Fairmont Buffet and Bakery, Savannah, Georgia

I am always on the look out for buffets to tell you about and sometimes I will find a buffet that I will not be able to get to, but want to share with those of you who are in these areas or will get to these areas. The buffet that I have discovered is a family run, single location buffet called Fairmont Buffet and Bakery, named for the street that it is located on, Fairmont Avenue in Savannah, Georgia.

I have never been to Savannah and I will tell you about this buffet by first making clear that I have not eaten there or experienced it. I have found out quite a lot about it and will share that with you.

Fairmont Buffet and Bakery is owned and operated by a husband and wife who have brought Southern home cooking to their buffet. They are "known" for their southern fried chicken which is claimed to be the "best in town" and every meal that they serve has fried chicken. Prices at the buffet are very reasonable and include beverages. Weekday dinners are $8.25 and Saturdays and Sundays are just one dollar more. There are lunch buffets during weekdays until 3:00 pm (from 11:00 am) and these are just 7.50. There are discounted senior prices and children under ten are $5.50 and under four are just sixty cents. These prices - which include soft drinks - are great! None of the chains are this inexpensive for a similar meal. The restaurant closes each night at 8:30 pm.

The buffet is described as having six buffet stations and serves over 70 items at each meal.The menu varies from night to night, but fried chicken and baked chicken are always served - except for Sundays when another chicken dish replaces the baked chicken. The restaurant prepares and cooks all food on premises from fresh ingredients and no preservatives which means that this should be real home cooking. Homemade yeast rolls are made and baked every day.

There are two soups every day - which change each day. There is also a salad and fruit bar. Entrees and fresh vegetables are varied each day and change from lunch to dinner. Remember that with each dinner is fried chicken and every day but Sunday thre is baked chicken. At dinner on Mondays you will find smothered liver, pot roast, and low country creole. On Tuesdays at dinner you get baked fish, country fried steak (a favorite of mine, but not of my doctor's), and hot wings. On Wednesday's dinner there is Brown Rice with Beef, Veal Parmesan, and Salisbury Steak. Thursday - Beef Stroganoff, Pork Chops, and Pot Roast. Fridays bring barbecued ribs, fried shrimp and hushpuppies, and clam strips. The Saturday dinner brings back the fried shrimp and hushpuppies, and clam ctrips, the country fried steak, and adds barbecued pork. Sunday all day is a more elaborate menu with Meat Loaf, Fried Chicken, Roast Beef, Lemon Pepper Chicken, Dressing, and Crab Meat Au Gratin. Everything on these menus are classic southern dishes and it sounds like here they are made right!

Of course, there are many vegetable choices, real whipped potatoes, rice, gravy, macaroni and cheese, and more. No southern meal would be complete with out a variety of wonderful desserts and at the Fairmont Buffet and BAKERY there is an 18 foot long serving counter full of freshly baked and prepared desserts.

When the Beaupre's opened the Fairmont Buffet and Bakery they wanted to feature a scatter buffet service that was not featured at that time at other buffet restaurants in the area. When they opened two buffet chains in the town remodeled to compete with the Fairmont Buffet! They were a leader in this design at the time - many buffets now follow this system. (I must note here and I am not contradicting any claim by the Fairmont but Buffet, Inc - OCB - claims to have invented the scatter buffet.) The Fairmont has been in business for thirteen years! (Miller's Smorgasbord in Lancaster, Pa has had a scatter buffet setup for at least 25 years.)

The restaurant is very community minded and features a community day each month during which they donate ten percent of their sales to a chosen charity of the month. The Fairmont has won several awards including one in 2005 from the National Restaurant Association.

The restaurant has a website which is listed on the side of this page. There are nice photos of the buffet and the dining room. The address is 65 West Fairmont Avenue in Savannah, Georgia. Their phone number is 912-920-4020.

If you have ever been to the Fairmont Buffet and Bakery please place a comment with this article and tell us about it! It really sounds good - and perhaps on one of my trips south I will eventually get to Savannah. If I do I am definately going to the Fairmont Buffet and Bakery!

Know of a buffet that I have not talked about yet - use the email address on the side of this page and let me know about it.