Visit Date: August 2, 2025

Route 8 is a bit cursed when it comes to Chinese buffets. There was that one at the entrance of the Devlin’s Pointe apartments. Closed. Then there was the one across from the Howard Hanna office by the on ramp to the turnpike. Closed. So when it was announced that a new Chinese buffet was opening in the Kohl’s/Shop ‘n Save plaza in Richland, I was excited but skeptical. 

8 Star Cuisine opened on May 1, 2025, and offers a variety of Chinese food and sushi in an all you can eat style. The restaurant is really beautiful on the inside, with lots of seating (booths and tables), with a stunning faux tree as its focal point. It’s definitely has some of the best ambiance of any Chinese buffets I’ve been to. There’s a lot of seating, as well as a semi-private table that seats 10. 

The buffet food is served in round containers with lids, and they’re kept at a warm but not scalding hot temperature. Some dishes are not covered and served on platters under a warming lamp. This did result in some of the food becoming room temperature or cold by the time I got back to my table and ate, but I’m also a slower eater so take that with a grain of salt. One interesting thing we noticed was that the food is served in smaller portions than your average buffet, which probably allows for greater quality control and frequent refills. 

One of the things I was impressed with was the selection of dim sum items, which are not normally found on Chinese buffets. There were around 8-10 items, ranging from pork and vegetable dumplings to seafood shu mai to more adventurous chicken feet and my favorite, soup dumplings. 

The restaurant had a wide variety of Chinese foods, something that I haven’t noticed at other Chinese buffets, which seem to exclusively cater to the American palette. In addition to chicken feet, there was also pig ear salad, as well as some other more authentic Chinese dishes. This would be a great place to go to if you’re looking to try out some different dishes without the commitment of ordering a full entree off of a menu. 

Highlights for us were the soup dumplings, sauteed garlic green beans, lo mein, and crab rangoons. Sam also liked that sushi taco pictured above.

The buffet also included an assortment of sushi rolls, maybe about 8-10. The majority of the sushi is found on a separate menu, from which you can order as much as you want. This setup is similar to Sushi Bomb in Robinson, which results in (supposedly) fresh, made to order sushi. We ordered more sushi rolls than we could comfortably eat, but it was great quality with a good rice to filling ratio. 

At $36.95 per person, and $90.93 after tip and tax, this certainly wasn’t a cheap dinner for us. The big question when it comes to buffets is: is it worth it? From a quality perspective, I would say that this is one of the higher quality ones, with frequent refills and fresh seafood. However, if you do not eat seafood (crab legs) or sushi, then I don’t feel that this is good value for you. The bufffet had good variety, but not enough non-seafood options for it to be worth the almot $40 price tag. We are interested in trying out this place for lunch, which is at a significantly lower price ($20) to see what the offerings are and if it’s better value – we assume that there will not be the more expensive options available. But if you do like seafood and sushi, then we think this is a great spot for you!

Overall, we would definitely be repeat visitors to 8 Star Cuisine, just not when we’re looking for a dinner on a budget. The quality and variety is excellent for a buffet, and we feel it’s a great offering to the local scene. We hope it’s able to beat the Route 8 Chinese buffet curse!

WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU:

Do you remember all of the Chinese buffets along Route 8 over the years? Do you have a favorite one? What do you think of 8 Star Cuisine – will you be paying them a visit? What should be our next Pittsburgh restaurant review? Let us know in the comments!