New York City has officially entered its “wait, how much?” era—but thankfully, not every restaurant is trying to charge you $40 for a salad. Enter Good Time Country Buffet, the East Village newcomer making a very convincing case that one of the best restaurant deals in NYC might also involve a buffet.
Located at 166 First Avenue, Good Time Country Buffet is serving up an old-school Southern all-you-can-eat experience for just $26.99 per person for dinner. Yes, you read that correctly: $26.99. In Manhattan.
Even better, adult lunch is $19.99, while kids and seniors have their own lower-priced options. There are also takeout containers starting at $9.99, because apparently New York still occasionally remembers that people enjoy getting their money’s worth.
The concept comes from the team behind Kisa and C as in Charlie, who drew inspiration from the Southern buffets they grew up eating in Atlanta. The result is a wonderfully nostalgic spread featuring fried chicken, collard greens, mac and cheese, Salisbury steak, meatloaf, mashed potatoes, corn, fried shrimp, cornbread, banana pudding and more.
And there’s no tiny tasting-menu portion nonsense here. The entire point is to pile up your plate, go back for seconds, and possibly question your life choices by plate number three.
The restaurant’s retro carpeting, wallpaper and buffet setup only add to the throwback charm. It feels less like a trendy Manhattan restaurant and more like someone found a time machine, filled it with Southern comfort food and parked it on First Avenue.
At a time when NYC dining prices can inspire genuine financial anxiety, Good Time Country Buffet is refreshingly straightforward: pay one reasonable price, eat a lot, and have a good time.
Honestly, that might be the most New York deal of the year.
