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Mandarin Restaurant: A Fun and Family Friendly Experience #MandarinON

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Mandarin Resturant is  an award-winning all-you-can-eat buffet that is not only family friendly but also caters to even the pickiest of eaters with the wide variety of food choice available.  

My Husband, Keira and I took my parents and sister out to the Mandarin Restaurant for a family dinner at the 1508 Upper James Street location in Hamilton, ON.   Since we had made a reservation we were guided right away to our table by the Hostess.  Immediately after being seated, we were greeted by Song, our friendly and attentive server with hot, wet towels to wash our hands prior to eating.  He also let us know about the specials, including the on-going Crab Festival.

Nobody could wait to get to the buffet and get started.  I was really impressed with how the staff in the buffet area were all so ready and willing to help guests in any way they could.   I wasn’t feeling my best that night but the food had me drooling so I piled up a plate of some of my favourite Chinese cuisine – noodles, pepper steak, chicken balls, sautéed vegetables, and lemon chicken among other things.  When I got back to the table I found everyone happily eating away, including Keira who was enjoying some french fries. 

The Manager on duty, Michael Jiang, came by to introduce himself to us and ensure we were having a pleasant time.  It was funny to see Keira immediately take a liking to him, flashing him one of her little smiles.  (This is a big thing because she is at the stage where she will often cry at strangers.)  I was even more impressed to see that this wasn’t just special treatment as I noticed him checking on other tables as well.

The Mandarin Restaurants commitment to customer satisfaction is the basis of the company’s mission statement: “Every customer must feel welcomed as soon as they arrive. Every customer must be happy and smiling when they leave“.  This is a commitment the staff and management do not take likely.  My mother even commented that we have never been to the Mandarin and left feeling ignored by staff, or as if we were unwelcome.  The service is always consistently good and friendly and this visit was absolutely no exception.

buffet shot

My husband was feeling adventurous and wanted to take advantage of the on-going Crab Festival promotion and returned to our table with a crab leg.   Great!  Except none of us eat seafood and weren’t really sure what to do.  Not a problem – Michael, the Manager, immediately spotted him awkwardly trying to figure out the crab leg and brought him a bowl of butter sauce and a fresh crab leg and proceeded to demonstrate how to properly eat the crab leg.  My husband is now officially in love with crab – he was talking about going back for more crab legs just a few days later!

Since I wasn’t feeling my best I decided to check out the soup for my next course and went with Wonton Soup on the recommendation of a staff member.  It was so hot and good, it went down just right.  Everyone else had another plate of a variety of hot and cold Chinese and Canadian foods.  My husband piled his plate with potato salad – one of his favourite foods. 

Soon though, we were all feeling done in and ready for dessert.  Keira was treated to oranges and watermelon slices – she was truly in heaven.  I enjoyed the fresh fruit, some of the baked goods, and my favourite – chocolate dipped strawberries!

I have to admit though, my favourite part of the Mandarin experience is the hot, wet towel at the end of the meal.  The perfect end to a wonderful meal!  It’s the little details like this that makes Mandarin a real winner.

I’d like to extend a special thanks to all the staff (and especially to Song and Michael) at the Hamilton Mandarin location for providing my family with a truly wonderful family friendly dining experience.

For more information about the Mandarin or for restaurant locations, visit their website. 

kathy downey

Wednesday 3rd of September 2014

Sounds like a great restaurant,wish I was closer would love to try it

Randa @ The Bewitchin' Kitchen

Tuesday 18th of June 2013

That looks awesome. I love chinese buffets :)

Jennifer

Tuesday 18th of June 2013

haha I wouldn't know what to do with a crab leg either! lol glad he got some help! I wish we had a mandarin near us!

Kelly @ City Mom

Tuesday 18th of June 2013

Love the Manadrin! And I love how it seems no matter what city you're in, the experience is the same!

Annie @ It's just my life...

Tuesday 18th of June 2013

I have heard to much about this restaurant but have yet to try it out... hoping to this summer.