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Chaos Arcade photo
Brunch to your heart's
desire at Chaos Arcade.
A buffet is truly a choose-your-own-adventure meal. The offerings change daily, keeping you on your toes and giving you the opportunity to try something new or return to an old favorite. Before I started writing this piece, I, of course, searched high and low for the best buffet options in the Inland Northwest. When my list of potential inclusions quickly grew to nearly two dozen restaurants with no end in sight, I knew I had to stop looking and start writing, lest I go wildly over my word count. I went for a diversity in flavors with this list, but know that there are even more low-price, high-variety options out there, so don your best sweatpants, and use this list as a starting point to truly eat all you can.
CHAOS ARCADE
1020 W. Francis Ave., Spokane
After working up an appetite playing all the games Chaos Arcade has to offer, take advantage of the All-You-Can-Eat Weekend Brunch on Saturdays and Sundays from 10 am to 1:30 pm. The newly launched weekend brunch special features a rotating menu of breakfast favorites including a breakfast burrito bar, scrambled eggs, quiches and egg cups, bacon and sausage, biscuits and gravy, an oatmeal bar, French toast and pancakes, baked goods, and tea and coffee. Brunch passes are $25 for adults, $13 for children and free for kids ages 2 and under. For a full day of fun, consider the Gamer's Feast Bundle ($33/adults, $20/children), which includes a $10 game card and a brunch pass. Brunch passes are available until 1 pm, but food won't be restocked after then, so come early for the best selection.
THE ORIGINAL MONGOLIAN BARBECUE
3213 N. Government Way, Coeur d'Alene
If you've never enjoyed Mongolian barbecue before, Coeur d'Alene's The Original Mongolian Barbecue makes it easy. First, choose your bowl size: the small Little Kahn ($10.29 lunch/$13 dinner), medium Mighty Kahn ($13.29 lunch/$16 dinner), large Barbarian ($16.29 lunch/$19 dinner) or All You Can Eat ($19.29 lunch/$22 dinner). Then, saunter down the buffet line as you fill your bowl with your choice of fresh fruits and veggies, a variety of meat options, stir fry staples and a combination of made-in-house gourmet sauces. Finally, hand your bowl off to one of the cooks, who will then cook everything for you on one of the restaurant's sizzling grills. It's dining made simple.
DOS GORDOS TACOS AND TEQUILA
12501 N. Division St., Spokane
Dos Gordos takes Taco Tuesday seriously, and they want you to, too. Every Tuesday, stop by Dos Gordos for unlimited crispy tacos (chicken, pork or shredded beef) plus rice and beans for just $19. And yes, they really mean unlimited. According to a post on the restaurant's Instagram page, the current record stands at 18 tacos. Think you can do better? (Check out our Taco Tuesday feature on page 22 for more tortilla-filled hot spots.)
TOP OF INDIA
11114 E. Sprague Ave., Spokane Valley
The buffet offerings at Top of India are as diverse as the rest of the menu. From 11:30 am to 3 pm every day except Sundays, you can chow down on a selection of authentic Indian dishes including curries and rice, meat options like tandoori chicken and chicken korma, paneer, samosas, and, of course, warm naan. Vegetarians and nonvegetarians alike can find plenty to enjoy at this buffet. Adults and children 12 and older eat for $17, while younger children can fill their plates for $11.
CANAAN BUFFET
9606 N. Newport Highway, Spokane
Canaan Buffet might be the buffet to end all buffets. The Pan-Asian restaurant's buffet boasts more than 150 dishes each day. Among the many options are salt and pepper shrimp, butterfly shrimp, baked salmon, calamari, vegetable rice noodles, and green bean bok choy. There is also a sushi bar and a Mongolian grill station. Make sure you do a few laps around the restaurant to take in all of your options. The lunch buffet is available Mondays through Saturdays from 11 am to 4 pm. Adults eat for $18 and, depending on their age, children eat for between $2 (3 years old) and $9 (12 years old). Those ages 60 and older can take advantage of buffet happy hour on Mondays through Fridays from 2 to 4 pm for $15. The dinner buffet is available Mondays through Saturdays from 4 to 9 pm. On Sundays and holidays, the buffet is open from 11 am to 9 pm. Adults eat for $23, and kids eat for $2 (3 years old) to $12 (12 years old). Seniors, members of the military, law enforcement and students with ID save $1 on both the lunch and dinner buffets.
BOIADA BRAZILIAN GRILL
245 W. Spokane Falls Blvd., Spokane
While their regular meals are a bit of a splurge ($63.95 for Rodízio Churrasco, where gaúchos carve a variety of rotating meat options, including beef, lamb, chicken and pork, right at your table), if you don't mind serving yourself, you can still get a lot for a little at Boiada Brazilian Grill. Ordering the Boiada Light Lunch ($27.95) gets you unlimited access to the fresh salad table, which includes a selection of salads, vegetables and dressings, plus Brazilian dishes like farofa (toasted yucca flour with Portuguese sausage and bacon) and pão de queijo (cheese bread). If you've got a little more lunch money to spend, you can upgrade to add 8 to 10 ounces of meat to your meal, from $33.95 total for the fresh salad table with chicken to $37.95 for all-you-can-eat salad with grilled shrimp.♦
