Mandarain Seafood Buffet - OK Chinese in Twinsburg

I have a confession to make, I have a weakness for Chinese Buffets; fortunately I have managed to mostly avoid them the last couple of years mainly due to the fact that they generally aren't that good and the price has been creeping up.  I recently got a $2 off coupon for Mandrain Seafood Buffet in Twinsburg so I figured I would give it another try.  Mandrain is located at 2695 Creekside Drive in Twinsburg, close to the 480 exit at Darrow Road (map is here) and right next to the Gander Mountain. 

I have been to Mandrain quite a few times in the past and very little has changed, which is both good and bad.  The decor is a modern look, but it isn't at all distinctive or original, its fine but certainly not something that is really noticeable.  About the most interesting thing is that the buffet tables are in the middle of the space with seating areas on either side.  The lunch buffet was $6.50 which I thought was acceptable because of the coupon. 

Lets start off with the items that fall on the good side of things.  They have a seafood soup which is usually very tasty, nicely complimented by the crisp and colorful shrimp chips.  The shrip toast was flavorful and not overdone as it often has been in the past.  The vegetables such as the peapods and green beans were nicely cooked and had good flavor.  Although a close call, the sushi which is set up at the sushi bar at the back of the buffet is good by Chinese buffet standards; it has decent flavor and while not a great assortment there is enough variety to make a nice plate.  I would like for more seasoning in the sushi rice to compliment the seafood, but overall pretty good with the best thing being the handrolled crab salad rolls. 

The medicore is where most of the food I tried fell.  Things such as the fried shrimp, the rice noodle dish, the crab salad, the fried rice and most of the other items were ok, although lacking much flavor.  I enjoy Chinese and most other Asian foods because of the unique and different flavor profiles, unfortunately Mandrain and most other Chinese buffets I have tried in the area tend to make the food as bland as possible to appeal to a broad swath of the population; I understand this, I just don't have to like it.  Desserts for the most part fall into this as well, with some flavor, but not enough to make it worth the calories.

Finally I have to mention the really bad, which were the shrimp in the Seafood Trio, they were very bad with no flavor and either a rubbery or mealy texture depending on the shrimp.  I realize that having certain items on a buffet makes it hard to get the cooking exactly right, but I have had shrimp on enough buffets to know that it is possible to get them right and these were not anywhere near that.  Especially disapointing when you consider this is suppose to be a seafood buffet and the only shrimp in the steam tables were these and some overly sweet batter fried shrimp. 

Finally a word about service, while I don't expect a lot at a buffet, the waitress went by me for about 5 to 10 minutes before asking what I would like to drink and the only way I could get my check was by standing up and putting on my coat; not a good peformance at all.

The bottom line is that while there is a pretty good variety at Mandrain, most of the food has little flavor or distinctiveness.  There is a sushi selection, but no make your own Mongolian grill like some buffets.  I probably won't be back to Mandrain unless something major changes, but your mileage may vary.