Spice Market Buffet at Planet Hollywood

The Spice Market Buffet inside Planet Hollywood Casino Resort offers an adventurous breakfast buffet, filled with traditional morning items and surprising choices to kick off your day for a decent price.

My guest and I park in the car garage and make our way to Planet Hollywood’s casino level, where the buffet entrance is located. Casino signs point us in the right direction as we navigate past the high stakes poker room and the slot-laden game room floor. The morning gamblers are already making their presence known by doubling down and splitting aces at the blackjack tables while we find a place to fill our stomachs with good food. We arrive at the buffet entrance, and the marquee bedazzled with what seem to be strings of crystals tells us we are at our destination.

The buffet is located below the casino floor. To reach the registers, we have to take a short-lived escalator ride. On our way down, a decorative ceramic chandelier hangs in the middle of the walkway. Its long, twisted glass pieces collide as a light breeze blows through them, creating a deep, resonating chime. It’s soothing, and I calmly walk to the register to begin my breakfast.

Planet Hollywood’s buffet is opened for breakfast ($21.99), lunch ($20.99), and dinner ($29.99). On the weekends, the Spice Market Buffet is also open for a Champagne brunch ($29.99), when they serve unlimited Domaine Ste. Michelle Champagne for those who enjoy a little bit of bubbly with their meal. We choose to beat the buffet rush and arrive at the restaurant for the breakfast portion of the day. Everything is going according to plan; my guest and I waste little time in line, and we follow the host to our assigned table.

The Market Spice’s dining area is a mix of casual elegance. The setting is simple, with dim lighting. Beautiful medium shades of grey combined with the Champagne colored walls are present within the dining room, reminding me of a thematic baroque painting. Rock n’ roll blares through the speakers while the televisions show sports highlights and music videos from current artists like Rhianna and Wiz Khalifa. Vintage posters adorn the walls featuring famous iconic films like “Wine” with Clara Bow, “Green Fried Tomatoes,” and “American Pie”. Each has molded the history of American cinematography in a different way. The blend of these two polar styles creates an environment exuding each of their best characteristics, which is a feat hard to achieve.

Our server quickly greets us and takes down our drink orders. Spice Market Buffet offers the usual beverage options: soda, juice, coffee and teas. An all-you-can-drink option is also available for an additional $11.99. My guest and I opt for our morning usual of water, coffee and a glass of orange juice, and the server goes off to retrieve our request. Rather quickly, our server is back with our drinks. The coffee is strong with good vigor and gives me that needed pick-me-up for the morning. The orange juice, with pulp I might add, is high quality, and much fresher than some buffets. With the extra kick from the coffee, I head off to the enormous spread of food.

The Spice buffet has a wide array of the usual pedestrian-style breakfast choices, such as pancakes, waffles, eggs, bacon, cereal and toast. It also features something they call the “Taste of Nations” where they feature four regions: America, Italy, Asia and the Middle East. Each different culture offers its own unique flavors, ingredients and spices. The different sections coordinate to the specific regions, like the coconut white rice in the Asian foods area and eggs Benedict in the American. Some items, however, don’t. It seems quite farfetched to find breakfast sliders and home-fried potatoes in Asia. Nonetheless, whether Genghis Khan created the breakfast slider or not, Spice’s breakfast selection is vast and different.

It’s quite uncommon for a breakfast buffet to offer items from a carving station. However, Spice Market Buffet does, and it is a very pleasing feature for carnivores like me. The carving station has two choices this morning: flame-broiled tri-tip steak and smoked kielbasa sausage. I bypass them, for now, and make myself a plate from the other breakfast selections.

I make myself a traditional breakfast platter featuring waffles, eggs Benedict, bacon and pancakes. The waffles are stamped with the Planet Hollywood logo and taste delicious. I can’t say the same for the eggs Benedict. It must have been sitting for some time now because the yolk has nearly hardened. This is quite a disheartening discovery because the best part of eggs Benedict is when the soft yolk gushes out from its center. I go back for another one; maybe I got the odd one out. But, I experience the same result. Interestingly, the buffet has a variety of pancakes types, such as grilled, potato, and fruit pancakes. I went with the traditional pancakes, which are fluffy and suitable.

Now my taste buds are all warmed up. So I head towards the meat for my next plate. I load up on smoked tri-tip, corn beef hash and kielbasa sausage. The tri-tip and corn beef hash are great selections, but they are bit on the salty side for my taste. After a couple of bites into them, I have to stop and move on before I dehydrate. The kielbasa, on the other hand, is very appetizing. The meat is savory and the encasing gives off a nice snap when I bite in. The carving station is great, and it’s never too early for kielbasa or tri-tip, even if it is salty.

Spice Market Buffet offers a plethora of high calorie choices, as is customary during breakfast, but the lines of food contain many healthy alternatives, too. One option is yogurt with a handful of accruements, and there is also oatmeal, assorted cereals, egg whites and egg beaters, cream of wheat, and baked oatmeal with peaches. In addition, there are fresh fruit smoothie options. I select both flavors: strawberry-banana and strawberry-pineapple. The smoothies are poured into individual glass cups for a personalized touch.

Having seen the majority of the available food, I realize that Spice Market Buffet boasts many variations of the same dish. While sampling one of my smoothies, I notice that there are several different kinds of hash: sweet chili potato hash, regular hash browns and country style hash. This goes for the egg selections, too: eggs with sausage, eggs with spinach, and eggs with a mixture of meats and veggies are all available. The selection is great for picky eaters out there, even though the recipes are rather simple and straightforward.

To satisfy my sweet tooth, I head to the crepe station, where guests can choose from a variety of savory fillings and sweet toppings. I tell the chef I want a strawberry crepe with all the fixings: chocolate and whip cream. The presentation is comparable to the crepe shops you see in the mall, and the taste is terrific as well. I pair my crepe with a bowl of peach yogurt topped with honey granola, sliced almonds, cranberries and gold raisins. The yogurt section has four types with many toppings to customize your creation. My yogurt is satisfying and prepared just how I like it.

Spice Market Buffet accommodates me with exactly the kind of morning meal I need. With solid breakfast choices and a few surprises, such as the carving station, handcrafted smoothies and create-your-own crepe station, I find everything I could possibly want. The rock n’ roll music environment and televisions playing various sporting events are a plus for me as well. The casual atmosphere suits my taste and reflects the rest of Planet Hollywood’s memorable asthetic. The coffee is high quality and the juice is fresh squeezed. Although the line becomes quite long at one point during breakfast, it moves quickly and continuously, so there is never a very long wait. The entrance is easy to find thanks to many different signs guiding us through the casino, and the fact that the restaurant is a floor below the bustling gambling hall is a unique touch. The service is quick, attentive and always friendly, from the time we are greeted by the hostess until our final plates are cleared away. The price is a bit higher than many of the buffets on the strip, but the value of the experience makes the meal well worth it. This is definitely a place that I would recommend checking out for breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner.