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Ratings and reviews

RATINGS
Food
Service
Value
Atmosphere

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CUISINES
Chinese, Asian
Special Diets
Vegetarian Friendly
Meals
Lunch, Dinner
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Reviews (86)
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30
22
13
12
9
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LanguageEnglish
Traveller rating
30
22
13
12
9
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Reviewed September 16, 2022

I ate here twicw, once for lunch and then for their buffet at dinner. Lunch should have been the indicator. I ordered 2 egg rolls and the house special soup. First the egg rolls are made using spring roll wrappers. No bean sprouts or other...recognizable ingredients, just a mash, in a spring roll wrapper. The soup, was bland, similsr to pork bone broth. There was supposed to be chicken, shrimp and beef, the pieces are so small, hard to recognize them. The wontons contained no meat, just wonton wrappers. Altough they have many dishes on the buffet, most are chicken. The chow mein had no been sprouts so not sure this would be consdered chow mein. The one shrimp dish was so overcooked, the shrimp were nsrd and rubbery. I would not recommend this restaurant.More

Date of visit: September 2022
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Reviewed September 5, 2022

Told to seat ourselves and we walked around the restaurant aimlessly trying to find a booth that was decently lit. Drinks took 15 minutes to arrive yet the place was almost empty and there were 6 servers walking around. We sat at our booth for...15 minutes waiting for a menu or drinks...... we didn't even know if the buffet was open (due to Covid Restrictions) but we saw a customer eating from the buffett so we asked another server if the buffet was open. The conversation was very awkward as she did not speak english (this is not a racist comment, she genuinely did not speak english at all and was embarrassed that she couldn't understand us but tried to engage with us anyways.... and it was PAINFUL. Why have someone attending tables if if you can’t communicate). We decided to wait until our drinks arrived to ask OUR server IF the buffet was open and IF so HOW MUCH. 15 minutes later we decided, screw it, and took to the buffet. Minutes later our server was around and we asked how much... $29.99 PER PERSON. Crazy. The dishes tasted like they were old, my boyfriend ate pork and spit it out. The kung pow chicken was okay as were the onion rings and there was a great BBQ chicken dish at the back of the buffet that was not labelled. Other than that the most of the dishes were terrible. There was NO service at all yet there were like 6 or 7 staff walking around. We were only given one napkin each no napkins at the table, no drink top up until we got up to leave. My iced tea tasted like the machine was broken. Highway robbery $30 per person. They purposely don’t tell you how much the buffet is. $30 for cafeteria like, day old Chinese food and NO FORTUNE COOKIE. I know this restaurants fortune: “A big change is in your future”…. this place won’t survive if it keeps running the way it is.More

Date of visit: September 2022
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Reviewed August 21, 2022

If you find this review helpful, please let us know by clicking the like button below! Thank you! Online ordering is confusing and hard to do. Ordered dinner for 8. Food was OK but not exceptional with most dishes very average flavour. We certainly had...a wide variety! There are better around town.More

Date of visit: July 2022
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Reviewed May 7, 2022

The food was okay. Nothing to write home about. They also no longer have sushi and roasted duck like they used to for the dinner menu. You’re paying more for less food. Would not recommend.

Date of visit: May 2022
Helpful?2  
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Reviewed January 18, 2021

went online to get take out order and was the most confusing web site ,spent half hour trying to fin menu only found appetizers gave up and called instead. after several call mail box was full . called another place!!!

Date of visit: November 2020
Helpful?1  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed November 18, 2020

Had their new all you can eat buffet tonight --- you order small portions, as many as you want from a menu for as long as you want, for a fixed price. I have liked this place for years, and I must say that all...of my favourite dishes (in particular, the general tso chicken) are even better served this way. Food was all great and the table service was excellent and very attentive without being distracting. A bit pricey, yes, but it is perhaps the new face of all you can eat buffets in these Covid times, and I like it very, very much. I hope others agree, and that this continues.More

Date of visit: November 2020
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Reviewed March 30, 2020 via mobile

The front counter attendant was very over-worked and looked stressed. The food was okay nothing really special.

Date of visit: April 2019
Helpful?1  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed December 15, 2019

Got take out, was expecting just average food but very pleasantly surprised. Chicken fried Rice was excellent, lemon chicken delicious breaking, chicken with cashews very flavourful. All veggies very fresh and tasty. Great value as cheaper than some other places.

Date of visit: December 2019
Helpful?2  
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Reviewed October 22, 2019

We were very pleasantly surprised with The quality of this Chinese food. All dishes we ordered were hot, flavourful, and contained generous portions of meat and vegetables. Rather than ordering from the buffet we ordered from the menu, which we believe gives better quality than...the buffet fare.More

Date of visit: September 2019
Helpful?1  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed September 8, 2019

Plenty of food and deserts. Good Cantonese dishes and wings etc. Realistic family dining at a good price. Value for your dollar and no need to go elsewhere and pay more for same items.

Date of visit: July 2019
Helpful?2  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed August 27, 2019

I work on the road alot, and nothing fixes my schedule like a buffet-type restaurant. However, more often than not, I walk in such a restaurant and get disappointed by either the food quality, availability and/or cleanliness. Well, folks, this place is a jewel. It...is an honest deal, and one of the cleanest buffet restaurants I've been to in a while. The wings are my top three list, all restaurant types combined. Congrats!More

Date of visit: August 2019
Helpful?1  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed June 28, 2019 via mobile

Went to City Light on a very busy Sunday night (Father’s Day). The place was packed when we arrived. The buffet had a lot of selections but the dishes were mostly bland and tasted the same. Many items were low or out eg no wontons...in the wonton soup. Service was very impersonal - except for one young man who actually spoke to us when he picked up empty plates. Will not return.More

Date of visit: June 2019
Helpful?2  
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Reviewed June 4, 2019

We’ve been here many times and the food has not been great this past year. The dishes are not as nice and seem cheaper. Also food seems to run out on the buffet and they do not fill it up. We won’t be back here.

Date of visit: May 2019
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Reviewed May 31, 2019 via mobile

Went today for lunch and was disappointed. The dishes I tried were okay and some of it looked too unappealing to try. So I stuck to the basics. Dessert bar skimpy. I have been to better Chinese buffets in St. John's. Staff are good. Will...not be back.More

Date of visit: May 2019
Helpful?2  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed May 6, 2019

I always approach buffets the same way....some food will be hot, some warm and maybe some a bit cold or dried out from sitting... No restaurant can possibly keep so many things hot at fresh at the same time. City Lights did a pretty good...job. Lots of fresh tasty items and I was very pleased with most choices... I even had the frog legs and duck 1st for both!!!! You will need about 4 plates fulls to try everything and lots of dessert option too!! Good service quickly seated and dirty plates quickly removed.More

Date of visit: May 2019
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Questions & Answers
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Marg F
April 7, 2017|
AnswerShow all 2 answers
Response from nomoremould | Reviewed this property |
yes ,,,,find them very friendly ,,eager to help ,,,,have not had a bad visit there
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CITY LIGHT RESTAURANT, St. John's - Menu, Prices & Restaurant Reviews - Tripadvisor

Frequently Asked Questions about City Light Restaurant

Yes, City Light Restaurant offers takeaway services.

City Light Restaurant is rated accordingly in the following categories by Tripadvisor travellers:
  • Food: 4
  • Service: 4
  • Value: 4
  • Atmosphere: 4