to our table with two pieces of baklava! We were stuffed from our yummy breakfast and we brought it home! What kind people these folks are! Thanks! read more

Great dive diner/buffet place. Extremely reasonable prices. The place and the food are nothing fancy. But the staff are really friendly and it has that down Home Midwest diner feel. I was here for lunch on thanksgiving (the turkey and ham were great). So I can't speak for the breakfast buffet. read more

Years ago we went to the Kettle. The food was bad the service was bad. We stoped going and never wanted to returne. Then one day we though we would try it and see if they had improved. Ahhhhhh a new Manager! Since Sam too over, the food is very good the service is wonderful. Sam is great! Very frendly and treats everyone like "family". Always has a big smile, a welcome, and a hug. The waitress are attentive to our needs, very warm and friendly and big smiles, welcome greetings, and hugs. His wife and children are just as nice. When his wife is there, she always greets us with a warm smile and a hug. The cooks, the dishwasher are just as friendly and greet us with a smile and a hug. The Kettle is now our "second home". It's what we used to call a "Mom And Pop" Restaurant. The coupons help out greatly. In being honest with this review there are a couple things I feel need attention: The carpet could be cleaned more offten. The tile on the floor in the womens bathroom needs attention. since us "older people" generaly eat there alot, the music would be nice if it were "of the 50's and 60's or of the older Country Western. Thats about it, we really like the Kettle Restaurant on Starr Pass Blve. "Come on over and enjoy !" read more

Went here for the first time for the dinner buffet. The service was excellent, there was a great variety of food, and it was all tasty. Would come back again! read more

We have been visiting this restaurant off and on for years. Sam, the owner, is extremely accommodating. He goes out of his way to visit with all patrons and is extremely sensitive to requests. He is in the process of getting bids for upgrades to this "well used" location. We have not had a bad meal at this Kettle and really appreciate the extra attention from Khadija and others. This is an old time family restaurant which has tons of local regulars (just check it on Sunday mornings after church!). In spite of the negative reviews, go in with a positive, upbeat attitude. Ask for Sam, the owner. He'll make it right for you. read more

the breakfast buffet rocks. the service is pretty good. skip the dinner buffet.. really, skip tucson.

Let me start by saying the service is AWESOME!! The breakfast buffet not so much. The eggs were rubbery and dry, the potatoes, hash browns and biscuits and gravy were all void of any real flavor except for grease. Maybe the off the menu items are good?? Skip the buffet. The place is clean but the tables and booths are Tiny. Uncomfortable for a 4 person party. A Tucson landmark that needs a major re-work or will probably die. read more

Great Buffet for only $8.99! Better yet, the owner and staff. Personable, helpful, happy. Some of the best service we have had in years! Like a visit to grandma's Will be back!!!!! read more