ponderosa. Kind to budgets, cruel to waistlines. utterly amazing buffet challenge!

My sister stands and salutes a Scarrott family institution! The International drive is home to the PONDOROSA STEAK HOUSE. This is the first venue at which I ever experienced the American phenomenon of the buffet. A dining marathon where all kinds of foods which should never really ever touch each other on the same plate or at the same time of day are piled as high as the spoons will allow, and shoveled at speed into families eager gobs. It is utterly wrong, and oh so very right.

Approximately a 20 minute drive from any Disney hotel, you can get a buffet breakfast, for $3.99. CAN I REPEAT THREE DOLLARS NINETY NINE CENTS. THAT IS LESS THAN MY MORNING LATTE! They dont just do breakfast, for lunch the buffet just gets bigger, and for dinner you are encouraged to add an entre like shrimp, lamb chops, pork belly or a huge steak to your ridiculous mountain of endless beef, stews, lasagne, chicken, creamy pasta, bbq beans, any type of potatoes, massive salad bar, vegies, jelly, cakes and pastries, pancakes and an ice cream fountain with all kinds of toppings. This is about $10.99-$12. That is the price of my cocktails.

I remember so clearly my first buffet experience, I must have been 5 years old, it was at this very restaurant. It was about 8am. Breakfast to me meant a bowl of cornflakes with a spoon of sugar and skimmed milk. Or on Saturdays a slice of bacon OR an egg with some toast. I had no idea breakfast took on other food stuffs.
Then we found ponderosa.
Salad, grits, pancakes, syrup, icecream, chicken nuggets, barbequed beans, biscuits (which are crumpets) waffles, any kind of eggs, cakes, an icing fountain and the final amazing addition.

jelly.

mountains of rainbow colors of jelly.

and sausage is shaped like burgers, not sausages, and bacon is not like bacon it is like bacon flavoured crisps, all friend to death and crispy. And chips means crisps and crisps is not crisps, french fries is chips....I was very confused, and had to try EVERYTHING, then felt violently ill on Space Mountain at the Magic Kingdom.

I have heard if you are stealthy, and/or REALLY hungry you can combined 2 meals...I'm not sure anyone could eat 3 meals there, maybe someone really really obese could. But if you stay from 9-11.30 you CAN eat lunch (extra soups, salads and entres like salmon and shrimp) for the same price as just lunch. WOW. Do they order the ambulance for you?

For further explanation of how very wrong this dining style is, just look at what I have on my plate. You see? Diners should not be left in charge of their food like some pleasure island reprebates. We need chefs to stop us putting cake, blue jelly and red currant syrup on the same breakfast plate!

Or...maybe just once a year for vacation we can go to ponderosa. But you can tell the people who go every day...they cant get out the door.

Comments

[charles'apex-uk.net]

Fantastic

We should open one here. Bring on the jelly and the breakfast christmas cake

Aghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

dadster

[forrest gump]

THE GIRL IN THE PICTURE LOOKS TOO SKINNY TO HAVE EATEN PONDEROSA! GO BACK IN, EAT MORE GRITS!