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Cook's is where memories are made
- HoursCLOSED NOW
- Regular Hours:
Mon - Sat Sun - Phone:
Main - 386-734-4339
- Address:
- 704 N Woodland Blvd Deland, FL 32720
- Link:
- Categories
- Buffet Restaurants, Breakfast, Brunch & Lunch Restaurants, Family Style Restaurants, Home Cooking Restaurants, Restaurants
- Payment Options
- Price Range
- $
- Location
- Downtown DeLand, across from Stetson University
- Amenities
- Friendly ServiceFamily AtmosphereClean establishment
- AKA
Cook's Buffet, Cafe & Bakery
- Other Information
Parking: Lot, Free
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Cuisines: Buffets, Family Style, Breakfast, Brunch & Lunch, Home Cooking
Alcohol: Beer, Wine
Price Range : Below Average
General Info
Lunch menu or express soup, salad & sandwich bar. Donner Buffet Historic 101 yr old building, restored
Contact Info
Reviews
Nice, warm atmosphere. Christine, our waitress, gave us excellent service. Food was outstanding. Had the leg of lamb - perfectly cooked, moist & tender. Well worth the visit.
The staff were all very friendly and went out of their way for everything. I did enjoy the food for the most part, however, the 1 meat 1 time serving is a very strange concept. I do not understand why a 'buffet' has 5 meat selections sitting around in huge portions, and then only gives you one in a small portion, very strange and cheap. I did not enjoy hearing the restaurant gossip so close to my table either (with I am not sure an owner and some of the workers?) It made me feel uncomfortable. Like I said though the staff were very friendly and helpful, and just following the rules. I would not recommend going here, and would not return again simply because of the bizarre one small meat selection rule. Made me feel like I was in high school or something.
10/06/12
We love Cooks Buffet. The place is beautiful, warm and relaxing. The entire staff makes you feel like family. The food is absolutely the best in Central Florida. The quality is the best, the detail to preparing and presentation. If you want good, flavoral, home cooked food, then you have found it. We are very picky and opinionated when it comes to restaurant cleanliness. This one gets an A+++. The amount of food and variety for the price is a steal. Don't worry about the "one choice of meat", the portions are VERY generous. I am an "abundant" eager and I can barely finish it all. Save room for the cakes on steroids. They are huge, beautiful, homemade and delicious. We will continue to dine here over and over again.
There was NOTHING that I could find wrong at Cook's. I have been in DeLand since I was a boy and this is just like it was 40 years ago. The food is fresh, prepared well and the salad bar is undescribable. The atmosphere and decor is inviting and warm. The staff are well trained and friendly. The restaurant is clean from rest rooms to dining room. I understand that you can take a tour of the kitchen anytime, but we are always too full when done to walk around. It says a lot about a restaurant that is not ashamed to show its kitchen to its customers. This restaurant shows the attention to detail and the love that was put into it. We will continue to celebrate special occasions there and enjoy an evening out with friends and family. Good luck.
My family and I came into Cooks recently to eat. We were so pleased with the varity of foods to choose from. Unfortunately for my waistline I chose too many. Everything was fresh and seasoned well.
We were overwhelmed with the friendly atmosphere and efficient staff. It made us feel special when Michael Cook,jr the manager came by our table and spent time with us. He is very professional, sweet and great with kids.
Our kids can't wait to go back. Neither can we. It is so nice to have a great restaurant that is family run. It seems like the staff is a part of that feeling too.
We highly reccomend Cooks Buffet.
My family and I had an exceptional evening at Cooks Buffet last night. The hostess seemed so happy and to love her job. It didn't stop there. Our waitress, Miranda was one of the sweetest, caring, efficient and knowledgable waitress we have had anywhere. The whole family loved her. The carver was so nice and patient with us when we were asking him 100 different questions at the same time. Patience is his virtue. While enjoying our delicious, bountiful meal, we were watching a young man visit with the other customers. When he came and introduced himself as Michael Cook, Jr, manager we immediately recognized the family resembleance of the portrait in the lobby, his grandfather. He had the same mannerisms as this great restaurant pioneer and the same great people skills. What an accomplished young man. His visit made us feel very welcomed.
Overall, there is no other place we want to dine.
Thank you for making us feel like family
Steve H
I have really enjoyed going to Cooks Buffet since it opened. I love to sit by the window and watch the customers stream in and the ones leaving, rubbing there bellies in contentment.
The atmosphere is so warm, fresh and beautiful. The restoration and detail to saving some of the original features is a blessing. I am glad that it is on the historical list.
The food is great, low priced, great employees and just a great place to frequent. I travel from Orlando at least two times a month to eat here. There is no where in central Florida like this.
