Teriyaki chicken awaits diners at the China Sun Buffet in Bend.

Can someone please explain to me the term New York-style buffet?

I mean, unless it features cheesecake, thin-crust pizza or Nathans hot dogs, I cant imagine that a buffet spread in the Big Apple would be a whole lot different than one anywhere else in the country, especially a Chinese restaurant in Bend.

In fact, the China Sun Buffet located in the ShopKo Plaza next to Bend River Promenade does have pizza and cheesecake, though not very good pizza or cheesecake. It also has sushi, tempura and other Japanese dishes, though, frankly, they are not very good, either. And it has lots of mediocre American-style salads and sweets.

When you try to please everyone, too often you dont do everything well.

Thats why China Sun, even though it calls itself a New York-style buffet, should stick to Chinese food, which it often does quite well, particularly in the spicier southwestern styles of Hunan and Szechuan.

Nice space, good value

China Sun is indeed one of the most attractive Chinese restaurants in Central Oregon. Remodeled in March 2008, it is bright and spacious, with a ring of fluorescent lights circling the ceiling above six broad C-shaped serving tables. Nearby, a 12-foot fountain flows into a tiny koi pond, and a small salt-water fish tank near the entrance attracts the attention of young children and their parents.

In fact, the mood is somewhat like Ive seen in movies that depict Shanghai in the 1930s; even the background music that plays at China Sun is from the big-band era. The restaurant is well-tended and tables cleared as frequently as possible, given the constant comings and goings of buffet diners.

You dont have to have a buffet meal at China Sun; at lunch, indeed, there are a variety of excellent combination plates for no more than $9.25. But the price of the buffet ($7.95, down from $9.95 for a limited but uncertain length of time) makes it a treasure for culinary bargain hunters.

At dinner, likewise, the standard price of $13.95 per person has been lowered to $10.95, and two people can eat for $13.95 with a coupon found on the restaurants Web site.

Not including the sushi bar, more than 60 entree items are available: meats, seafood and vegetarian foods among them.

Table service isnt top priority in a buffet-style restaurant, but the servers here are friendly and efficient in taking drink orders and in delivering any food additional to buffet items. Theyre also prompt with the check at the end of the meal.

Two thumbs down

During my first midday visit to China Sun, I was joined by my brother, who had stopped over in Bend for a few days. As a 30-plus-year resident of Japan, hes well schooled in Asian cuisines. We both agreed that the sushi and tempura were dreadful.

Although China Sun has a head-banded sushi chef sitting behind that particular buffet table, the vinegared rice a key ingredient in all sushi was stale tasting. Said my brother: The rice isnt very good. In fact, its pretty bad. Certainly, even when fish is fresh, its flavor can be trumped by mediocre rice.

Tempura vegetables were presented in a very thick and greasy batter. One taste and we both pushed them aside. And salmon (in this case, farm-raised North Atlantic salmon) was overcooked and lacking in moisture.

Better Chinese food

So much for the Japanese side of the menu. The Chinese food was better. I liked the hot-and-sour soup, a tangy mix with tofu, fungi and bean sprouts. The egg-flower soup was not as tasty; I thought it had too much corn starch.

The buffet had an odd selection of dim sum, those bite-size dumplings so popular in Canton and Hong Kong. The siu mai (pork in a flour wrapper) were decent, and the char siu bau (steamed pork buns) were pretty good; but the lo mai gai (minced meat and rice wrapped in a lotus leaf) was pure mush. And an unlabeled bun with a sweet-bean filling came as an undesired surprise.

Although the buffets pot of fried rice was too dry, the steamed rice was good, and most of the standard Chinese entree dishes were excellent. Entrees such as pepper steak with onion, General Tsos chicken and Szechuan shrimp were worth second trips through the buffet, even though the latter was made spicier with sliced jalapeno peppers, certainly a departure from typical Chinese menus.

And the green beans, steamed with bacon and stone-ground mustard, were something Id return for again. In general, in fact, China Suns vegetables were superb, cooked to just the right level of crunchiness.

Haven for crab lovers

When I returned for a dinner with two companions, we had planned to order off the menu, ignoring the buffet. But when one friend insisted on peeking at the buffet returning to our table with the pronouncement that she couldnt pass up the mound of king crab legs she had seen our plan went out the window.

By the time she had finished her crab, which she felt would have cost her at least $20, by itself, at any other restaurant, she only lamented not having a finger bowl at our table.

My friends teenage son, who is a choosy eater, wasnt thrilled about China Suns lo mein noodles. He called them rubbery. But he liked the chicken skewers as well as the teriyaki chicken. Its overcooked, his mother noted, but its not bad … because it tastes like jerky!

Another glitch was with the bacon-wrapped shrimp: The crustaceans had not been shelled before they were wrapped and baked, with a result that diners bit into the meat to get a mouthful of shell. Thats a problem that could be easily remedied with a little more thought from the kitchen.

A parting observation: If you plan to go to China Sun for its dinner buffet, plan to arrive no later than about 6:30 p.m. I noted that as the evening wore on, the serving plates were not often replenished and untouched food was getting dry under the hot lights of the New York-style buffet.

SMALL BITES

Redmonds Country Nook has moved into the former Big O restaurant space, and it has renamed itself the Big O Country Nook Cafe . Still serving home-style American cuisine, three meals a day, the cafe makes its own pies and cinnamon rolls. The new location features a fully licensed bar and lounge. Open 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday to Wednesday, 6 a.m. to midnight Thursday to Saturday. 325 N.W. Fifth St., Redmond; 541-923-2213.

RECENT REVIEWS

Zydeco Kitchen + Cocktails (A): Having moved in April to a luxurious if understated new space in downtown Bend, Zydeco does everything well. Service is professional and attentive, perhaps the best in Central Oregon. Highlights of the menu, best described as gourmet American with Southern flair, include grilled redfish and barbecued shrimp. Open 5 p.m. to close every day. 919 N.W. Bond St., Bend; 541-312-2899, www.zydecokitchen.com.

Allysons Kitchen (B): A sophisticated kitchenware store that offers gourmet cooking classes in The Old Mill District, Allysons serves breakfast and lunch in its cafe-delicatessen. Midday soups, salads and sandwiches are excellent, but the breakfast menu needs improvement, as do service and ambience. Open 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. 375 S.W. Powerhouse Drive, Bend; 541-749-9974, www .allysonskitchen.com.

Pine Marten Lodge (A-): Offering panoramic sunset views across the Three Sisters, the highest-elevation full-service restaurant in the Pacific Northwest, at 7,775 feet, serves gourmet dinners every Friday and Saturday night through Labor Day. Service is highly professional and prices moderate, although chairlift tickets are $12 a head. Lunch 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday to Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday; dinner 5 to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday. 13000 S.W. Century Drive, Mt. Bachelor, Bend; 541-382-2442, www.mtbachelor.com.

Sargents Cafe (B+): Homespun service and hundreds of menu options have given this traditional breakfast-and-lunch diner a steady clientele for decades. The food is only average in quality, but its hard to beat the value, with few dishes priced higher than $9. Check out the display case selling hobby crafts made by longtime employees. Open 6 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. every day. 719 S.E. Third St., Bend; 541-382-3916.