This was a late night decision, when our stomachs were beyond empty, which was probably not the best time to make food choices, because you think you CAN and WILL eat anything and everything! But their Sunday All You Can Eat Brunch menu was so enticing, I just had to. I ended up making a reservation at 11 pm Saturday for 10 am on Sunday at the Fatboys Southern Smokehouse on 34 Murray St.
We were luckily seated right in front of the food? (BEST spot for any buffet!) and beside the open area of the restaurant where you can look out to the street. If only the weather was a little warmer that day, it would have been perfect (the cool breeze chilled my plate of food too quick?).
There was some brief live entertainment at the beginning, featuring 60s and 70s rock music. I think the singer went on break shortly after we sat down. The buffet was neatly laid out on two tables, along with desserts, salads, toppings, and drinks.
Their Sunday brunch included the typical players of scrambled eggs, ham, sausages, bacon and homefries, with Southern traditional elements of buttermilk biscuit and gravy, hash brown casserole, smoked beans with brisket, fried chicken, BBQ ribs and cornbread. Just listing off the menu items is making my mouth water again!? I only took a couple pictures of the chafers because I didn’t want to be that obnoxious foodie that opened every single cover letting the heat escape just to take a picture.
I loved how they had 100% pure local maple syrup, since I consider that faint woody caramelized sweetness as the only soul mate for waffles or pancakes during brunch. Pancakes were listed on the day’s menu but I think they were probably on vacation for the long weekend?. The baked buttermilk waffles were light and airy – decent for my standards but I prefer my waffles on the chewier side, my boyfriend did go back for seconds though. My favourites were the buttermilk biscuit, the smoked beans with brisket, and the Southern fried chicken. The biscuit was so fluffy! It had a flaky exterior and moist, buttery, and tender interior that was loaded with flavour. If only I had it during my first round, so I could have gotten a second before my stomach exploded. The smoked beans were bathed in sweet barbeque sauce with meaty flavours from the brisket. I just needed some toasts to sop up the residue sauces with. The boneless fried chicken was incredibly juicy with a real crunchy batter (maybe a bit heavy on the batter on some parts, still tasty). It had a white-meat texture to it, but was soooo succulent that I wasn’t sure if it was white meat or dark meat.
All the potato dishes were runner-ups. The home fries with sauteed onions were crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The Southern hash brown casseroles and the baked chili and cheese scalloped potatoes were both creamy and cheesy, and very delectable. There was BBQ sauce, hot sauce, and mustard sauce on the side of each table. I relished the fried chicken in their hot sauce; it was sweet and savoury with just a hint of spiciness. We were both disappointed about the ribs. The first batch was very dry, charred, skinny and lacked flavour. The second batch seemed to have slight more juice in the meat but was still overall quite dry. Neither had fall-off-the-bone goodness, and were too charred for our liking. My boyfriend said the first batch almost tasted like it was left over from the day before and re-cooked?. Maybe that was just the style of the ribs?
The cost of the brunch buffet was $22 per person before tax, which I thought was a bit overpriced for brunch AYCE. I am really glad we tried this place though. Most of the food was delicious and we were stuffed in the end, I just don’t think potatoes+eggs+meat+waffles/biscuits should be that pricey. The servers were quick and super friendly, and they did have some live music entertainment. But even so, to me, if the ribs were better, it might have been more worth it.
They do, however, have this $5 special offer for kids under 5 years old and seniors over 65 years old, with accompanying adult purchases. I wish I had brought my grandparents along, then the $22 would definitely have been a bargain. I will most certainly revisit with my grandparents?!