"2016-03-19T00:00:00"^^ . "0"^^ . . "I ate here on Friday night and regret it, especially for the price point ($12.99 + tax/tip). I should have stayed on the Northend of Charlotte and went to China Buffet at University instead ($12.99 as well with a much wider selection and better quality).\n\nNormally I check the items on a new buffet before eating, but as I arrived at 8:45 PM (they close at 10PM) I took a chance and decided to just go ahead and take a seat and order. What a mistake that was.\n\nThe buffet area looks large, but the way it is set up and spread out, there actually isn't a lot on offer. The \"Chinese\" dishes were minimal (no mussels in black bean sauce, no sauteed green beans, no salt and pepper shrimp, etc, not even General Tso's Chicken). There were a lot of American dishes such as fried chicken tenders, mashed potatoes, pot roast, \"prime rib\", and several other offerings that you'd find at Golden Corral or Hometown Buffet. 1/3 of the buffet area is actually only desserts (extensive), a salad bar, and toppings to put on ice cream.\n\nOkay, I got my sad plate of food to take back to my table, which had very little seafood on it since there were only three or four seafood dishes on offer (two of which contained fake crab). I should be saved on this $13 Chinese buffet by the sushi, right (yes I'm aware not to expect much out of buffet sushi)?!?\n\nWrong! There were all of six plates of sushi out, all of which were maki rolls (for those unfamiliar with the types of sushi, maki rolls have rice on the outside and fish on the inside, meaning little fish and a lot of rice), and one type per plate. Only one of said plates had real fish in it (vs imitiation crab).\n\nIt is reaching 9PM and they do close at 10PM, so maybe they just aren't putting out more sushi so as not to be wasted, and I can request some nigiri/sashimi cuts?\n\nWrong! Want a special roll or special order? Per several signs posted, expect to pay $5+ extra for each roll/order, if the itamae were still even there (he wasn't).\n\nSo I trudge back to my table to eat my food, which surprisingly had flavour (MSG most likely) but was luke warm and congealed from sitting in warming pans for too long (I literally witnessed an employee pouring hot water into congealed gravy and stirring it to make it \"fresh\" again).\n\nOk, regretting more than ever my choice to eat here, let's try the \"star\" of the place, the hibachi grill shall we?\n\nI loaded up my plate with broccoli, onions, mushrooms, and shrimp (51/60 at largest), and then proceeded to the chef to have my \"saving grace\" cooked fresh. It takes him about 7 minutes and then voila! Done!\n\nI take it back to my table with final hopes, pull out my new pair of chopsticks (since the waitstaff cleared my old ones), and dig in...\n\nTasteless... no sweetness from the shrimp... no bite from the onions... no crunch from the broccoli... no umami from the hibachi sauce... nothing...\n\nOverall I was EXTREMELY disappointed by both Passion Grill and Yelp for this experience.\n\nFor $7-8 it would have been an okay (but not pleasant) experience.\n\nFor $13, I could have had a MUCH better buffet experience at many other locations in the Charlotte area.\n\nSave your money and skip this one!!!"^^ . . "1"^^ . . "1"^^ . "3"^^ .