All-you-can-eat joints often get a bad rap, but America is a veritable buffet of brilliant restaurants that don't sacrifice quality in favor of quantity. From lavish brunches to mouthwatering seafood buffets, we've found the best all-you-can-eat restaurant in every state for a truly epic meal.

Click or scroll through our gallery to find the best place for an all-you-can-eat feast near you.

Our selections are based on genuine user reviews, awards and accolades, and the first-hand experience of our team. They're also regularly checked and updated.

A beloved restaurant in Alabama's state capital, Martha's Place has fed celebrities from Whoopi Goldberg to Sissy Spacek. It's owned and operated by Martha Hawkins, a Montgomery-born woman who fell on hard times, but didn't surrender her dream of opening a restaurant. More than three decades later, the homey spot still dishes up a daily lunch and dinner buffet, including classics such as fried chicken and turkey with dressing, as well as comforting sides like fried okra, green beans, and black-eyed peas.

Family-owned for more than 30 years, this popular all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet and salad bar wins rave reviews from customers who praise the tasty, flavorful food on offer and the outstanding service. Steps are also taken to maintain the quality of dishes, for example, sauce can be added to chicken drums and wings at your table (rather than at the buffet) for maximum freshness. There's also a separate menu available alongside the all-you-can-eat option.

Committed to nourishing the people of Tucson (the USA's first UNESCO City of Gastronomy), Govinda's Natural Foods Buffet has been running since 1992. All the delicious food is vegetarian, with the buffet straining under the weight of curried and baked vegetables, pasta dishes, house-made bread, and daily changing specials such as curried vegetable and lentil croquettes and vegan lasagna. The restaurant is closed on Mondays.

Opened in 1993, Star of India's lunchtime buffet is a popular choice thanks to its selection of fresh and flavorsome lamb, chicken, beef, seafood, Halal goat, vegetarian, and vegan dishes, all served with varying levels of spice. The choice is plentiful, and customers also rate the friendly, informative staff and the restaurant's ambience with its booth seating and Hindi background music.

Cafe Sierra's Seafood and Prime Rib Buffet is the stuff of legend. Every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday evening, the swish restaurant at Hilton Los Angeles/Universal City lays on an indulgent spread heavy with seafood and fine cuts of meat. Choose between oysters, lobster thermidor, and Alaskan king crab or visit one of the 'Action Stations' where you can watch chefs whip up fresh tacos or stir-fried dishes. Finish off with a sweet crêpe or generous scoop of ice cream.

This Indian, Nepalese, and Tibetan joint has six locations in Colorado. Timings vary, but each restaurant offers a delicious lunch and dinner buffet throughout the week, where you can try a range of classic Asian dishes. Crowd-pleasers include the sweet potato masala and the kicking chili chicken, plus sides and starters like crisp samosas and saag.

A popular resort in southern Connecticut, near the town of Essex, Water's Edge is often tipped as having the state's best brunch buffet. Served in the resort's Dattilo Fine Italian restaurant, the lauded Sunday Brunch menu changes weekly, though consistent favorites include the 'ice sculpture' raw bar, laden with sushi and sashimi, oysters, and shrimp. You can also opt for made-to-order crêpes or omelets, plus entrées like beef stroganoff or grilled chicken curry. The views across the Long Island Sound are another reason to visit. 

One for carnivores, Churrascaria Saudades is committed to bringing the glorious Brazilian tradition of churrasco barbecue to the people of Newark. Here chefs roast meats over an open flame, then carve them from large metal skewers and plate them up table-side. Diners pay a fixed price to eat as much meat as they can manage, with the 15 cuts available ranging from lamb chops and pork ribs to garlic sirloin and filet mignon. Bottomless side options include crispy polenta and Brazilian pão de queijo (a kind of cheesy roll). 

With locations in Coral Gables and Weston, both near Miami, POC American Fusion Buffet & Sushi describes itself as a 'non-traditional buffet-style dining restaurant.' Some highly regarded chefs are behind this South Florida offering, including sushi chef Kevin Z, who has worked in the kitchens of both Nobu and SushiSamba. Each location boasts a popular buffet of more than 100 items including nigiri sushi and sashimi and entrées such as salmon teriyaki, saffron clams, and veal stew.