It has been a long time since DeLand has had a great place to eat & relax, especially in such a beautiful restaurant. The staff is friendly and professional. They know what they are doing, but make you feel like family. By the 2nd time we were there, they knew our names and what we drank. We felt special.
The food is amazing. No where can you find such an impressive, fresh & bountiful salad bar. They have the basics, but also rotate new and different items. It's just hard to not fill up on all of the good things offered.
There are plenty of top quality meat choices and specialty entrees. The portions are almost too generous, even for a big eater like myself.
The vegetables are also fresh, seasoned perfectly and a great variety. Homemade gravies that are good enough to just drink.
Now to the desserts, all I can say is, "sinful". Whoever there baker is, they should be on food network. The basic and traditional choices, along with new and fresh recipes are always a hit.
Thank you Mr. & Mrs. Cook for bringing back the quality and home style cooking that we grew up on and adding new and different entrees, especially at such a reasonable price. We don't know how you do it. It's been years since this location had had good food, kind and caring staff and attention made to the food, cleanliness and decor.
I would give them 10 stars if possible.
Again, thank you and great job.
Cook's Buffett is wonderful from walking in the door and being greeted by the cheery hostess, to sitting at your table and ordering drinks from your server. They have beer & wine, a nice selection of salad items on their salad bar, and a great selection of fresh carved entrees and hot veggies and side dishes too!
Make sure you save room for dessert, you won't want to miss their home made cakes like, the Neapolitan Cake, it was delicious! You won't be sorry!
What an amazing change to the Old Holiday House. Cook's buffet is absolutely beautiful and clean. The food is fresh, very flavorful and that amazing salad bar! We try and dine at Cook's several times a week. It's like home cooking, but easier. You sure can't beat the price.
We were in there last night and witnessed a very rude customer. We were shocked at that way a grown woman acted in public. She was upset because she could not get a box for her leftovers from an all you can eat Special. On the special menu, it clearly states that there are NO doggy bags. What other restaurant with an all you can eat special would let you take it home? None that I can think of. She really made a fool out of herself and embarrassed the rest of her party. We really felt sorry for the waitress, manager and hostess. They had the repercusions from her being an idiot. But the staff was very nice and handled the situation with professionalism and kindness. That just makes us want to come back nore often.
Thank you for opening, revitalizing and offering such a wonderful dining experience at such a resonable price.
Good luck to you!
My husband and I have been coming to the "holiday house" for over 40 years. We now prefer Cook's Buffet. We are frequent diners at Cook's and have NEVER experienced anything like Mr.Ziegler. The salad bar has always been fresh, full and bountiful. The meats are always amazing and fresh. Same goes for the vegetables. Service is almost always superb, once in a while they do get busy, but if our server gets too busy, someone else makes sure that we are helped.
Sometimes I wonder why people have to be so rude and make things seem worse than they are. I am wondering if Mr. Ziegler is ever pleased and if he had the courtesy to speak to a manager. Probably not, instead of giving the restaurant the chance to take care of the issues right then, he felt it necessary to go online and bash them. Is that really fair? I only wrote this review to let people know that usually the negative comments on sites like this are people who are NEVER pleased or too chicken to confront the problem head on.
Cook's is an amazing restaurant, which takes pride in every detail. Don't let negative reviews keep you away from this great dining experience. We will continue to dine there and highly recommend them.
After years of pleasant experiences at (now) Cook's,across from Stetson, we had an unpleasant experience there the other night. Wilted lettuce,no cukes or tomatoes and no dark meat on the turkey. The roast beef had a green line running thru it. The carver was having trouble cutting it so he sharpened the blade but didn't bother to wipe it afterwards.Service was slow, apparently just short-handed.
Upon paying with a credit cardI was asked if I wanted to add something for the waitress. I tip generously,in cash at the table, so I found the question insulting. I was told the machine couldn't total the bill until I answered the question. I've never encountered this anywhere else I used the card. Not sure we'll be going back
Even after reading some of the negative reviews on this restaurant, my family and I decided to go ahead and take our chances. Our first experience was nothing but good. We have come back many more times and have never been disappointed. Yes, we were seated quickly, but that was what we expected. The hostesses have always been great.. I do not understand why everyone expects "all you can eat, all inclusive" pricing. That is why we have an obesity problem in the USA. Personally, I appreciate the fact that I do not have to pay for a beverage or dessert that I do not want. We never go away hungry. The meat portions are large enough to even fill our growing teenagers.It is also wonderful to see that this is a family run business, with the owners son as manager. No where else can you go and get this top quality, well prepared food in a spotlessly clean restaurant for this price. Also, the atmosphere is beautiful and warm.I HIGHLY recommend this restaurant for any occasion.
