Fresh spice of life at Jimmy Spice's
The £15-a-head, all-you-can-eat mega buffet in Sutton Coldfield town centre may not ooze class, but what it lacks in chic sophistication, it more than makes up for in value, atmosphere and fun family eating.
The children friendly restaurant welcomed our party of four, (which included two under 18s), into the spacious, uncrowded NYC lounge and bar for a pre-dinner drink on Saturday evening.
But the restaurant, which can accommodate 400 diners was practically full by the time we sat down at 7.30pm.
Booking ahead proved to be essential.
On first impressions, the Jimmy Spice's set up did appear somewhat daunting. An eclectic choice of Chinese, Thai, Indian and Italian dishes are laid out in the centre of the restaurant for diners to peruse and choose at their leisure.
And standing in the centre of each 'island' chefs whiz up freshly cooked dishes while you wait – the sizzle of stir fries mixed with the herbs and spices of Thai and Indian dishes add to the atmosphere while pastas and pizzas are freshly prepared at the next stand.
Obviously, with a buffet, there's no waiting for anything to be delivered at the table so, after putting a drinks order in, we set off on our culinary journey around the world.
You really are spoilt for choice and with no constraints on starters, mains or even deserts, anything goes.
Stopping first in 'China' I chose some chicken wings and spicy spare ribs to start off with, deciding to leave the pots of 'main' dishes perhaps for my next visit.
On returning to the table, I found the others had chosen along the same lines but pastas, poppadums and prawn crackers had also crept onto some plates.
All was declared delicious and plates were quickly cleared, by us, and then the extremely attentive waiting staff, ready for the next trip.
It has to be said, this is not a particularly relaxing meal.There is a fair amount of effort involved to make the most of what's on offer and the atmosphere and noise level is lively.
But for me, it was part of the fun and experience of Jimmy Spice's and for young people in particular, it is part of the attraction.
On our next visit to the buffet I was once again enticed by the Chinese dishes and opted for a freshly cooked stir-fry.
I joined a fast-moving queue and chose a plateful of fresh veg, noodles and chicken which was promptly taken from me by a wok wielding chef and tossed in oil and a lightly spiced sauce until cooked and handed back to me – all in less than five minutes – and the resulting taste was as good as it looked.
Indian and Thai dishes, Italian pizzas and pastas were also sampled by members of our party and, apart from the garlic bread being proclaimed 'too garlicky' there were no complaints from our table about the food.
But to truly make the most of Jimmy Spice's it is essential (if at all possible) to save some room for desert – which has its own 'island'.
Again, the choice is huge with fresh fruit, a variety of cakes, mousses, cheesecakes and soft, whipped icecream to name but a few.
This may be far from Michelin Star quality food, but for good value family-fun, I couldn't fault it.
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