This sleek New American spot in Atlanta puts on a mean weekend brunch buffet with a menu crammed with classics enlivened by creative twists. Choose between breakfast favorites like soft scrambled eggs and buttermilk pancakes, or fill up on shrimp and grits with spicy tomato sauce and basil oil. For an indulgent sweet treat, try Elvis' French Toast with whipped peanut butter mascarpone and maple syrup.

This all-you-can-eat Korean buffet wins rave reviews from customers who love the tasty selection of meats and sides, funky décor, and friendly service. On the buffet you'll find choices including steak, thinly sliced spicy pork belly, garlic shrimp, bulgogi, and vegetable tofu, served with an array of sauces. For a fun, interactive twist, all tables come with their own grill so you can watch your food being cooked right before your eyes.

Priding itself on its 'refined yet creative' Indian cooking, this traditional restaurant is well-loved in Boise. While the à la carte menu is delicious, it's the venue's lunchtime buffet that really draws in the crowds. It features a selection of curries and rice dishes, from goat biriyani to butter chicken, plus naan bread and spicy vegetable samosas. Repeat customers recommend pairing your flavorful meal with a refreshing lassi drink.

Chicago's Red Apple Buffet is no stranger to awards and accolades, having been named the best buffet in Illinois on numerous occasions. The food here, described as European fusion, has a strong Polish influence and the owners are committed to 'the habits and traditions of the old world,' meaning they rely upon organic, free-range produce, and house-made goods. The all-you-can-eat menus change daily, but you can expect such delicacies as pierogi, stuffed cabbage, Polish schnitzel, and potato pancakes.

One of the top Indian restaurants in Bloomington, India Garden has a sizeable à la carte menu, as well as a lunch buffet that’s favored among locals. The changing all-you-can-eat offering includes tempting vegan options such as the spicy fried cauliflower dish, gobi Manchurian, and moreish spinach pakoras. Tandoori chicken, goat curry, and paneer tikka masala often make an appearance too. Accompany your Indian feast with a masala chai or a sweet mango lassi.

Kathmandu Restaurant opened in 2016 and, despite its unassuming façade, has been impressing locals ever since. The restaurant focuses on Indian and Nepalese cuisine and the lunchtime buffet gives you a chance to sample a great swathe of the menu. Typical buffet items include banana pakora fritters, daal, and a range of curries. The momos (Nepalese-style dumplings) are well worth a try, too.

Wichita's Los Compadres Mexican Grill has built up a solid reputation for its friendly service and its flavor-packed Mexican food. Come by and you'll find a popular roster of lunchtime specials and a much-hyped Sunday breakfast buffet. From the all-you-can-eat selection, expect a generous array of Mexican staples including chilaquiles (a breakfast dish made with corn tortillas) and menudo soup, as well as rice, beans, eggs, and more. 

A longstanding favorite in Owensboro, the self-proclaimed barbecue capital of the world, the Moonlite Bar-B-Que Inn has been running for more than half a century. It's consistently held up as one of the best barbecue joints in the state, with its barbecued mutton being a favorite among diners. A lunchtime and evening buffet runs Monday through Saturday (a brunch buffet is offered on Sunday), with hickory-smoked meats from pork to beef on offer every day. There's also shrimp and catfish fiddlers available on select evenings.

The Court of Two Sisters is one of the Big Easy's most unique restaurants, serving its Cajun and Creole cuisine with a side of jazz. The restaurant has a long history and is named after two women (Bertha Angaud and Emma Camors) who opened a shop on the premises in the 1880s and sometimes served tea and snacks from the courtyard. Today a form of this tradition continues with a buffet brunch featuring made-to-order omelets, shrimp cocktail, Creole jambalaya, and more served daily in the courtyard. A jazz trio adds to the atmosphere.

It may seem an odd concept, but the Oceanview Dining Hall – tucked away in the campus of Southern Maine Community College, yet open to the paying public – consistently ranks among Maine's top all-you-can-eat restaurants. Not only does the dining hall have wonderful waterside views, it also has a fine selection of food for bargain prices. The offering changes daily, but favorites include the tacos, comforting pasta plates, fresh fish dishes, and veggies from the salad bar.

