Date Visited: 19 October 2008Meal: Lunch
Diners: 3 - Me, Wendy, & Alicia
Experience: Red Apple is a very unique restaurant in Leesburg. It's a buffet, open only for lunch and dinner, and there's no other menu. If you go to Red Apple, you're having the buffet!
The buffet itself is an eclectic mix of offerings. About half of it is composed of Asian items; mostly Chinese. The rest is a variety of traditional American items. Between the three of us, I think we tried most of what was there.
Here's what I can remember of the buffet content:
Asian items: Sushi (various kinds), Yakitori, Sczechwan green beans, Crab Rangoon, egg rolls, dumplings, hot & sour soup, wonton soup, egg drop soup, Kung Pao chicken, Sesame chicken, sweet & sour pork, fried shrimp, parchment shrimp, Kimchi, seaweed salad, and Mongolian barbeque, made to order.
American items: Pizza, crab salad, french fries, onion rings, macaroni & cheese, Bourbon chicken, roast beef, meat loaf, meat balls, corn, mashed potatoes, salad bar, and a dessert bar.
All this for $12.25 per person on Sunday! The quality and taste of the food ranges from OK to pretty good. If you want all-you-can-eat variety at a reasonable price, Red Apple is a good choice.
History: When we first moved here in 1987, there was a Sizzler at this location. The nearest Sizzler in now in New Jersey! When they closed, a Ponderosa Steakhouse was there for a while. It appears that Ponderosa has gone bankrupt; see the Wikipedia article. Then came Red Apple, and we hope they stay.
Location: 962 Edwards Ferry Rd., Leesburg, VA, 20176
Web site: none
Total bill: $36.75 + $7.00 tip = $43.75
6 comments:
Ponderosa did not declare banruptcy. A related company declared banruptcy. Individual Ponderosa stores have closed in the past for different reasons. Some are franchised and the owners of the franchised units might have declared bankruptcy, but the corporate locations have not done that.
Don't agree with the comment "If you want all-you-can-eat variety at a reasonable price, Red Apple is a good choice.". I think Red Apple has to be one of the worst Chinese Buffet I've ever had. Yes, it's that bad.
My family, wife and I and two 2-year old, went there last night around 7 pm after shopping at the outlet mall. Not a local resident, live in Centreville, I did a search on iphone and decided to try the Chinese buffet nearby (after finding Jasmine Chinese is closed on Sunday). Food is bad in Red Apple. Selection is slim (around 30?) and most dishes were dry and overcooked. We quickly aborted the main dishes after one plate of trying and went for Mongolian BBQ. M-BBQ were just OK and limited on selection but at least it's fresh comparing to main dishes.
Besides food, the restaurant is poorly decorated. Dark red light over the food, so you don't know what you are picking. only 4 tables were occupied when we were there. most of the place is empty. one host, one waiter, one cashier and one BBQ chef. I feel this place has been running like this for a while.
If you like Chinese Buffet, try Peter Pan in Fairfax or Golden King in Sterling are 10 times better. Even Royal Buffet in Reston is not too shabby and cheaper than Red Apple.
Im not all too sure that the person above me was counting the amount of items they had but last time I was there i saw well above 40 items on the main bar. That's not including the salad,sushi, or mongolian bar. The food is pretty good for the money and I don't know of any other place that cooks all you can eat steaks for 12 bucks. I'm not sure but it seems like perhaps you hit up that place on an off day. I've been there many times and I haven't had a complaint yet.
If the person who said Red Apple Buffet was awful hit it on a bad day, then my family did, too. We wouldn't consider going back. We did like the Ponderosa. Maybe it has improved, but it's likely too late to ever get my husband to try again.
Its with sad news to say -- Red Apple is closing its doors on May 31st 2010.
Add one to your list - "Buffalo Wings & Beer" just opened up in the Red Apple location.
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