FOODIE: Summer Reading with Sizzler

At the beginning of June, Lucy joined the Boise Public Library's Kids Summer Reading Program. They win prizes and gift certificates for reading a certain number of minutes, and since we read every night, she quickly filled out all her "tickets" and claimed her prizes. One of them was a free kids meal at Sizzler. It may be embarrassing to admit, but we had NEVER BEEN TO A SIZZLER BEFORE. We were excited to give it a try, because I have been lusting after their all you can eat seafood commercials for some time. Much to Eric's delight, but my chagrin, we were surprised to find it was also a GIGANTIC BUFFET.



I am not a fan of buffets, but do love me a nice salad bar, so decided to give it a try. You order at the front counter, and of course I got the all you can eat fried shrimp and steak platter; it comes with a beverage and salad bar trip for only $15. Eric got the all you can eat buffet, which included the salad bar, a taco bar, soup, desserts, ice cream, and a drink for around $10. Lucy's $6 kids meal with the buffet and dinosaur chicken nuggets was free, and Alice, being just one-year-old, also ate for free.

I meant to take more pictures of the food but forgot before we devoured it all. We all enjoyed our meals; I thought the steak was delicious as were the unlimited amounts of shrimp. The buffet offered enough variety to satisfy my picky kids and was clean and fresh.

The highlight for Lucy was, of course, the ice cream station. It was here that I noticed the large amount of senior citizens that had just joined our dining atmosphere. Granted, we were eating dinner at 5pm, as we had skipped lunch and were starving. The folks were friendly and loved chatting with the kids, and one particular gentleman told me all about his diabetes and his beloved Toyota Tundra while we stood in line for the sugar-free ice cream.

All in all, our first experience at Sizzler was a good one. It's a great place to take families, as your kids have unlimited options and will find the buffet style eating fun. You can get your adult "steak on" at the same time and the all you can eat option seems to be almost orgasmic for most men. I have to admit, we probably wouldn't have ever tried Sizzler (at least until we were 55 or older) without the incentive of Lucy's summer library reading benefit. Our experience was a good one, though, and the bill wasn't outrageous. We'll definitely keep it in mind next time we have the great-grandparents in town or a crowd of especially picky eaters to satisfy.