King Palace Chinese Buffet



Cuisine

Asian, Chinese, Japanese, Seafood, Sushi



Meal Periods

Dinner, Lunch



Dining Format

Buffet



Phone

(281) 890-7844



Address

18315 Tomball Pkwy
Houston, TX 77070



Website

kingpalacechinesebuffet.com



Cuisine

Asian, Chinese, Japanese, Seafood, Sushi



Meal Periods

Dinner, Lunch



Dining Format

Buffet



Phone

(281) 890-7844



Address

18315 Tomball Pkwy
Houston, TX 77070



Website

kingpalacechinesebuffet.com

EXPERIENCE

King Palace Chinese Buffet is a self-serve Chinese and seafood restaurant in Houston’s Willowbrook area, with sushi and sashimi alongside the hot dishes. Lunch and dinner at 18315 Tomball Parkway can run from roast duck and fried rice to garlic-butter mussels and chilled crab. Seafood has a prominent place, but the Chinese cooked dishes are a reason to come in their own right.

The long, low building has the familiar scale of a suburban buffet, with broad windows across the front. After dark, large KING PALACE letters and a bright green roofline give the red-tiled frontage a little showmanship. It makes a cheerful introduction to an otherwise straightforward sit-down meal, with the buffet rightfully stealing all of the attention once inside.

Long buffet counters and self-serve aisles organize the room. Hot pans, seafood and prepared sushi keep the choices visible, while the table is where the separate helpings become dinner. Shell-on seafood makes part of the meal more hands-on than the hot Chinese dishes. That is an attraction for a family gathering centered on seafood, with time at the table between visits to the counters.

Weekday lunch runs until 4pm, when dinner begins; weekends use an all-day buffet rate. Takeout comes from a separate menu, so its long list of entrees is a different selection from the buffet. For the sit-down meal, King Palace’s identity is clear enough: Chinese roast and wok dishes, prepared seafood, and a sushi station in the same casual restaurant. The green glow outside provides the flourish; the choices at the counters are the main event.

FOOD

Roast duck is a good reason to begin at King Palace’s Chinese hot counter before investigating the seafood. Its rich meat and crisp roasted skin make a plate of duck and wok-fired fried rice a perfectly satisfying lunch on their own. Orange chicken is a sweeter Chinese-American favorite, with citrus sauce coating the pieces, while noodles, broccoli and mixed vegetables fill out the hot counter. The selection changes between services, particularly the premium seafood and sushi, so leave room for whatever looks most appealing that day.

Garlic-butter mussels are among the seafood dishes worth looking for, especially if you like shellfish already dressed with a little richness. Chilled crab offers a cooler course and a chance to enjoy the crab’s sweet meat; other crab preparations combine shell-on sections with onion and green chilies. This is a seafood buffet with prepared dishes to explore as well as shells to crack. A fondness for garlic butter will serve you well.

Golden calamari adds fried squid to the choices, with crawfish, boiled shrimp and oysters among the other possibilities. If peeling shrimp and working through a helping of crawfish is your idea of a good lunch, this part of the spread deserves time at the table. It is also easy to alternate those hands-on choices with something ready to eat from the hot counter.

The sushi selection gives you another course to consider between the Chinese dishes and shellfish. Rolls include avocado-topped pieces and combinations finished with drizzled sauces, while sashimi is there for diners who would rather concentrate on the fish. A few rolls can be part of the meal without becoming the whole meal, which is helpful when roast duck and crab have already made persuasive claims on your appetite.

Ice cream is among the sweet choices, with more than one variety appearing in the selection. After garlic-butter mussels, roast duck and perhaps a little sushi, a small bowl is an uncomplicated finish. You have made enough dinner decisions for one afternoon.

FOOD HIGHLIGHTS

♛ Roast Duck — a crisp roast preparation among the Chinese buffet dishes.

♛ Garlic-Butter Mussels — mussels prepared with garlic butter.

♛ Chilled Crab — a cold seafood choice in the changing assortment.

♛ Calamari — fried squid among the seafood choices.

♛ Orange Chicken — sauce-coated chicken among the Chinese hot dishes.

♛ Sushi and Sashimi — rolls and sliced fish beside the Chinese hot dishes.

♛ Ice Cream — a simple finish among the dessert choices.

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