Harris Crab House is famous for its all-you-can-eat oyster buffet, which is served on a Friday and features oysters offered seven ways – from Rockefeller to steamed and stuffed with crab –, plus several other seafood dishes and sides including pastas, vegetables, fries, and potatoes. Plus, there's a great spread of desserts if you have enough room. Customers say the food is of great quality and the service is friendly, too.

This interactive shabu-shabu–style experience sees diners select a variety of meats, seafood, noodles, vegetables, and sauces from the buffet, which are then cooked at their table in individual pots filled with simmering broth. The price also included unlimited vanilla or green tea matcha soft serve for a cooling treat to end the meal. Diners say it's a fun way to eat and praise the fresh and flavorful food and attentive service.

You'll find this buffet restaurant, whose name is a nod to Detroit's car manufacturing history, in the MotorCity Casino and Hotel. It's won awards for its delicious offering, which includes classic American comfort food as well as international cuisine, from sushi to tamales. Come for lunch or dinner any day of the week, or for a mighty breakfast at weekends.

Meat lovers will be in heaven sampling the traditional churrasco experience at Fogo. An endless election of fire-roasted meat, from rib-eye and sirloin to bacon-wrapped chicken and pork chops, are presented to the table alongside Brazilian side dishes including cheese bread and caramelized bananas. Diners say arriving hungry is a must and that the whole thing is incredible.

'Endless options from around the world' are available at this all-you-can-eat buffet in Biloxi's Palace Casino Resort. The restaurant is carved up into zones, from Flames, where you can pick up prime rib or steak, to Wok, the Mongolian barbecue area, where you can watch a chef toss noodles with your choice of meat, veggies, sauces, and spice. You can also gorge on indulgent desserts made by the buffet's award-winning pastry chef. Lunch and dinner is served daily and breakfast is available on weekends.

Something of a Kansas City institution, the Peach Tree Buffet dishes up traditional soul food in bountiful portions. The buffet, centered around home-style Southern cooking, is open from Tuesday through to Sunday, with a menu that changes by the day. Southern fried chicken is doled out daily, alongside other warming classics like meatloaf with tomato sauce, fried catfish, beef brisket, and heaps of sides. There's peach cobbler for dessert and, on Sunday, the brunch buffet includes a waffle station.

When only comforting carbs will do, head to Silver Bow Pizza for a legendary pizza buffet where you can feast on a selection of delicious pies without being limited to one flavor. The family-run spot boasts a great salad bar too, so you can enjoy an array of greens with your pizza, and it's the perfect place to take the kids thanks to the relaxed atmosphere and selection of arcade games.

Locals rave about the daily lunch buffet at Omaha's Flavors Indian restaurant thanks to the wide variety of curries and sides on offer, and the fact that it offers really great value for money. Customers also love the chic décor of this modern restaurant and praise the service. It's the perfect spot for when you’re craving Indian food but want to try a little bit of everything, rather than limiting yourself to a single dish.

When it comes to all-you-can-eat spots in Sin City, you're spoiled for choice – but the legendary Bacchanal Buffet at Caesars Palace really is the mother of them all. The Bacchanal Buffet opened in 2012 to the tune of $100 million, with a lavish dining room and an endless supply of fine food. Savor plates of king crab legs and seafood laksa, or plump for some handmade dim sum or smoked wagyu beef, just don't leave without sinking your teeth into the made-to-order chocolate lava cake.

The Portsmouth Gas Light Company building plays host to multiple venues including a grill, a deck with live music, and a nightclub on its third floor. But it's the family-oriented Pizza Pub that has a tasty all-you-can-eat deal. Come by at lunchtime from Monday through Friday and you'll be met with a heaving buffet of wood-fired pizzas. While you'll want to try each one, start with a slice of the venue's flagship Gas Light pizza, laden with signature sauce, sweet Italian sausage, pepperoni, ricotta, and mozzarella.

This vegetarian Indian restaurant in Jersey City offers a breakfast buffet at weekends, served 8am-11am. The spot excels at South Indian breakfast delicacies like idli rice cakes and pongal, a rice dish with lentils, nuts, and spices. There's also a live cooking station and an array of fresh fruit juices and coffees on offer.

Open since 1993, this family-run buffet restaurant cooks up an impressive array of classic Italian dishes every day. There's soup, meatballs, pastas, a heaving salad bar, a selection of delicious pizzas, tiramisu and soft serve all available from the Italian food bar, which is available at both lunch and dinner. Customers say the joint may be small, but the food is fresh, tasty and plentiful.

For a fixed price of $80 you can order as much freshly cooked seafood as you want from Crab House’s Seafood Buffet in a Bucket menu. Choices include jumbo crab legs, pan-seared salmon, Cajun garlic butter shrimp, lobster cake, and calamari, plus sides including fries, broccoli, and spring rolls. If you want to push the boat out, you can splash a bit more cash (around $35) and enjoy everything from the seafood menu plus three different types of lobster. Take note – if you visit to celebrate your birthday with friends, you eat for free.

It's the stunning view across the mountains that draws diners to the Blue Ridge Artisanal Buffet at The Omni Grove Park Inn – but the food is well worth sticking around for too. Each day, the restaurant runs the Art of Breakfast buffet, featuring elevated versions of Southern classics like shrimp and grits. There's also a Sunday Champagne brunch, a decadent Friday night seafood buffet, and a prime-rib buffet on Saturdays.

Open since 2005, this traditional Indian spot offers a lunchtime buffet from Tuesday through Sunday (the restaurant is closed on Mondays). More than 20 tempting options make up the buffet, from spicy vegetable dishes to melt-in-the-mouth meat curries. A typical lunchtime spread may include dishes such as goat vindaloo, Malabar fish curry, and chicken tikka, with accompaniments like pakora (vegetable fritters) and idli (savory rice cakes).

Mrs Yoder's Kitchen is located under an hour and a half from Cleveland, in the heart of Ohio's Amish country. The food, from the down-home dinners to the belly-busting buffet breakfasts, is well worth traveling for and that's exactly what people do. Come by at lunch or dinner and chow down on fried chicken, grilled pork chops, fried shrimp, and more. Finish off with a generous slice of pie, from apple or cherry to the seasonal favorite, pumpkin.

As the name suggests, this no-fuss restaurant, less than 20 minutes from downtown Oklahoma City, has Cajun food at its heart. With its offering described as 'a little bit of soul and a whole lotta Cajun,' the restaurant serves a daily buffet of hearty dishes including fried chicken and crawfish étouffée. The favorite is the fried catfish, which comes complete with a basket of golden beignets and a special house-made sauce.

Salty's serves a Sunday brunch buffet that absolutely heaves with tasty treats, from traditional breakfast items such as French toast, biscuits and gravy, and made-to-order omelets to an array of fresh seafood, prime rib, salads, fruits, pastries, and desserts. Customers say it's the best brunch buffet in Portland and rave about the service too. There are also locations in Seattle and Redondo. 

A constantly buzzing Chinatown spot, Nine Ting is an all-you-can-eat restaurant specializing in Korean barbecue and hot pot. If you choose the hot pot option you'll start off with a pot of bubbling stock, to which you can add the ingredients of your choice from seafood to noodles and veg. Plump for barbecue and you'll grill the meat and veggies at a tabletop barbecue yourself. Whichever you go for, don’t forget to add the signature Nine Ting special sauce to your creations.

It's all about seafood at this seasonal spot in waterside Charlestown. Open from the end of April through to mid-December, the perpetually busy restaurant allows customers to sample as much as they like from the impressive buffet spread. Get your fill of lobster, scallops, stuffed shrimp, Alaskan crab, and more, plus New England clam chowder and lobster mac ’n’ cheese. You can also indulge in filet mignon or barbecue pork ribs, while fresh veggies and desserts complete the meal. 