Great place to enjoy great, quality food, good service at a great price. Decor is beautiful, updated but old house charm and very clean. Take a tour of the kitchen at anytime.
Although it's disappointing that drinks and desserts are charged seperately from the meal, the food is excellent. The 20 foot salad bar is a meal in itself! There's always half a dozen wonderful meat choices to choose from and several vegetable options as well.
They have the best soups and desserts. I wish they offered smaller desserts and included them in the cost of the meal, though.
The staff is wonderful and friendly. Seeing their smiling faces makes the meal that much more enjoyable.
The only other thing I might suggest, is a slightly less rigid atmosphere. I think it would be more enjoyable if the staff weren't so "stiff", sometimes appearing to be standing at attention and in ill fitting, "stuffy" uniforms. A more casual, more relaxed atmosphere would be better for them and the customers. Buffets should be relaxed and fun....it's not a 5 star fancy-smancy restaurant.
But again, the food...is GREAT! Thank you Cook's Buffet.
First I would to say I never have been to resturants that does not honor B-day. I stopped in and was asked how big was our group for the B-day celebration. I never have been asked this before and wondered why it mattered, but if you have a large group and the group's entree price is higher than the person celebrating a B-day then there entree is free. However, if you have a small group your B-day is celebrated with a piece of cake. If you want great food and a wonderful B-day celebration go to De La Vegas(downtown deland). Here you receive a mini punch bowl size margaritta, decorated plate for your b-day, and your picture is taken while you are wearing mexican headpiece. Even if you don't drink at least De La Vegas goes the extra mile to make your B-day special. Birthday's are a celebration and Cook's buffet needs to get with the program.
Unfortunately, there has been a miscommunication in regards to our Birthday Celebration. We think birthdays and anniversarys are very important. Below is how we help you celebrate yur special occasion. •Eat FREE on your birthday (or during your birthday week) With the purchase of 3 full adult buffets. Photo ID required (One birthday per party) •Must call 24 hrs in advance to receive your complimentary Birthday cake and free birthday meal (386)734-4339 Please come and celebrate with us on your next special occasion. We apologize for the confusion. We look forward to seeing you.
We decided after a drive to Deland to get some food and I'd heard of Cook's buffet. However I obviously hadn't heard enough. We were greeted and sat down very quickly then we looked at the menu a small menu of Full Buffet Salad Buffet and Dessert Buffet. I thought this unusual and proceeded to ask the waitress what the buffet included. She then informed us that the meat was limited to one choice for the $9.95 price and that an additional meat selection would be $2.75 per serving. Then she said But you have all the vegatables and Salad you can eat. She said this as if she were proud to be presenting us with such fine cuisine that they charged extra per serving.
We proceeded to the salad buffet area and got our salads my husband was looking to see what might be offered as a meat entre when our waitress came and said Perhaps eat your salads before making any other meal choices. I thought thank you Miss Lunch monitor. She then watched us like a hawk all through dinner. Yet couldn't refill our glasses. Our choices were Velvet Chicken and sauce that tasted like canned cream of mushroom soup with some taragon added. Roast Beef the server offered us Medium? It was more well then medium and very dry. The lamb looked over cooked the ham looked like someone had dumped ketchup on a canned ham then added a pineapple slice with a cherry in the center. My chicken was dry and it was a leg and wing not much wing. The veggies had been in the warmers for so long they were grey and tasteless. After the main course we decided that, at $3.50 per slice of whatever dessert we may want, not to get dessert, we were done. We paid being charged $25+ dollars for the buffet. Now if they had charged me $12.99 or even $15.00 for all I can eat of the buffet, improved their food and saved their employees the embarassment for being food police perhaps they would do better. The area is near Stetson University and I bet a bunch of College kids would love to pay for a better meal then ramen noodles or pizza if offered at a reasonable rate. Chef Robert Irving of Foodnetworks Restaurant Impossible needs to be here to help and fast.
We really had a nice evening at Cooks. The place has been updated since it was Holiday house and it looks great. We were greeted as we came in and were seated right away. The Buffet was nice and it was hard to choose which main course to have. I chose the turkey and stuffing which was really good. It was not dried out like at most places. The roast beef was also good. The boston cream pie is the best. My only complaint is that I wish the Beverages were included in the price. We will return again.
I finally had the chance to eat at Cooks Buffet after all the hype before them opening. Disappointed & disgusted are the 2 best words to describe them. First off I don't know what the young snotty nosed hostess was on or where they found her but after hearing the so called "general manager" (Don I think) make "suggestive" comments to her figured out why she was hired. Don't think he's qualified to manage McD's. Our Server Miranda was the only pleasant experiance as the food itself came up way short for the price. Seems that both brothers now have failed in a building where their Dad excelled. I won't be going back & wouldn't recommend them either.