Jaylianos - Strathpine

Having not gone overseas for more than two years now, I can't help but reminisce my travels overseas. One of the things that really stood out in my memories was the extravagant buffets from America and Canada. I could hardly find anything remotely comparable locally, that is until I stumbled on Jaylianos up at Strathpine. 

A friend had gotten some fairly stellar recommendations about this place and we took the hour long drive up north to try it out. When we got in, it was like we had skipped the 20 hour flight and landed directly in NA. Having made a booking meant that all we needed to do was wait for our table to be set.

There was a huge selection of hot and cold food. With a few covid restrictrictions in place, we were able to get up and get our own food like we were back in the 2010s.

My first dish comprised of quite a few hot items such as the crispy pork belly, steak, spring rolls, chicken wings, dumplings and some seafood salad. The steak was definitely the highlight. It was charred with a crunchy exterior and a medium rare interior. The pork belly was well seasoned but the skin was a bit chewier than it was crisp. The rest was fairly standard and I also liked the crispy chicken wings. The steak made the buffet dinner excellent value on its own and reason to come back.

My second dish comprised of yet another steak, this time it was a little overdone but not too chewy. I also had a piece of chicken parmigiana, some creamy mushroom pasta and some stir fried noodles. I liked the chicken which was thick cut and had some delicious sauce and melty cheese. The pasta was soft, but Dr L said he found it too soft. The fried noodles didn't have too much meat to go with it but it was well seasoned.

Interluding with a coffee, it came out of those machines where you only pressed one button and it made up the whole coffee for you. The coffee obviously wasn't anywhere as good as the barista made ones in the city but it did strike the right cord of nostalgia for me.

First round of desserts included a piece of chocolate cake, a chocolate mousse and some chocolate coated marshmallows. These were not overly sweet, nor overly decadent. The cake was moist and spongey, the mousse was smooth and the chocolate fountain was always fun.

Rounding off the evening, this was the fresh fruit and a side of lime jelly. The watermelon was refreshing and the lime jelly was neither too soft nor too firm. Representing excellent value in this day and age, I would definitely come back to Jaylianos for their steak alone.

Price Range: $38.50pp

Taste: 7.5/10

Value: 9/10

Service: 7/10

Environment: 7/10