The overall mood of the restaurant really complements the authenticity of the food. Large tables and smaller padded booths are available to comfortably accommodate parties of any size.

Just finished class. Finally have a chance to eat. All of the restaurants in the Union have ridiculously long lines. Well, except for the pizza place. But, if you have pizza again, you’ll need both hands to count how many times you’ve had it this week.

You’re starving. You weren’t hungry in the morning, but you spent the entire time in your last class wishing you would have eaten something. Sound familiar?

I don’t have an actual percentage of people who can relate to the example above. But, trust me your not the only one who looks at the line for Taco Bell and mutters an obscenity under your breath.

To my friends in the dorms, I know it’s hard to travel, and it’s not even winter yet. You’ve probably consumed more Chipotle and sweet onion sauce last week than you have your in your entire life. Stop eating sandwiches everyday and stop wasting your meal plan on stuff you could easily make yourself. Treat yourself to something different once in awhile.

Whether you’re a student that depends on the bus for transportation or if you are lucky enough to have a car, Lin’s Buffet on Capitol is the place to go.

It is located on Richards Street, just a block west of the Wal-Mart inside of a strip mall. The 62 bus is your best bet on getting there and it begins its route by the Union and has a stop in front of Sandburg Hall.

The overall mood of the restaurant really complements the authenticity of the food. Large tables and smaller padded booths are available to comfortably accommodate parties of any size.

Lin’s also goes past presenting simple and clichéd Chinese decorations. The walls are covered with beautiful traditional paintings. The restaurant also includes an attention-grabbing chandelier that was made in Beijing.

The buffet includes two hot bars filled with authentic Chinese cuisine like: shrimp fried rice, General Tso’s chicken, teriyaki chicken, sautéed mushrooms, breaded chicken, sweet biscuits, mixed vegetables and a lot more.

The hot bars also include some American favorites such as: fries, garlic bread and pizza.

It also contains one cold bar filled with Desserts and Fruits: pudding, Jell-O, crème puffs, watermelon, cantaloupe, orange slices and cookies just to name a few. It also is equipped with a small salad bar.

A large variety of food to choose from and it’s a buffet. Did I mention that it only $5.99 for lunch and $7.99 for dinner. Compare that to the price of one plate at Chin’s or Qudoba. Plus, drinks are free at Lin’s with your school ID.

Lin‘s Buffet disproves the common stereotype of cheap food equating to bad food. The authentic Chinese cuisine in the buffet is good enough to make you crave it later.

Lin’s is probably not the best place to go if you only have 50 minutes in-between classes to eat. But it is ideal for days that end early, or days that consist of a long break.

While most buffets increase their prices on the weekend, Lin’s keeps theirs at $7.99, which makes it one of the best places to bring a large group of starving friends.

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