Market Buffet And Grill - Barrie

The Market Buffet is located at Veterans Drive and Mapleview Drive, southeast corner in the plaza. The staff is very helpful and assertive. The Market has a wide variety of fresh food for the hungry man or woman. All you can is the simple way of putting it. Chicken, steaks, ribs, pot roast, or seafood. A wide variety of veggies, and salads. And then to top it all off, a wide variety of desserts, from bread pudding, rice pudding, jello, cakes, pies, ice cream, and many other selections. They are licensed so if you prefer a beer, or wine, it's available. Priced very reasonable.

This a great spot, especially if you are a meat lover. Family friendly, casual, attentive servers and reasonably priced. We stopped by on a Sunday for dinner. 2 seniors $20.99 each) 2 kids age 4-7 are $7.99 each includes unlimited soft drinks), adult must pay extra for beverages or alcohol. BBQ heaven: ribs done in 3 different types of sauce, beef brisket really good), steak already cooked well done, medium or rare rare was nice tender), pulled pork, pulled chicken, turkey, dressing, various gravies, mac n cheese, mac n bacon, meat loaf, bbq chicken, fried chicken, breaded shrimp, fresh cut fries, homemade potato chips, onion rings, grilled onions mushrooms, side vegetable options carrots, broccoli, medley, baked potato), ham off the bone, taco or fajita station, various meat fillings, all the usual fillings salsa, shredded cheese, tomato, etc, salad bar station, fruit station, dessert station, soft ice vanilla, twist or chocolate in a cone or cup with various toppings, soup 2 choices plus chili, biscuits, crackers or rolls. Stand alone building with lots of parking, accessible restaturant. Very good.

We visited The Maket on a recent ski trip to the Barrie area. Hungry after a day of skiing, we thought this would be a good option to fill up. I had heard many people say how much they enjoyed this chain restaurant so I was excited to try things out. We ordered and prepayed for our food. I don’t necessarily like that you have to pay before you eat, but seems to follow the style of the Ponderosa’s and others south of the border. We were seated quickly and our drinks also arrived shortly after we sat down. Our server was very nice and attentive when it came to clearing plates and refilling drinks. Now for the food. There was lots of selection and our daughter always loves a good buffet. Nice to see a taco section, assortment of side dishes and many different types of meat. Salad bar was basic at best but all seemed fresh. There was a curious lack of bread and buns overall but perhaps that is the norm. Now for the meat, it was disappointing. Brisket was tough and chewy and essentially tasteless. Steaks were smartly separated by doneness, but a rare or medium rare sitting around for any length of time quickly becomes overdone and again largely tough and tasteless. The ribs were pretty flavourful but tough and chewy. They could do so much better, i was not expecting high end steakhouse, but did expect it to be better. Desserts were all right, but stuck to pretty standard fair, good enough but kind of average. I think I would try this chain again but if they don’t up their game I would not return.

We decided on dinner at “Market Buffet BBQ and Smokehouse” for a birthday recently. The birthday boy enjoys all things meat and Market Buffet BBQ and Smokehouse seemed like a good choice. Having never been there we were looking forward to a fantastic selection of smokehouse fare in a casual, fun atmosphere. We arrived hungry and ready to eat about 630 pm on a Saturday and were pleased to discover there was plenty of room. That should have been our first clue! We were a bit taken aback that the first thing you do when you arrive is pre pay...for everything. You are asked to make a drink selection (soft drink, beer, coffee, etc. and the total is presented to you. They also ask you to pre pay the tip which we found presumptuous since we hadn’t yet removed our coat let alone been served anything. We were then handed our drinks at the cash register (bottle of beer, etc. and directed to carry them behind a hostess who led us to a table. We passed a vast array of entree’s and appetizers that looked pretty good. Coats off we ventured to the food. Excellent selection of meat entree’s including ribs, chicken, brisket and steaks. There was also pizza, Mac n’ Cheese and a plethora of sides and snacks (biscuits, corn bread, etc. that were available in ample quantities. There was only one problem most of it wasn’t very tasty or well made. Ribs seemed to be “side ribs”, extremely tough and chewy. The “Steaks” were available in rare, medium and well and stored in what seemed to be a broth in stainless steel serving pans. Beyond the unappetizing look, they tasted average and were on the tough side. The brisket, although looking like the genuine article turned out to be a tease of over cooked beef seasoned with something to create the illusion that this meat spent time in a smokehouse. The salad bar was average at best. Offerings were very basic. The mouldy grapes were a complete turnoff. We worked through our meal looking for some highlight on the buffet that would restore faith in our choice of venue. Between 6 of us we tried many of the entrees and the consensus was not good. Few of our choices were complete. Most were left on the plate. If there was to be redemption in our choice of venue, it would have to be dessert which was available on a large display. Cakes, puddings, ice cream, pies and more were available in quantity. Unfortunately these options were disappointing as well. Most of the offerings reminded one of Hospital food or something you might find at a discount grocery store. Nothing on offer seemed to be made on site or if it was, was not made very well. We went home hungry!!! Service was on the low side of average with the table having to ask for water and reminding the server to bring a coffee that was pre paid on arrival. Overall it was a big disappointment. We wont be back. I think it might be a place kids would enjoy because there are many options (including soft serve ice cream machine and they don’t really care about quality like adults. Value for Money 4/10 Service 6/10 Atmosphere ample room, feels like a cafeteria, open concept tables Food Quality/Taste 4/10 Parking free and ample Overall rating 5/10, Not Recommended

Great buffet restaurant for family dinners. Large variety of tasty entrees, salads and deserts. Staff is pleasant and efficient.