To be honest, a buffet is not my first port of call when I want to dine out; I find the choice overwhelming, the items repetitive, and the quality of the food unpredictable. But of course, there are always exceptions to the rule and the buffet is no exception. Pune offers up some exceptional buffet options, and I’ve written about a few below. They’re great places to hit up when you’re with a large group of people – there’s sure to be something to please everyone! Opinions and tastes will vary of course (my friend screamed at me for leaving out Barbeque Nation) but hopefully everyone will find something to enjoy in this list. Kind of like a buffet! So here you go, in no particular order:

1. Feast – Le Meridien, Sassoon Road

Le Meridien’s all day dining restaurant, Feast, offers a swathe of delightful dishes as part of a buffet service, ranging from Indian and South East Asian (Thai, Chinese and Malay) to Mediterranean and European fare. The food is a happy mix of traditional favourites (such as paneer tikka and shawarma) and more unusual fare such as spatzle and meshwi grill. If I had one word of advice, I would suggest making a beeline for the desserts; they keep changing, but I haven’t had a bad one yet.

Price for Two: Rs. 2000 (plus taxes) approximately
Call: 020 66411111

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2. Latitude, Vivanta by Taj, Koregaon Park

It’s easy to fall in love with Latitude, seeing as it is set in the salubrious environs of the Vivanta by Taj in pretty Koregaon Park. The service is unswerving in its excellence and the ambience is tasteful. Now onto the food – Latitude is not cheap, but it does offer value for money. The Sunday brunch sees Indian and Continental dishes rubbing shoulders with Chinese and is usually fairly crowded. For those unsatisfied with the buffet, an a la carte menu is available also and it has a whole section devoted to healthy drinks.

Price for Two: Rs. 2000 (plus taxes) approximately
Call: 020 30189859

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3. Seasonal Tastes, Westin, Koregaon Park

At Seasonal Tastes, at The Westin in Pune, you will find a buffet that is in equal parts conventional and inventive. Here, you’ll find a live barbecue counter, a Mexican counter and a host of South East Asian, European and Indian dishes – with so many different cuisines, you’re certainly spoilt for choice. Seasonal Tastes is known for its vast Sunday brunches, and the restaurant even incorporates superfoods into their repertoire for the health-conscious.

Price for Two: Rs. 2000 (plus taxes) approximately
Call: 020 30189766

4. Spice Kitchen, J W Marriott, Senapati Bapat Road

Spice Kitchen is J W Marriott’s chic all day dining restaurant, serving a rainbow of Indian, Continental and South East Asian dishes. My suggestion? Sample everything (it’s all delicious) but fill up on the desserts, as they come from the Marriott’s excellent bakery just next door, the Pune Baking Company. The breakfast menu is excellent, with a great variety of breads (buttery, flaky croissants anyone?). Make sure to book a table in advance though, especially for Sunday brunches, since it’s a rather popular buffet place.

Price for Two: Rs. 2000 (plus taxes) approximately
Call: 020 65602233

5. Post 91- Goldmine, Baner Road

Post 91’s Goldmine buffet is as good as its word – the eatery is done up in shades of gold (even the chairs and tables!) but the overall effect isn’t bling-y or overwhelming, but rather charming and tasteful even. Go for the Sunday brunch, because that’s when it brings out the big guns. Goldmine serves a multi-cuisine buffet that is open for lunch and dinner along with an a la carte menu. There is also a salad counter, but when I went, it was the pasta and chaat counters that were absolutely buzzing. Unfortunately, the service is somewhat sluggish.

Price for Two: Rs. 1000 (plus taxes) approximately
Call: 020 66832345

6. Sigree Global Grill, Dhole Patil Road

Sigree is a very popular Pune dining destination, popular enough to have swollen into three branches across the city (the latest one being at Amanora Mall). On Sigree’s buffet table, you will find choices aplenty- North Indian dishes, Italian, Turkish, Lebanese, a decent pasta station and a smattering of South East Asian. Although they purport to have a global menu, the Indian is definitely your best bet. They have an excellent selection of starters (go for the grills), but the star of the spread when I visited, was the biryani.

Price for Two: Rs. 1000 (plus taxes) approximately
Call: 8793811335

7. Exotica, Yerawada

What draws me unfailingly to Exotica is the ambience. Sitting atop a 7th floor terrace in Yerawada, this restaurant is a wonderful place to take your date, your family or your business partners. Naturally, the open air section is the most sought after (when the weather is cool), but if you choose to sit inside, you’ll have large fish tanks for company. The food offered is the usual smorgasbord of North-Indian, Chinese, Mediterranean and Italian cuisines, but my suggestion is to make a beeline for the North Indian – the mutton rogan josh is out-of-this-world delicious. Its Sunday brunch is well worth the money but remember to book a table before you go – the restaurant can get pretty crowded.

Price for Two: Rs. 1000 (plus taxes) approximately
Call: 020 30163493

8. Malaka Spice, Baner

Malaka Spice makes for a nice change from the plethora of multi-cuisine eateries that dominate the food scene in Pune. The food is not exactly ‘authentic’ South East Asian but it is certainly delicious and is suffused with spice, which makes it palatable for the Indian tongue. At Malaka Spice, the buffet is open at lunch, offering a selection of Malaysian, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Thai and Chinese dishes. Still, in case it doesn’t cut the mustard, you can pick from its vast menu where you can choose from quirkily-named dishes such as the Top Hat (crisp rice cups stuffed with vegetables), Three Aunties and Three Grandmothers (mushroom, spinach, baby corn and carrot) and Fritturas (tempura battered chicken).

Price for Two: Rs. 1500 (plus taxes) approximately
Call: 020 30162011