Buffet Day

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#BuffetDay

Food & Drink

Month

January

Rule

January 2

Day of Year

January 2

Calendar Date

Tue, 01/02/2024

Thu, 01/02/2025

Fri, 01/02/2026

Buffet Day is January 2nd

Buffet Day celebrates those wonderful all-you-can buffets that are great ways to feed the entire family. Most buffets have such a wide variety of different kinds of foods so there is something for everyone.

The gym is going to be packed with all the ‘new years resolutioners’ so you might as well skip it and go celebrate National Buffet Day, an entire day dedicated to eating copious amounts of food in (G)astronomical proportions. Who doesn’t love eating endless amounts of your favorite food (i.e. Chinese food, chicken wings, or soup and salad).

Places to find Buffets:

Large resorts
Large travel hubs like Las Vegas, Sweden and Paris etc.
Food specific like soup and salad or Chinese food

History of Buffets

The first formal concept of buffets were started in Sweden and Paris. Sweden’s buffets were prominently used to feed unexpected out-of-town guests. Having a smorgasbord that started with just bread and butter and eventually grew into a lavish spread of salted fish, eggs, boiled vegetables, cold cuts, other warm entrees and salads, and ending finally with dessert and coffee. Whereas, the French had more lavish buffets to display prominence and to entertain rather than cook. In 1939, the Swedes brought the concept of the buffet to the United States at the World’s Fair in New York, which later inspired buffet style restaurants in the 50’s.

The first all-you-can-eat buffet was born in 1940 by a man named Herb McDonald. He worked at one of the first hotels on the Strip in Las Vegas called El Rancho Vegas. The story is that late one night he brought out a spread of cold cuts, cheese, and bread for hungry customers. The late-night menu was a hit, so it later turned into a 24-hour-all you-can-eat “Buckaroo Buffet” for just $1, a lavish spread of cold cuts, salad, and seafood.

There are different ways to celebrate Buffet Day — you can go to your favorite buffet in your neighborhood or you can throw your own buffet party with friends.