About one year ago at this time (April 2024), The New Yorker Magazine published an article entitled "The Hottest Restaurant in France is an All-You-Can-Eat Buffet". Being a Foodie and person who attempts to stay current about the best restaurants, I immediately read the article.
The next thing I did was call Cousin Jean-Marc who lives near Montpellier France about 100 km from this All-You-Can-Eat buffet called Les Grands Buffets and asked if he had ever dined there. He said "no", but he has wanted to go there for a long time.
So, we decided he would get us reservations for lunch in October when we would be back in France. To make reservations, you must go to the restaurant's website and enter your email address for a secure link to make a reservation online. A few days later, I got a message from Jean-Marc that we had reservations for 12:00 on Monday, October 7.
On the appointed day, we departed from the cousin's house in plenty of time so we would not be late for our reservations. Les Grands Buffets is located in a large rec center built by the local government in the city of Narbonne.
Les Grands Buffets is owned by Louis Privat, a native of Narbonne. He sees his restaurant as something like the "Louvre of Dishes" and serves only what he considers to be traditional French food, in the style of Auguste Escoffier. In 2023, more than three hundred eighty thousand people dined at Les Grands Buffet. It is considered to be the highest grossing restaurant in France.
From the lobby of the rec center, you can enter a bowling alley, an ice rink, or Les Grands Buffets. We arrived a few minutes early, so we were invited to go to the bar and wait until we were called to be seated at our table.
Les Grands Buffets has four dining rooms, decorated in different styles. We were seated in the tented room, which pays tribute to Louis XIV, including an original map from Jean-Baptiste Nolin, the official map maker of the King, engraved in 1697 to celebrate the completion of the predecessor canal to the Canal du Midi.
Tables are set in a manner similar to a 3-star Michelin restaurant down to fish knives. Waiters' clear plates and serve drinks.
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| Crystal surrounds this 7-layer lobster tower |
There is a rotisserie, where guests line up in front of an open kitchen, and cooks in tall, round, pleated, starched white hats, prepare dishes ordered by the guests waiting in line. There is a list of twenty-six specialties that guests can choose to have prepared in front of them.
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| Shirley and me with cousins Jean-Marc and Christine in the Tented Room |
Les Grands Buffets is open 365 days a year for lunch and dinner. The current all-inclusive price for a meal is 62.90 Euros per person. Drinks are extra, but they are sold at the same price as at the producer so there is minimal markup on champagne and wine. Everything else is unlimited.
Last year, the city of Narbonne pledged fifteen million euros to renovating the rec center and creating a separate entrance for Les Grands Buffets. Privat committed five million euros to the creation of new attractions including a separate tea salon and shop selling regional products.
As we plan outings with friends and family from around Sablet, so many have said they dream of going to eat at Les Grands Buffets. It seems that it has been featured on French television on more than one occasion.
There is a note on the restaurant's website at this time that says "Reservations are currently not possible for meals after September 30, 2025, due to an overhaul of the Grands Buffets reservation software. Reservations for later meal dates are expected to open in July 2025.
Les Grands Buffets
Rond Point de la Liberte
11100 Narbonne
France
Tel: +33 4 68 42 20 01
Website: lesgrandsbuffets.com
