DINING OUT:
NEW FUJI BUFFET

2960 Erie Blvd. East
(just west of Thompson Road and next door to Delmonico’s)
Syracuse, NY
(315) 445-8899

by Sue Brode

In the mood for Asian food? You can head out for a Chinese restaurant and enjoy items like Lo Mein. How about Japanese? Drive in the right direction and you’ll be enjoying Sushi. But instead of arguing which it’ll be, why not try the NEW FUJI BUFFET, located at 2960 Erie Blvd. East (just west of Thompson Road and next door to Delmonico’s? There you will sample the best of both worlds.
As we did on a recent Wednesday evening! We were greeted by hostess Diana Huang, who told us a little bit about the background of this establishment. The property has been a restaurant at least since 1993. At about that time, Diana’s father, who had created an Asian approach here, decided (for various reasons) to sell what had been one of the very first, and some would say THE first, Asian buffet in the area. Diana’s father went on to all sorts of other business ventures during the next twelve years. During that time, partners and/or owners came and went. Gradually, Diana’s dad grew nostalgic for the spot and the venue. So he bought his shares in the enterprise back, and allowed Diana, a graduate of SUNY Geneseo, to take the helm now.

"So many people love Sushi today," Diana explained, "and yet for many, it is over- priced. So here it is . . ." Sushi, that is. All different sorts and varieties. And each piece as high in quality as you’d find at a speciality Sushi bar, where you’d expect to pay several dollars for one small helping. That’s where Diana’s NEW FUJI comes to the rescue for anyone hungering for Sushi but less than comfortable with what’s ordinarily the high price tag.

The price for the entire buffet, SUSHI INCLUDED, is $10.99 for dinner, $6.99 for lunch. Seniors receive a ten percent discount. So Sushi lovers can, in a mere matter of minutes, enjoy their pick of vegetable, seafood, and other exquisite examples of Sushi that they would pay considerably more for at other places. Also take note: NEW FUJI has hired an expert Sushi chef, whose only job is to prepare this item. This means you won’t bite into inferior Sushi prepared by a person who is actually a Chinese dinner chef, trying to handle Sushi as well. Or a Sushi chef trying to supply such items while also turning out all kinds of other dishes. As in a Sushi bar, there’s a single chef in charge of deciding what examples of Sushi (one of his proudest dishes includes eel) will be offered any one day.
As bountiful as the Sushi is, that’s only a small part of the story of what you get for a ridiculously low amount of money. Just before reaching the Sushi buffet, there’s a full Chinese dinner awaiting you as well. You can begin with soup, Wonton or Spicy Hot and Sour. And of course plenty of white rice. But do you really want to fill up on rice when there are more items available, including ones that would be quite pricey if you ordered then a la carte at any other restaurant?

These include: special garden vegetable mix, mushrooms in the house sauce, seafood delight full of succulent shrimp and crab as well as other shellfish; steamed clams in the shell; spicy chicken; BBQ chicken; fried chicken wings; beef ribs, chili shrimp, fried shrimp, vegetable egg rolls, chicken on a stick, pepper steak in brown gravy, chicken broccoli, vegetable Lo Mein, vegetable fried rice. Marinated mussels are there in abundance, as well as the makings for traditional salads.

One of our favorites, a real rarity and done particularly well at NEW FUJI, is clams in the shell, stuffed with scallops. The taste is delicate yet rich. If you’ve never before tried this item, chances are you’ll flip! Another was the fried biscuit, light brown and wrapped in sugar, sweet and melt in your mouth delicious. Even that great delicacy, Peking Duck, is available in all you can eat portions. Diana and her staff are particularly proud of their tasty dumplings, the equal of any in town.

Don’t forget cold crab salad, fresh oysters on the half shell (no, we’re not kidding you now!), cocktail shrimp, and octopus mixed with squid.

And did we say crab legs? Yes . . .

Desserts are included. There’s plenty of fresh fruit, as well as a large variety of cakes and other assorted sweets. Also help yourself to ice cream, soft or hard. Can’t pick? Then try each. The night we visited, the hard ice creams were maple walnut and strawberry, each of an exceptionally high quality.

Also worth reporting is the decor. If you happened to visit this spot BEFORE Diana and her family took over (in September), you’ll be amazed at the changeover! Soft music plays, the furniture is new and extremely handsome, the entire place CLEAN, from rugs to walls. A nice atmosphere indeed.

Lunch is from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m Monday through Friday; dinner buffet four p.m. to close. On Saturday, Sunday, and holidays, the restaurant features an all-day dinner buffet.

There are 150 items available any one day; note that the menu changes daily.
Note also that TAKE OUT is available. No liquor is served.

For more info and/or reservations, call 445-8899. Please mention that you read about NEW FUJI in the Dining Out column of TABLE HOPPING.

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