Billing itself as 'the seafood experience of the Grand Strand,' Captain George's offers a daily dinner buffet. The restaurant is famed for its high-quality seafood spread and it has four locations. The Captain George's in Myrtle Beach is a stone's throw from the sea and its buffet items include snow crab legs, steamed crawfish, oysters Rockefeller, and the catch of the day. Pair your seafood feast with green beans and corn, and house-baked bread. 

Carnaval Brazilian Grill operates a rodizio-style dining experience, whereby customers pay a single price and eat as much as they desire, signaling with a token (one side red, the other green) whether or not they wish for more. All the meat, from guava barbecue pork to top sirloin, is carved at the table. Pair it with items from the salad bar and classic Brazilian side dishes from the hot bar.

Since 2009, the Chow Time Buffet & Grill has been serving Southern-style soul food to the people of Memphis. The buffet is offered daily, from lunch right through to dinner, and you can choose from a huge selection of regional favorites. Meat fans will delight in the crispy fried chicken, the barbecued spare ribs, and the grilled pork chops, while there's plenty of sweet potato, okra, and spaghetti to go round too. If you've got a sweet tooth, don't miss the dessert bar.

Today Fogo de Chão has locations dotted across North and South America, but the Dallas spot was where it all started. Diners can fill up on vegetables and pulses from the Market Table, then await the arrival of succulent skewered meats from the traditional Brazilian barbecue. Crowd favorites include the hugely flavorful picanha (the venue's signature steak), the beef ancho (bone-in rib-eye) and the tender beef ribs.

Now with several venues across the state and two in Idaho, this small regional chain began in Salt Lake City back in 1966 and had a steady stream of customers right from the beginning. The buffet has burgeoned over the decades, but has remained a local favorite, serving global and American cuisine every day of the week. Visit on a Thursday for Mexican Day and you'll be met with chicken enchiladas and beef and bean burritos, or stop by on Italian Day (Saturday) for lasagna and pasta Alfredo.

As well as a menu of classic sandwiches, Zabby & Elf's serves a daily vegetarian and vegan buffet featuring the likes of maple-glazed tofu, saag panner, black bean coconut quinoa, and seitan red curry. Customers love the rustic feel of the joint and rave about the friendly service and fresh and flavorful food.

The Jefferson Hotel's sumptuous Sunday Champagne Brunch is laid out in the venue's lobby, complete with grand tables, ornate columns, and extravagant flower displays. The menu itself is equally luxurious, with a heady mix of seafood, carved meats, and classic breakfast items. Opt for hickory-smoked bacon and three-cheese grits or swing for an ocean-inspired feast of smoked salmon, poached shrimp, and oysters. Brunch here books up in a flash, so make a reservation.

Customers rave about the flavorful food on offer at this Japanese hot pot restaurant, with many saying they're continually impressed with the quality and selection on offer. At Shaburina, you choose your hot pot broth and meats – including beef chuck, pork belly and shoulder – before adding noodles and sauces and cooking the dish at the table. There's also a buffet with a variety of veggies, fish cakes, and shrimp, plus unlimited soft serve also comes included.

Craving Chinese food? Head down to Charleston's China Buffet restaurant which serves a daily array of tasty dishes such as coconut shrimp, honey chicken, and egg foo young. Customers praise the flavorful food and friendly service and say the place offers good value for money. They also love that you can fill a 'to go' box for a small extra charge so you can continue your feasting at home.

Among Milwaukee's top-rated restaurants, as its name suggests Alem Ethiopian Village serves up a bounty of traditional Ethiopian dishes. From Tuesday through to Friday, guests can enjoy a vegetarian lunch buffet featuring many of the venue's top items. If they’re available on the day you visit, be sure to sample the lentil stew yemisir wot and the Ethiopian-style collard greens with garlic and pepper – both are exceptional.

Indian-style buffets are often a winner, and this relaxed Casper venue is no exception. Serving honest Indian and Nepalese food, the restaurant runs a lunchtime buffet Monday through to Saturday. Familiar favorites including chicken saag, tarka daal, and lamb rogan josh may well appear and you’ll find piles of perfectly cooked rice and plenty of naan bread too. If you're hankering after something sweet, give the mango or pistachio kulfi a try.

Now discover the best-loved dish in every state and where to eat it

Last updated by Dominique Ayling.